Recommend a career please!

Morning all, I am hoping the Oracle that is STW can help.

I am approaching a certain significant birthday in my life and have been assessing where I am, what I do and what I would like to change before this birthday arrives.

The main thing that comes into my head is my choice of career and job. At present I work in recruitment, I’d like to think I am pretty good at it but it is certainly not what I want to do long-term and it is also not really giving the work-life balance that I would like. The role I do is primarily account management (dealing with clients, talking to candidates, etc) and thankfully does not involve any cold selling (been there, done that). I am degree educated, though not from a “proper” university, I am pretty good with people and pride myself on being able to gather and understand large amount of information. I am based near Stourbridge if that makes any difference and don’t really want to move anywhere.

So, what should I go and do? Any ideas? Would you employ me?!

I wouldn't employ anyone who didn't know what they wanted to do.

You have dreams you just don't want to admit them on here. Find a way to pursue them, doesn't matter if you fail. No one cares.

The boys on here will have you in a IT position before you know it, you will have a STW and diet coke addiction by the end of the week!

Follow you're own destiny buddy!

🙂

….no one cares…

harsh.

I wouldn't employ anyone who didn't know what they wanted to do.

I, on the other hand, know what I want to do (get some experience and then start my own business), I've just got no idea what industry I want to do it in 😆

harsh

I mean in the grand scheme of things it's not a big deal what someone does with their life

I mean in the grand scheme of things it's not a big deal what someone does with their life

Unless they're Gandhi or Obama or Geldof or Oppenheimer or Saddam Hussein or Mozart or Picasso or….

sure, a recruitment consultant from Stourbridge doesn't sound like any of the above but if someone never explores their potential it'll never be realised.

Having just done the whole give up your career on a whim thing I can say that I did know what I wanted to do, its a massive gamble but its paying off and was the best thing I have ever done thus far with my life.

What interests you? do whatever you love doing for a career and you cant go far wrong.

Ok, maybe I am being a little vague and maybe I didn't explain the question that well.

Basically I am looking for ideas as to what the skills I already have can be transfered into. I know there are other jobs out there that use these skills, I am just trying to find what they are.

I would love to ride bikes or ski for a living but given that I have a morgage to pay and that I am not really very good at either I am not looking down that route!

if someone never explores their potential it'll never be realised.

which precisely is why I suggested pursuing dreams…..

finding a different job is probably not going to create a Gandhi existence?

in a minute, you're in recruitment and you're asking US what job your skills would transfer into????? 😯

Basically I am looking for ideas as to what the skills I already have can be transfered into.

At present I work in recruitment,

Terrible communication skills and looking out for number one. 😉

Do not go into IT. its soul destroying. I'm in the same position, deciding what I really want to do, i'm thinking some sort of social work, maybe with kids

We are mere specs of dust in the sands of time, go do something that you want to do and don't worry about the consequences because when it comes down to it even if it does go tits up nothing truly bad will happen. And if it doesn't go tits up then you are living your dreams.

The problem with being in recruitment is that after spending all day talking to other people about careers the last thing you want to do when you get home is think about your own.

It also doesn't help that the kind of things that I work on (high level broadcast and telecoms technical people) are not the kind of work I could (or would want to) go into.

I'm the same lunge. After a 15 year career in the environmental sector, redundancy last year has me enjoying life, but I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up! (I suspect that'll be the same when I'm retirement age too)

Recruitment pays well which is a problem when thinking of moving.

Researchers / AM's have a few transferables –

Going it alone is an option or working in HR for a client or RPO company.

You have some saleable skills but sounds like you're not into it.

Paramedic keeps coming up as an area where people are needed and earn OK money, then all the usuals, teaching etc.

I think you may struggle to get to the same earnings though.

become a fishmonger or a bee keeper

I would write down all the things you have done in your life that you enjoy – the things you enjoyed in your job, at school, in your spare time. Analyse yourself!

Have you considered going on a journey of discovery to see if you have any undiscovered talents? A good starting point is with these phycometric tests, which, if you do enough of them might give you a different and additional bit of insigt about yourself.

Think how you might apply these possible strengths as well as your known ones.

Ask people who really know you, for advice about how they perceive you and ask them what they think you would be good at.

These exercises may set you off exploring other avenues.

Do you want to be self-employed, or employed? Weigh up the pros and cons and ask other people about this.

Then look at what you are good at. I'm told these are often things you enjoy, but you may be great at certain things, but sick to death of doing them (like your current role).

Maybe you could move on a step, but develop your existing skills and become a headhunter. For this i'm sure you would need a good track record and most vitally a good network of contacts. How would you overcome these hurdles?

The next step is learning the best way of selling yourself. You need to market effectively and networking is the key to this. I expect you are pretty good at this already.

All my jobs came through networking. Don't rely on the internet and online job boards to yield a solution! It's only a small percentage of people that find work this way.

I'm told that nearly all the successful people in this world had great ambition and most importantly, a plan. A tiny few just get lucky. SO work out a plan and periodically review it. Like a long term business plan for "lunge plc". You know what I mean.

You could go to a career advisory company that will take you through this process, but expect to have to shell out a good £3k or more. They will probably be making a goos cut out of your fees and the training will seem somewhat expensive, but if they have a good network, they might hold the key to putting you infront of some decision makers.

Career planning and execution is a tough challenge.

Good luck!

(BTW, I'm technical guy with a large telco project under my belt. Got any nice contracts in the SE region?) 😀

Train driver? Always strikes me as a rewarding profession. Stout custodian of the rolling stock, rattling o'er the iron highways and byways of our sceptered isle. Think the pay is decent, as well.

If that's not your cup of tea, then second the idea of setting up on your own. Obviously a huge step, but only you know if you've got the appetite and testes for it. Maybe worth going through the thought process of what it would take, just to see if it's feasible for you.

What about Requirements Engineering? Sounds like you have most of the right skills.

Rewarding job.

If the leaflets I keep getting through my door are anything to go by, you can take a night course at your local college and then waltz into an IT job similar to the one I've been doing for the last umpteen years only at twice my salary point.

Not that I'm sceptical and bitter or anything.

"I am pretty good with people and pride myself on being able to gather and understand large amount of information. "

You are just a few weeks too late to get elected as an MP… maybe the next election, have a go.