One of the toughest things about working in the mining industry can be the relocation. If you’re young, chances are you’re going to be put in a new town that’s unfamiliar. You’re working long hours and don’t know many people, so it can be tough to settle in.
Ben Hewlett of Endeavor/CBH has been in sunny Cobar, NSW for more than six years now. While small country towns are his particular forte, he still has some salient advice for those who may find themselves in an unfamiliar place.
His first point: get yourself out there.
“If you’re a young fella and you want to live on the coast and do the fly-in-fly-out, or drive-in-drive-out, by all means, do it. But don’t have the blinkers on when you come into town,” Ben says. It’s all too easy for new transplants to keep themselves entirely wrapped up with work and nearly nothing else.
But this is where depression and loneliness can set in. You need to have a solid social foundation if you’re going to make the best of your time in a new town. Making friends, while a daunting task for anyone, doesn’t have to be that difficult. The key is to use your hobbies to your advantage. If you’re a rugby player, join the local rugby squad. If you’re a soccer player, drop in on the town’s team.
Even if you’re not an athlete, there are things for you to do. Like driving motorbikes? Take your bike out for a spin off the beaten path and see if you can strike up a conversation with some locals. If you’re from the city, you’ll find that people in the country are incredibly easy to talk to and aren’t completely obsessed with their work and what’s right in front of them. They have a slower, more appreciative take on life, and are happy to chat with a new out-of-towner who is looking to make some friends.
The community-driven aspect of a small town is what makes living in the country so great. Ben himself, though not a Cobar local, has completely ingrained himself in the local community. He’s involved in numerous charities and events like the “Running On Empty” car movie festival. Though not everybody needs to be the big man in the town like Ben, he’s a great example of how someone can move to an entirely new town and become a beloved member of the community.
At the end of the day, your new town — like so many other things in life — is entirely what you make of it. It’s your choice: be a work-centred homebody, or have the time of your life in a new community.
Listen to my entire conversation with Ben here.
