A call by a global airline brought a bevy of young women across Kenya to Nairobi, keen to get hired as flight attendants.
The high turnout underscores the fact that airlines are always hiring.
It also points to the high level of confidence and self-esteem required as this is a job for beautiful and highly sociable people.
Beauty, however, is an interesting topic and many people differ on what can be termed beautiful. Airlines tend to favour candidates who fit international standards of beauty. While a flight attendant’s job seems to be about looks, here are a few points worth noting if this is your dream job:
Join beauty pageant
That beauty is big business is no secret. The many modelling agencies that churn out beauty queens every year confirm this. Most of the training centres require their candidates to fit a certain mould that is similar to what airlines demand. For every beauty queen, thousands fall by the wayside — a cliché that everyone is a winner is true for beauty pageants.
According to Terry Mungai of Ashley’s Kenya, the Miss World Kenya franchise holder, whenever she flies, she feels at home. “I meet so many girls who participated in the pageant who call me Mummy working for airlines across the world.”
Being in a pageant builds self-esteem and gives one grooming, make-up, and skincare tips. This skills help one accentuate his/her good points. And for airlines that demand that attendants look their best, this is the first place they turn to because they know they will get a refined product.
Performing arts
Participating in theatre production, television drama, or featuring in adverts gives one a competitive advantage, too.
The assumption is that for one to participate, they are likely to be individuals with high self-monitoring skills allowing them to fit in all situations and interact with people from different cultures. Most notable is thespian Lizz Njaga, who worked with Dubai-based Emirates.
Become a ground hostess
It makes sense to practise on the ground in order to work as an air hostess. By working in hotels that host airline staff, for instance, you are at an advantage because you may establish contacts with an airline executive who has the ability to see you move from a simple hotel waiter to a flight attendant.
Get hired
Airlines invest a lot of training in attendants and quite often, they poach their rival’s crew. Many airlines have an open-door policy and will accept attendants from their competitor. Therefore, by working for a small airline, you establish a good basis from which your dream to join a global carrier could become a reality.
Airlines too, seek a multitude of skills that are not expressly stated in a vacancy advert. For instance:
Languages
Airlines expect customers from all walks of life. The ideal jobholder should ably speak the customers’ language. Most express a preference for multi- lingual candidates, although they classify this as an added advantage.
Swimming and first aid skills
For candidates who make it past the preliminary round of interviews, one could face a physical fitness examination that includes a swimming test. Notably, many flight paths are over oceans, forests, and vast deserts. In the unfortunate event of an air crash, swimming and first aid skills may make the difference between life and death.
Gender
Times have changed and while the air hostess was a moniker for flight attendant, social and economic empowerment has seen women constitute a large part of airlines’ customers, therefore opening up opportunities for men to work as attendants as well.
Therefore, rather than wait for that ever-elusive call for flight attendants, get busy doing something that will set you on the path to meeting an airline scout and, thereby, smiling your way to the skies.
0 comments:
Post a Comment