How do I get out of Dead end jobs

Poisoncat

I'm a middle aged guy who has never found a career. My recent background has consisted of working in one field as a subordinate clerical worker for various companies over the last several years. It is nowhere near challenging enough and there are never any progression chances so I job hop fairly regularly for small salary increases. 

What I really want is far more responsibility in a managerial or technical capacity, ideally working with computer software. I am ready to do what it takes for this. But there is never any opportunity. Everything requires connections. Each year I get sick of it and land in another office or call centre and go mad with boredom and being treated like a numbskull.

There is nothing online about this either. Most of the stock advice insists on "getting skills" with no further context, or "work hard". How are you supposed to get skills or work hard if no one gives you a chance? 

Most people I know who have managed to settle in some form of career where they've been able to afford a house, car and family seem to have had generous family members and friends from school. Some of us aren't that lucky!? 

Anyway if anyone can recommend a line of work not rife with nepotism and accessible to normal people please let me know and I'll be eternally grateful (it is yet another day in a job where I have no work to do and am bored out of my mind) 

theoretica

You have no work to do and are bored - great opportunity! What can you do with your time that your employers will be happy with to help advance your career goals? I've got a bit of spare capacity would it be useful if I offered to help out with X, wrote up the procedures for Y, OK if I spent some time improving my Z skills…

The NHS employs a huge number of non-medical staff and might be worth looking at vacancies in your area.

Poisoncat

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80027247#Comment_80027247

You'd think that right, but there is little tolerance to start sticking your nose into things. It can even get you into trouble.

For instance I am trying to sort an SQL problem right now. My job description has nothing to do with programming. Stock advice says how overjoyed your management will be by taking initiative. Instead my line manager is reluctant to show any interest.

The NHS employs many people but the salaries are so poor, I am more comfortable in the private sector

theoretica

The NHS employs many people but the salaries are so poor, I am more comfortable in the private sector

The salaries are low - but one of the compensations for lower salary can be employers trying harder in other ways to get and keep staff - which can mean more access to training and career development. The NHS may not be for you, but I think you definitely need to look at more than salary when choosing an employer.

Emmia

What qualifications do you have? Many careers will not be open to you/you will find it difficult to get anything other than a dead end job unless you have certain qualifications

ACG

I used to work for RBS in a call centre, after 12-18 months if you shown some promise they were pretty good at training you up to become a team leader. You then just had to wait for a position to come up.

Once you had that, you were then given a high grade, that grade was then transferrable to other departments where you could get a technical role or a assistant managers role in another part of the business (subject to an interview).

Admittedly this was maybe 15 years ago so a lot could have changed.

comeandgo

in your opening post you stated you were "ready to do what it takes", yet you say you are not willing to take a reduction in salary to help you along a route to a more fulfilling career. If you have the potential you say you have you will get training and possible career advancement if you were to join a large employer even with a lower salary.

Poisoncat

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80027329#Comment_80027329

Like what? Staff retention in the public sector is no better than the private and neither of them train. If you want to learn something you train yourself.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80027344#Comment_80027344

You're joking right? It's all about previous experience out there. Holding certain qualifications is usually the icing on the cake.

I haven't had much luck to pursue an education as an adult. My plan is to study a degree later this year in management and digital technology. It's a vague field but I have few alternative options due to the lack of guidance out there

theoretica

You do realise that what you are doing isn't working for you? Why ask a question and then not seem to even consider the answers.

I work for an organisation which does train, extensively, from short online courses to degrees and NVQs. And values qualifications. As do very many of the other employers I work with and friends work at.

robatwork

When you say "computer software", if you mean "programming" then there's a great way to prove yourself. Write something - an app for example. Or an amusing/challenging website like (…finds b3ta newsletter and picks at random) this

https://edjefferson.com/journeyplannerchallenge/

Then you can point to something and say "that's me" - I can do that for your company too.

cymruchris

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80027289#Comment_80027289

To get from A to B (Current job > Wanted job) you might have to go via C J and Z.

Sometimes you have to take a step backwards to take a step forwards. A path all around the houses that you didn't think you'd need to take.

If you really believe in what you said 'I am ready to do what it takes for this' - then you need to open your mind to other options.

There was once a time where I held a position in a location close to home (2 miles) - it wasn't the position I wanted - I knew I wanted to do 'X' - but from that position I knew it would be a long, long wait to get 'X'. So I took another position 35 miles further up the road on exactly the same salary - so that was an extra 60 miles a day travel, 5 days a week, more fuel expense, more travel time - but what it did give me was the experience I needed to get to 'X' more quickly. And I got there.

So for you to reach your 'X' - as much as you've only taken the jobs you've taken so far - looking at something like the NHS might give you the experience and the building blocks to achieve it, even if for the next two year the salary is 20 percent less.

Keep your mind open to suggestion and ideas rather than dismissing everything with reasons why you can't or won't do it.