Get a job by going to Map View, selecting the company you want to work for and, Bob’s your auntie, you’re hired. The new interface gives you control over what your sim does while they are at work. Each career track offers you different choices, but there are usually a couple of set options such as Take it Easy, Work Hard, Hang out with co-workers or Business as Usual. Some careers have options that allow you to further your Skills and improve your work relationships.
Several factors influence how you get promoted - mood, skills, Opportunities and social interactions. The best way to rise up the ranks is to go to work in an excellent mood -make sure your Fun Need Bar is right up to the top. Select Work Hard and monitor both the green bar in the Work tab and your Fun Need Bar. If your Work Bar is full then Hang Out With Colleagues - you’ve done enough to get promoted. If your Fun Need Bar drops below half your sim gets overworked and stressed and you don’t want to waste time making them cheerful when you can be skilling up so, again, make them Hang Out With Colleagues. This has the advantage of building relationships that you’ll need later on, while getting work credit and leaving your out of work time free for other things. Friendships vary depending on your choice of career, an evil genius doesn’t need friends whereas a politician will.
From the outset you’ll need to stay on top of your Wishes and fulfill them as often as you can. Achieving several small Wishes quickly will often get you as many points as a Wish that’s quite difficult to achieve. Structure these so that you can complete several simultaneously while doing one task. For example, Fish Before Bam, Go Fishing and Catch A Salmon can all be achieved at once and drop almost 1,000 points into your Lifetime Happiness coffer. As you build your points buy Office Hero, Multi Tasker, Opportunistic and Fast Learner. To free up time and get promoted fast buy: Steel Bladder, Office Hero, Dirt Defiant, Multi Tasker, Attractive, Opportunistic and Fast Learner.
Another change in the game is that you won’t need the full complement of Skills to move up in your career. In your Work tab you’ll see smiley faces that tell you how well you are doing at meeting your career requirements. If these sit at ’Great’ or ’Good’ you’ll get promoted. Skills are also far quicker to develop. To improve them rapidly, practice, do classes in town and then train at work when your Work Bar is fall.
A neat trick is to use HDTV (seriously) to watch channels, you’ll skill up while having Fun. Opportunities present themselves during your career. Some will directly benefit your promotion and your relationship with your boss. Do them all and keep an eye on their deadlines. A word of warning - you can complete a task and still lose out if you don’t check how you need to hand it in. Finally, call your boss and colleagues every single day - whether it’s before or after work. Make them your friends and invite them to your parties. You’ll get promoted faster. Oh yes, there’s a whole range of social interactions reserved especially for your boss from Ask for Promotion to Talk about Work. So, to get to the top of your chosen career in one (real) day be in a great mood, fulfill Wishes constantly, Work Hard but don’t overwork your Sim, schmooze the boss, complete all Opportunities and don’t let your skills fall too far behind.
