Jamie Oliver recently made a surprise visit to the Masterchef Australia kitchen, to compete in a challenge against contestants. What followed was a lot of tears, screams, and gratitudes directed towards Jamie about his influence and contributions to the culinary world.

‘Jamie – you are the reason I’m here’.  One of the overwhelmed contestants gushes.

Jamie Oliver clearly resonated with the contestants and they look up to him as being a role model who has been extremely successful within his field. They aspire for a career similar to that which he has carved out for himself.

What effect would this encounter have on their careers in coming years? This was clearly a career highlight for the contestants, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cook with him. Simply watching, observing, and taking feedback from Jamie would provide a career boost which cannot be learnt on the job or from reading a textbook. I’m confident that this visit would provide a burst of inspiration and will alter their career arcs in a positive manner.

In our chosen professions, we all need to have people to look up to and draw inspiration from. This could be colleagues, industry figures, friends & family, celebrities or even historical figures. To get further in our careers, we do need to have benchmarks that we should strive towards.

The positive interactions that I’ve had with recruiters prior to joining the industry have most likely influenced my decision to get into the industry.

So, who are your career role models? Has anyone ever met their career idols in real life?

career development, career idols, Career inspiration, Jamie Oliver, Masterchef, Masterchef Australia, role model