Just like any other successful career person, Chamy Gracia, went through a lot of difficult and challenging times before she reached her dream of becoming a top-notch executive of an electrical firm. She has a lot of stories to tell from her frustrating first stint as a sales officer up to the time when she was promoted to hold a key position in the company she served as temp.

Chamy, who is at her early 30’s, revealed that the ‘small jobs’ that she had as temp in different companies paved the way for the ‘bigger’ career she now have. After more than five years of doing temporary gigs, Chamy is now considered as one of the company’s decision makers.

“It was really not easy doing temporary jobs. After a couple of months or so, I hopped from one company to the other doing different workloads. I became a sales officer, a telemarketer, a market researcher, an executive assistant until I found a bright spot in sales. And doing various works for different companies greatly contributed in my career. I met a lot of key people and my ‘rich’ list of contacts is helping me in my career now,” narrates Chamy.

Here are the key and basic rules we found in Chamy’s book of temping on how you could turn your temporary job into a permanent position:

Be proud of being a temp – Don’t think temporary workers as ‘small time’ professionals. When you decide to do temp jobs, be proud of it and always do your best. Take every work opportunity to showcase what you’ve got. Let your skills shine eventhough you know that you would only work for a certain period of time. When you are te able to show your value, it is likely that company would see the ‘need’ of your service for a longer period of time or even for good.

Always make yourself available in doing ‘more’ works – show your readiness to work more than what is expected of you. Arrive on time and display ‘energy’ in doing your job. Offer help to your workmates or even to you boss when you have extra time to spare. They will surely appreciate your good gestures and your enthusiasm at work. And their good feedback could be a good sounding board for you to clinch a permanent position in the company.

Dress for the job. Make extra effort to look good and dress perfectly for the job. It is important that you fit yourself in the ‘dress culture’ of the company you work for. Remember, you’re aspiring to be a part of the company and it is but appropriate that you dress like the permanent employees.

Network. Temping is an excellent opportunity to widen your network and establish contacts with possible employers. Eventhough you are not considered to take permanent positions, keep your contacts and continue to communicate with them as it is still possible for the company to hire you the next time around or they could even help you in your future jobs.

Win your boss and workmates’ hearts. Establishing rapport and good relationship with the people you work with is one of the keys in keeping a job. The company who would consider you for a permanent position will look at how you interact with your workmates and how well you fit in the organization. If they see that you get along well with them, then it will increase your chances of being considered for permanent employment.

Be vocal of your ‘want’ to be a part of the company – let your temporary employment agency and the company you were placed know how much you like your job and your ‘want’ keeping it. If you think you’re doing well and you feel that the company is appreciating your work, ask them to consider hiring you permanently. As it is, it is better to be vocal about your desire and take risks than leave the situation with ‘what ifs.’

Lastly, don’t despair when you failed to get a permanent job despite giving your best effort. Keep going! Use your experiences in temporary gigs in improving yourself, harnessing your skills and in finding your ‘bright spot’ in the marketplace. Who knows, you could be the next most sought-after professional in your field of expertise!

Good luck!