Has anyone got any advice on changing career at all, or anyone actually achieved this? I feel like in my current job I'm stuck in a rut, both bored and frustrated at the same time. I've tried to focus on my skills, but keep coming up against various brick walls, such as demonstrating experience, tricky interview questions etc. I know it's all part and parcel of getting a different job. I'd be willing to take a moderate pay cut from where I am now to have a more interesting and fulfilling work life, though I won't lie the golden handcuffs situation does exist to some extent (I'm not actually paid that much, but to take an entry level position in another field would likely mean a pay cut).
Currently I'm a supermarket* team leader. I stepped down from certain aspects of the role a couple of years ago for personal/medical reasons, but have been taking some of these back on. The problem is the role has changed to the point it's not what I signed up for. I'm also the branch site point of contact, which means I'm the first or usually the first to coordinate IT and maintenance issues, but it's a bolt on responsibility and not a skilled role as such, to do this you just need to have confidence in what you're doing and 'know a bit about things', as it were. One thing I come up against, and I think this is a mistake in corporate culture, is the obsession with 'people people', rather than actual competence. It seems my employer, along with most others in the world, would rather employ people who are easy to get on with but don't know what they're talking about rather than the other way around. Is there any industry where competence is still valued? The result is elementary errors keep getting made day after day, often quite serious compliance related ones too. Don't get me wrong I can get along with people, I just wouldn't say I'm a social creature.
A quick read of the fares section of the forum seems to suggest it's the same on the railway by the way. My skills are that I'm a very quick learner, I know my company's procedures pretty well and am usually one of the first people that others ask for advice on 'what do I do if...', and know where to look if I don't know the answer myself. I have a good intuition regarding 'systems related' things, though I will say I went for a job with Network Rail and fell down on the Excel part of the second interview (I came matched with another candidate, so a second, more practical interview was arranged). This is something I've been working on since and know now where I went wrong.
The problems: Most of my skills are 'soft skills', or have gaps in knowledge. Take for example IT: I know bash scripting, am comfortable with command lines in general but do not know a proper programming language, there's the Excel example I just mentioned and my Windows knowledge is lacking in places. I'm more of a tinkerer, truth be told. Then there's my degree, it's in politics. Not much use for political science in the workplace, sadly, as rewarding as it was.
Then there's the potential to study accounting, I'm interested in finance if not necessarily that side of it. I've still the books from my AAT Level 2, which I foolishly dropped shortly before completing due to a desire to relocate to Nottingham. I could pick this back up, but suspect I'd come across the 'experience' barrier again. I know there are people on here who have changed career, and not necessarily onto the railway, and I don't expect it to be easy: It's something I've been trying for about two years now with a mixture of failure and getting 'oh so close'. Another question: Do people recommend taking jobs based on their interests or away from their interests? What industries would be the best to get into? These are all questions I have.
I've found my CV works, I use a 'functional' CV to highlight skills more than experience, given that I've worked for the same company over seven years, but I always fall down at interviews. Any tips beyond the usual?
*I won't say which supermarket it is. Social media policy and all that. And words are my own, not those of my employer.
Currently I'm a supermarket* team leader. I stepped down from certain aspects of the role a couple of years ago for personal/medical reasons, but have been taking some of these back on. The problem is the role has changed to the point it's not what I signed up for. I'm also the branch site point of contact, which means I'm the first or usually the first to coordinate IT and maintenance issues, but it's a bolt on responsibility and not a skilled role as such, to do this you just need to have confidence in what you're doing and 'know a bit about things', as it were. One thing I come up against, and I think this is a mistake in corporate culture, is the obsession with 'people people', rather than actual competence. It seems my employer, along with most others in the world, would rather employ people who are easy to get on with but don't know what they're talking about rather than the other way around. Is there any industry where competence is still valued? The result is elementary errors keep getting made day after day, often quite serious compliance related ones too. Don't get me wrong I can get along with people, I just wouldn't say I'm a social creature.
A quick read of the fares section of the forum seems to suggest it's the same on the railway by the way. My skills are that I'm a very quick learner, I know my company's procedures pretty well and am usually one of the first people that others ask for advice on 'what do I do if...', and know where to look if I don't know the answer myself. I have a good intuition regarding 'systems related' things, though I will say I went for a job with Network Rail and fell down on the Excel part of the second interview (I came matched with another candidate, so a second, more practical interview was arranged). This is something I've been working on since and know now where I went wrong.
The problems: Most of my skills are 'soft skills', or have gaps in knowledge. Take for example IT: I know bash scripting, am comfortable with command lines in general but do not know a proper programming language, there's the Excel example I just mentioned and my Windows knowledge is lacking in places. I'm more of a tinkerer, truth be told. Then there's my degree, it's in politics. Not much use for political science in the workplace, sadly, as rewarding as it was.
Then there's the potential to study accounting, I'm interested in finance if not necessarily that side of it. I've still the books from my AAT Level 2, which I foolishly dropped shortly before completing due to a desire to relocate to Nottingham. I could pick this back up, but suspect I'd come across the 'experience' barrier again. I know there are people on here who have changed career, and not necessarily onto the railway, and I don't expect it to be easy: It's something I've been trying for about two years now with a mixture of failure and getting 'oh so close'. Another question: Do people recommend taking jobs based on their interests or away from their interests? What industries would be the best to get into? These are all questions I have.
I've found my CV works, I use a 'functional' CV to highlight skills more than experience, given that I've worked for the same company over seven years, but I always fall down at interviews. Any tips beyond the usual?
*I won't say which supermarket it is. Social media policy and all that. And words are my own, not those of my employer.