Dubai Job Search: The Prize and the Pitfalls
Dubai can transform your career - if you get the basics right before you board the plane.
Spend any time on LinkedIn, Facebook expat groups, or job seeker forums, and you’ll see the same patterns play out:
Job seekers asking for “any referrals” or “any advice” days before boarding a plane to Dubai.
So-called “experts” giving advice that is vague at best and damaging at worst (I must stress there are, of course, also many who give great guidance).
The result? Failure stories. People arrive in Dubai unprepared, burn through savings, face rejection fatigue, and eventually leave disheartened.
There are success stories too, and when they happen, the prize is big. A successful career move to Dubai can mean life-changing opportunities, both professionally and personally. But those wins don’t come from luck. They come from strategy, patience, and preparation.
The Scattergun Problem
In a recent LinkedIn post, I shared my frustration at mass-application approaches. Sending 500+ CVs doesn’t signal effort … it signals a lack of even a basic strategy.
The truth is, there simply aren’t 500 roles you are genuinely qualified for. And even if there were, blanket applications with generic CVs don’t impress recruiters. They only guarantee silence, rejection, and wasted energy.
The alternative? Targeted, thoughtful applications supported by CVs that showcase accomplishments and are tailored to the role. Quality always beats quantity.
Why This Matters to Me
For years, trusted friends, clients, and colleagues have suggested that I share my experiences to help job seekers prepare for Dubai. Run workshops, give speeches, and generally get more involved.
I resisted. But the steady stream of bad advice online, and the very real consequences for job seekers, has convinced me it’s time to step up.
Introducing Dubai Discovery – Work in Dubai
That’s why I’m launching Dubai Discovery – Work in Dubai, my first in-person event in the UK.
Birmingham | 11th November | Two interactive sessions
This event is for UK professionals who are considering, or actively preparing for, a career move to the UAE. It won’t be generic. It won’t be theory. It will be practical, experience-based guidance that helps job seekers:
- Understand how the UAE job market really works.
- Build a smart strategy for the job search.
- Be patient, prepared, and realistic about timelines.
- Recognise that moving to Dubai is a personal investment, a huge career and life decision that requires both planning and budget.
- Avoid the costly mistakes so many others make.
Because while Dubai offers opportunity on a scale few places can match, success only comes when you treat the move as seriously as it deserves.
This is just the first announcement; more details to follow soon.
Dubai can change your life. But only if you go in with eyes open: prepared, planned, and patient.
This event is about giving job seekers the knowledge to approach Dubai with confidence, not guesswork.
That’s what I’ll be sharing at Dubai Discovery – Work in Dubai.
