The Hard Truths of 30 Years in Disability and Workers Compensation
Rosa built a career, and eventually a business, across more than 30 years in disability and workplace rehabilitation in Australia. She has worked with clients, employers, and insurers through some of the most challenging moments of their lives. What she carries from that experience is not a list of achievements. It is a set of values, hard tested over decades, that shaped not just how she worked but who she became.
The career advice she wishes she had heard earlier: kindness is not soft, it is strategic
Ask Rosa what she would tell her younger self and the answer does not start with qualifications or networking or climbing the ladder. It starts with kindness. Be kind. Respect everyone, especially those with more experience. Empathise with the person in front of you. Do not assume your way is the only way.
In a sector built around supporting vulnerable people, this is not just good advice. It is the foundation of the work itself. But she applies it far beyond her industry. People continue to surprise her. She has learned, over 30 years, not to judge a book by its cover. Give people a second chance. Listen before you speak. Let the evidence speak before you form a conclusion.
"Be a good listener and not a big talker."
Rosa on the most underrated professional skill in any Australian workplaceIf you have a good career, give something back to it
Her advice to those in the middle of their careers is direct: if you have found something worth doing, do not just turn up. Put everything into it. Aim to make your job, your team, and your industry better for having been there.
And if it is not the right fit? Do not stay out of comfort or fear. Apply for roles where your skillset will actually be appreciated. The Australian job market has space for people who know their worth and are willing to find the right environment for it.
If you are not sure where your skills could take you, a career coaching session can help you see your options more clearly before making a move.
From chasing money to building a life: how her definition of success changed
In her 30s and 40s, success looked familiar. How much she could earn. Whether she would reach management level. The same markers most ambitious Australians measure themselves against early in their careers.
That definition shifted. Work-life balance became the real priority. And then she did something that changed everything: she started her own business. "Starting my own business was the best thing I did in my 30s," she says, but she is careful to add the caveat that not everyone is built for it. Success, she now believes, is about finding what you are genuinely good at and excelling within that, regardless of what it looks like to anyone else.
It is not how much you make, she says. It is how you use what you have.
Stop stewing: tackle the hard thing first and move on
One of the most practical pieces of career advice Rosa offers is about how to handle the hardest parts of your day. Her observation, built over decades of complex client work, is that people waste enormous energy worrying about mistakes and putting off difficult decisions.
Her approach is simpler. Own your mistakes. Tackle the hardest task first. Once you get through the most difficult part of your day, everything else becomes manageable. Stewing over hard decisions is a waste of time and energy. Apologise when you need to, then move forward.
"Once you tackle the hardest part of your job first the rest of the day is a breeze."
Rosa on managing the mental load of a demanding careerThe financial lesson most working Australians learn too late
When asked what working Australians do not prioritise enough, her answer is unambiguous: superannuation and investment. Put more money away while you are still earning. Do not wait until retirement is close to start thinking about what retirement actually costs.
It is a practical, unglamorous piece of advice. And it is one of the most important things in this entire series. The freedom that retirement offers is only as real as the financial foundation underneath it.
Pick up the phone. Never hide behind your computer.
This one she feels strongly about. In three decades of working with clients, employers, and insurance companies, she has watched email communication create misunderstandings that a two minute phone call would have resolved instantly. Her rule is simple: pick up the phone. Talk to people. Never get drawn into an email war. It is toxic, it is destructive, and it almost never ends well for anyone involved.
Talking to someone over the phone can easily solve a misunderstanding. It is a reminder that the fundamentals of good professional communication have not changed, no matter how many digital tools we add on top of them.
She always backed herself. Here is why that matters.
Asked whether there were moments she wished she had backed herself more, her answer is one of the most confident in this entire series: no. She always backed herself. That self-belief, she reflects, was not arrogance. It was a decision. A choice to trust her own judgment, take calculated risks, and own the outcomes whatever they were.
For anyone in the Australian workforce who finds that kind of confidence difficult to access, it is worth noting that it does not always come naturally. Sometimes it is built through experience, through mentors, and through making decisions and surviving them.
Semi-retirement on her own terms
When the time came to step back, it felt like relief more than loss. Someone else was now responsible for the accounts, the staff, the compliance. The weight she had carried as a business owner lifted. But she did not walk away entirely. She still carries a small caseload of clients. She still mentors and trains when called upon.
It is a version of retirement that suits her exactly: still connected to the work she loves, still giving back to the profession she spent 30 years building, just without the pressure that used to come with it.
Feeling stuck in your career? Here is what 30 years of experience says
Her advice for anyone who feels trapped or stagnant is practical and actionable. Consider retraining. Go back to study and make yourself valuable in a niche area. Talk to your manager about what other roles might be available internally. And if none of that is possible, be willing to look externally for somewhere your skills will actually be valued.
If you are not sure where to start, CareerAide's assisted job search and career transition services are designed for exactly this moment.
