bit fed up now, no jobs/careers that interest me. how do you choose a career?

jm2926

I have a career in IT, picked that because I like puzzles, problem solving, analytical problems, working on issues which have a tangible solution, like to see an end result for my effort, it pays well and they tolerate a wide range of people. Over the years it has become more about understanding requirements and working with business owners to find suitable solutions rather than 'pure' technology. Oh, and it changes all the time, it's a constant learning experience.

Maybe think about what you like less in terms of "things" you like and more about "aspects" you prefer e.g.

Working with people? In person? Phone? Email?
Following lots of processes or freedom to create?
Constant change or mostly the same?
How much time would you put into retraining? Years?

Even within IT the jobs vary enormously, I like this as I can move/adapt as job roles change without starting over from scratch. A career with lots of options provides longevity.

jm2926

kaflinkle wrote: »

This is a very interesting thread.

I am 46 or 47 this year (I can't be bothered to work it out) and am working in IT for an Investment Bank. I am so miserable and unhappy, this is not the job I want. Trouble is I never knew what I wanted to do.

I would love to see a survey into how many people really like their jobs, I bet the percentage is quite low.

Despite being in IT and lots of former colleagues working in investment banks, their stories are so miserable that I would never work for one while another choice was available. Try another employer.

saterkey

im 46 and get frustrated as ive never known what ive wanted to do, think ive kind of accepted that I might never find "IT". ive sort of fell in educational admin roles, but get so bored of the jargon, and endless meetings and backbiting. ive been made redundant twice, and redeployed once through schemes and restructuring, and most have been short term contracts. im now working for a charity which I quite enjoy but that's not quite all I need either. ho hum maybe one day ill be totally settled.
its nice to know im not the only one that feels this way. Great thread

missindecisive

I'm in my mid forties..never knew what I wanted to do. Spent years and years in finance as it was the first job I fell into after college. Was miserable. Its only now that I think I know what I want but I feel to old to go back and study...and I'm not comp!etely free as my children are still young and dependent on me. Kinda feel trapped in my current dead end job.

fitnessguy1

pinpin wrote: »

I'M the same, OP.
I'm never had a clue what to do with my life from a work point of view.
I've kind of hated every job i've ever had.
I'm not particularly clever, and I'm really not sure what, if anything, I'm good at.

I've pretty much just always been working minimum wage warehouse jobs.

I'm about the same age as you.

same here. i am in a factory job at the moment, but growing increasingly bored with it and fed up with my work life. I want to start a plan but i need so many various qualifications to get a much better paid job and i dread it because i was never that good at school. i think i maybe need to start addressing this and start learning again as i desperately want a good job.

fitnessguy1

Deleted%20User wrote: »

+1 for the fed up. Have you considered re-education?


I think the jobs of start tomorrow are all to blame! no wonder so many people get depressed jumping into something where there has been little to no thought or end up with a hammered CV, of course these choices become hard to explain when you meet the company you really want to work for, only to be treated like a credit card score application to only see the job keep being re-advertised, so go easy on yourself and take your time OP, lets hope prospects improve x

as with my previous comment i would like to re-educate but my belief in my learning abilities is low-medium. i never did that well in school (think highest grade was D, and that was in art). maths was always a poor subject for me and i struggled, although i am better at english (it might not seem it when i write here, but that's only because i can't be bothered to use perfect grammar )

i feel at a bit of a loss to be honest. are you in the same situation?

fitnessguy1

saterkey wrote: »

im 46 and get frustrated as ive never known what ive wanted to do, think ive kind of accepted that I might never find "IT". ive sort of fell in educational admin roles, but get so bored of the jargon, and endless meetings and backbiting. ive been made redundant twice, and redeployed once through schemes and restructuring, and most have been short term contracts. im now working for a charity which I quite enjoy but that's not quite all I need either. ho hum maybe one day ill be totally settled.
its nice to know im not the only one that feels this way. Great thread

i didn't think so many people would answer. yeah we're all in it together. it's just wanting to be fulfilled and happy everyday as work takes up the majority of our lives, so picking something that will make me/you/others happy is important. i really hope you fid the thing you're looking for. do you have any ideas on what you want?

pathtofreedom

fitnessguy1 wrote: »

as with my previous comment i would like to re-educate but my belief in my learning abilities is low-medium. i never did that well in school (think highest grade was D,

Styles of teaching have changed a lot in the past 10-20 years, you might be able to find a better way of learning and with a subject you're interested in you might surprise yourself. There are courses called mooc's which have thousands of people round the world learning all sorts of random subjects, not just things for a job but if you can try a few that interest you it can help your cv. You can do them for free and still get a completion certificate, and it will look good on your cv even if it is a hobby subject, as it shows you have the ability to commit yourself to something and organise your time etc.

How about this course about how to learn to kick you off, it might help you learn better study skills to move on to other courses. You don't have to take lots of notes and there aren't exams, although there are tests but if you don't like this one just google mooc and there are lots of providers and courses you might like more.

https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn/outline

TrickyWicky

I knew what i wanted to do, i just had no way of doing it. I had a parent who was determined I was going to have a different fate and if i didn't follow their career choice they would disrupt my life as much as possible. Well I went off to study what i wanted and parent made life very difficult - to the point where i gave up.

12-13 years later I still want to get back into it but can't afford to do so. New born due any day, partner wants me to be stay at home dad.. so i got in with the open university. Frankly I am seriously starting to wish i hadn't!

Quite distressed really as most of my working life has been in **** jobs, taken loads of hassle from people, nearly always been skint and now at the age of 33 my health is shot, about to be stuck at home with a baby and i see no chance of doing anything i wanted to do with my life!

If you can do it but just don't know what to do, you're incredibly lucky!

bugslet

Tricky - do you want to be at home with a baby? if you don't, then I think doing so just because your partner wants you to, is not good for either of you. It would drive me bonkers in about 10 minutes.

OP, might be a starting point to try this quiz

http://www.crowe-associates.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Career-Drivers-Assessment.pdf

Everyone presumes money is the reason you get up and go to work, but not always. Some people want a social atmosphere, some want respect.

My driver is autonomy, that's the most important thing in work for me, hence I work for myself.

It won't solve your dilemma, but it might help narrow down your choices and refine your thoughts.