Careers advice

stuomac88

Hi there
I am nearly 30 years old and was looking for some advice on a potential career move, I think now is the time for me to find a career that will take me through the rest of my working life. For the last 10 years I have worked in betting shops, starting out as an assistant but I have been managing shops for the majority of my 10 years service. I have my GCSE’s and other than that a certificate of higher education in IT & Computing(obtained when trying to achieve a degree with the OU which I eventually gave up with part way through). With my limited qualifications and the experience I have, what advice if any is there for me for careers that would suit me that I could find a job to do for the next 30+ years. I look forward to hearing your advice. Many thanks.

Comms69

Well you have management experience, that's the key thing you need to big up

Tabbytabitha

Why not finish your degree by doing various management units rather than IT?

stuomac88

Hi there

Thanks for your reply, the trouble I find is that my current sector doesn’t really translate to any other. Although I have a good few years of management experience, we only manage one to two members of staff at most and almost all management positions seem to want experience of managing larger teams...

stuomac88

Also in terms of finishing the degree I have not got the finances anymore to do it and my salary although not significant is just above the limits to qualify for funding. Also the reason I gave up is because I didn’t have the time to put in to succeed at the higher level modules(I managed to blag my way through the entry level modules without putting much work in).

Many thanks again for your input.

spadoosh

Youve spent 10 years doing a job for the sake of doing a job and got bored. Why would you think having a 'career' for the sake of having a 'career' would be any different?

Id suggest pursuing something that youre interested in. If your under qualified and it needs training youll need to go in at entry level and work up or seek out relevant qualifications.

Like you say at the moment your limited to betting shops. Maybe managing a green grocers or a new look, if you want different you wont find it in what you already do.

I know of a few bookmakers who are really good at looking after their staff. Might be worth looking at, altering your job but keeping the employer most seem to offer international opportunities too (although its back office stuff not managing shops abroad.).

stuomac88

Hi and thank you for your reply.

You certainly raise some good points and I agree with what you are saying.

The trouble for me is my interests lie in sport and I am never going to be a sportsman nor do I see anyway of being involved in either the football or American football industries(where my passions lie).

When I got into the job I’m in now it was because of my love of sport. The job no longer revolves around sport really and is becoming more and more a sales type job.

Lots to think about and take on board from all the feedback I have received. Thanks again.

another_casualty

Initially , I was gonna suggest accounts/ finance /book keeping as these are jobs that are transferrable to various companies . However , if you love sport and are very fit , why not become a personal trainer ?
It’s a very challenging job as there are always courses to do and you will meet and train lots of people . The only bad thing I could see is that when there are recessions and cutbacks then it may be lean at times .

spadoosh

stuomac88 wrote: »

Hi and thank you for your reply.

You certainly raise some good points and I agree with what you are saying.

The trouble for me is my interests lie in sport and I am never going to be a sportsman nor do I see anyway of being involved in either the football or American football industries(where my passions lie).

When I got into the job I’m in now it was because of my love of sport. The job no longer revolves around sport really and is becoming more and more a sales type job.

Lots to think about and take on board from all the feedback I have received. Thanks again.

Nah ive accepted im not going to be scoring the winner at the fa cup final too, heart breaking it was.

However, and seriously, i dont think you can ask for a more easy industry to move in to if youre passionate.

You can start by simply volunteering (a bit) at leisure centres/sports venues. And moving from there. Theres coaching qualifications that arent usually too expensive, likewise with refereeing.

Then you can get involved with grass roots, promotion and creation etc. I know a few lads who work for England Rugby, got given that nissan pick up and they just go round schools promoting sports. Never going to be millionaires like but i can imagine it pays more than managing a bookmakers. I dont think either had direct qualification (although university educated) but they did play a big role in their sports unions.

Id imagine for jobs in the sport industry the main pre requisite would be being involved.


American football is still pretty niche in this country yet seeing big rises in popularity. When stuff like that happens you normally get a lot of demand so prospects should be good.

stuomac88

Thanks guys some valuable advice and good to hear views of others. You’ve certainly helped me with things to consider a lot more than my local careers advice service whose sole advice was to do their career matching quiz which I found wasn’t very useful. Your input is much appreciated!