Published in the November 2006 Australia's Mining Monthly

I had dinner recently with friends and it struck me as curious that of the four trained mining engineers at the table, none of us were still in mining; we were all in alternate careers and living comfortably in an urban environment.

One is an investment banker funding mining developments; the next is a specialist in mining stocks; another is leveraging her MBA to start a business helping small businesses get started and grow; and then there is me.

I used my mining salary to build a large property portfolio and now through my own mortgage broking business, I help others do the same.

Interestingly, we all started out as mining engineers but each of us leveraged further learning or “on the job” experience to move into another profession.

This phenomenon got me to thinking – there is much said about Generation Y’s lack of commitment to a solid career, but looking around the table I wondered if we were that different.

In early September, I had the opportunity to speak to a group of Gen Ys when I was invited to the University of New South Wales to give a talk to final year mining engineering students about what they could expect from a career in the mining industry.

This is what I told them: “The company you are about to join will, by no means, be the last; it is just the first step in your career. Enjoy it and take advantage of every opportunity you’re given.”

When I first started in mining, Rob Neil, a wise general manager said to me: “You’ve just spent four years at university where they taught you how to learn; now it’s my job to teach you what you need to know.”

New graduates, keep in mind that you are not expected to know everything straight away but it is important that you watch, listen and learn by doing what you are asked to do … no matter how trivial or menial.

Finally, on a more general note, something I know from my own experience: a high salary, while liberating at first, can leave you trapped in a cycle of debt you may never escape (unless you learn to manage your money).

I know this because I heartily embraced my lifestyle (and salary) both in and away from mining towns.

It was not until I made the decision to make my money work for me rather than the other way around, that the cycle of bad debt was broken. Going from $10,000 per annum to $70,000pa brings many changes and decisions.

I was struck during my talk by just how young these graduates appear. Some looked as if they wouldn’t survive a week labouring underground next to guys called ‘Killer’, ‘Gazza’ or ‘Horse’, but the fact of the matter is we all started there and we survived.

This got me to thinking about the likes of Killer, Gazza and Horse. T

hese guys were there for the long haul and every few years a bright-faced new engineer, geologist or surveyor turned up, they were shown the ropes and then they moved on, leaving the “old timers” behind.

Looking back, I am impressed with the patience of these “lifers”. They must have experienced an ongoing sense of déjà vu or even “ground hog day”.

It also made me think that while my recent dinner companions had all left the industry, numerous others have rightly chosen to stay.

Many who’ve been in the industry for 10 years or more and are onto their third (or fourth or fifth) mine suddenly come to realise there is a life choice to be made: 1) “Moving dirt” is fun and as long as the challenges keep coming, it’s a good game to be in; or 2) “I’ve moved enough dirt, what else is there?”

Perhaps a short course, an MBA or even a move into a whole new profession? Regardless of whether you’ve stayed in the industry, moved to an associated field or out of mining altogether, I’m betting you remember what a great start the industry provided.

You were surrounded by competent and interesting individuals (remember Horse and his pals?); you entered an environment that was prepared to teach those willing to learn; your salary gave you a lifestyle most could only dream of; and best of all, you got paid to dig holes and fill them up again.

Jane Slack-Smith spent 18 years within the mining industry before leaving to set up Investors Choice Mortgages. She was one of the first women to legally work in a New South Wales underground coal mine and became the first woman in NSW to be appointed an opencut examiner.