If Elvis had gone to Jack Harris for help, he would still be here to tell the tale. Because if The King had sought the advice of the business and personal development consultant, he may have found out that while he was hugely successful in his career, he was not a happy man. And instead of collapsing from a suspected drugs overdose after a life of debauchery, he could have found real happiness out of the public eye -- at least that is what Mr. Harris believes. "I've thought about Elvis a lot, and I keep coming back to him.

Here was a man who was hugely successful in what he did, but was obviously not happy,'' said Mr. Harris. "For some people the main motivation is success not happiness. But Presley is a case where he was so obviously successful -- you would in fact say what more could anyone want? But he was not happy. He was playing a role, and maybe he was not happy with that role. "Laurence Oliver said that after coming off stage and acting for three hours, he was completely exhausted, so imagine acting for eight or ten hours a day straight, how tired you would be.'' To 60-year-old Mr. Harris there has to be harmony between people's values, personalities and the roles played at work or at home. "You can have two out of three, be very successful, but not be happy. And what you need for a perfect career and happiness is all three.'' A year ago Mr. Harris set up Creative Consulting after researching recruitment techniques for two years. He found out that nearly 80 percent of job turnover was due to hiring mistakes and that the lowest estimate of a bad hire by a company was 1.4 times the employee's annual salary. Studies also indicated that when an employee leaves a company, for whatever reason, productivity declines in the remaining workers. With this in mind he began to consult businesses to help them keep their staff and develop them as a valuable asset to the company. He worked with companies to help their staff work out career structures within the organisation. Now he has branched out from company work and set up seminars on upward mobility to help individuals reach their personal goals. "The idea is very simple, to help people to help themselves. I do not tell them to do anything, but help them find their way and recognise what is the right career and keep focusing on that.'' The `Personal Profile Seminars', which cost $750 for four half days or evenings, take a dozen classmates through a self assessment into, hopefully working out personal goals. In simple terms the course looks at the skills of an individual, including academic, self management and transferable skills and determines work priorities. These include enjoyment, working environment and activities or tasks. Then acceptable standards, areas of compromise and personal goals are added to, hopefully come out at the end of the sessions with a better understanding about where to go and how to get there. "Although it all sounds like common sense, people can sometimes not see what is in front of them. I try to get people to do self assessments or valuations to help them focus on career success as well as happiness. "From there you develop a growth plan and work out how to achieve your goals and you end up with a career plan. "This would eliminate 90 percent of jobs you could apply to, and leave you to focus on the 10 percent that suit you. This means you can prepare in advance and find out how the job suits your strengths and put this forward.'' Mr. Harris believes, that with his help, most individuals can find both happiness and a rewarding career. "You have to harness your inner strengths with your outer life and identify your all round strengths. Then you will be able to focus on what it is that you want.'' Upward Mobility Seminars begin in Hamilton on October 11, 1999. PHOTO Jack Harris