People who've changed career

I thought about things i liked doing - hobbies, socially, what I spent time on the web doing etc. and tried to find a job that fitted those.

I went from Web designer to photographer quite a while ago.

What do you like to do? are you artistic or more technical? Do you have any hobbies that could relate to jobs?

For example a friend of mine has just gone into party/wedding planning as she always loved arranging parties for friends and helped with the arrangements for a few weddings and people commented how good she was at it.

Even little things such as you have good fashion sense, or that you are good and helping friends with problems can lead you towards different jobs. It can just be little things that'll lead you in the right direction.

Good luck xx

I think I'm a bit more technically minded - I've just done a short photography course which I enjoyed but don't think I have a very good 'eye', which is obviously a must for togs!

When I was younger I wanted to be a nurse (theatre nurse specifically) but never pursued it, I definitely couldn't be a nurse now, although I do work in healthcare albeit in an office. I thought a healthcare career might be worth pursuing but none of the career paths I've looked at have really grabbed me (mostly therapy e.g. physio / OT / SLT). When I was in college I was really keen on IT and got so far as completing a HNC in business IT at evening classes a few years ago, but I got bored with it and didn't take it any further. Most recently I've been doing management qualifications.

Interests are things like food (would love to be a critic for example, but don't have anywhere near enough knowledge or skill to comment on others!), wildlife conservation - but where to take that?

Gah - I'm so indecisive I frustrate myself!

You might need to wait until something pops out at you. It happened to me, and I am hopefully on my way to a new career in September.

I'm heading for Diagnostic Radiography (I hope I haven't been annoying people with my worries!!) and its a technological, healthcare, position. I hope its as good as it sounds! ?

It is perfectly possible. I have found that study as an adult as been a great, eye opening process and I have worked harder than I ever did previously!

That sounds interesting - I was confusedly looking at some MRI scans the other day - they're fascinating (although apart from obvious white versus black bits, and where the eyes were meant nothing to me!)

Hope it goes well for you, is the the course you're starting or work? (sorry if you've mentioned I must have missed your posts)

wss. it happened to me too.

i was beside myself with boredom selling loans, and one day a customer came in and her jobs was on the radios for north yorkshire police. and i spent about an hour chatting to her about her job as, while i was aware these police radio things existed ? i never thought of it being a job i would do. i'd wanted to be a police officer as a kid but couldn't as when i left school as there was a height and eye sight restriction

and about 2 weeks later it was advertised in the paper for west yorks. i just had to apply. it was like fate ?

I'm so jealous of people who do something they really love - I've just fallen into what I do, and I do enjoy it sometimes, but it's really not what I want to do...

<sigh>

I went from being radio journalist to a wedding videographer.... but it was a decision based around having two toddlers and not being able to afford to put them in nursery!! I have to say I enjoy videography much more, I get to be creative without being nasty and nosy and pushy with it ?

Would you like a website? Get me into my new (wishful thinking) career of a webdesigner from home ?

(seriously, offer is there. We are trying to teach ourselves web stuff, so need a real life 'project')

Anyway, back to the OP. I work in IT, and I really am so disillusioned with it at the moment. I dont want to be doign what I do for the rest of my life. Every day depresses me more.

However, like you, I dont have a clue what I want to do. I think I have lost all confidence in my abilities to do anything. It is so difficult isnt it? At school I wanted to be a doctor, accountant or a teacher. My school gave F.A. guidance really, and then I got glandular fever so flunked everything first time, so after passing I found myself a course I thought would have good earn potential and career prospects. However, what I failed to consider was whether or not I woudl enjoy it or not.

Sob, is 38 too old to retrain?

38 is young so definitely not too late!

It's the frustration once you realise you need to change but can't because you don't know how or to what. We'll start a 'careers floundering' kleek ?

By the time my wee one is at school (and so have the time to do it) I will be 41 ! Oh well, I guess I would still have another 29 years or so work left in me (going by the way pensions are going)

Count me into the kleek! ?

Have you thought about going to a career adviser? They talk to you about all your hobbies, likes and dislikes and then come up with careers that they think might suit you. You never know, they might come up with something that you've never thought of before!

I changed careers 2 years ago. I was working in an office in London and was really fed up with what I was doing. I had always wanted to do something in the healthcare profession, but never got round to it when I was younger. Anyway, I applied to college and got in first time. I'm now half way through my training to become a midwife. I'm loving it, although sometimes I lay awake at night worrying about the responsibility of having two lives in my hands! I have delivered several babies myself now though and nothing can beat the moment when I lift a beautiful newborn up onto their mummy's tummy!

If you are unhappy in your work then definitely do something about it - we spend too much of our life working to not enjoy it. Good luck with whatever you decide to do xx