Retraining/career change/starting again
Discussion
Hi all,
I've been in my career for almost 14 years now, hate it more than ever, but it pays the bills. I've felt stuck for such a long time, but now at the age of 31, I may actually be able to do something about it.
We have quite a cheap house and it's coming up to remortgage time where I could free up some money, pay debts off, and live off much much less money, even if kids come along etc we should be okay.
I want to do something totally different from the engineering role I've been doing for so long (not qualified, just handful of gcses).
Main priorities are:
Something I'm interested in, or the scope to work indirectly in those areas (finance, problem solving, dealing with/managing people)
Flexible-ish, some home working, sociable working hours
Something that leaves me energy to exercise/cook dinner in the evenings
Good benefits
Potential to earn a good salary
I've been spoilt really and earned between 35 and 55k per year since I was around 21 but it hasn't ever improved much. My working hours have always been awful, I don't enjoy the job, no autonomy or flexibility.
I have tried to side step in to office roles which I've enjoyed moreso but the unprofessional and last minute nature of the industry means I just want out.
I'm numerate, manually dextrous and work in a technical environment reading engineering drawings at the moment.
I can spare some money to do some courses and I've been thinking about trying AAT accountancy, to see if I enjoy it. I used to crunch a lot of numbers as a self employed contractor who had problems with his accountant, and quite enjoyed filing my own VAT etc.
I have also considered HR and purchasing related jobs, but it seems like the qualifications required to get that foot in the door require some work experience to get competencies signed off on the job (the job I can't get due to lack of experience. .)
I'm happy to start again with a very low salary, something which I've never been able to justify to myself, but it's getting to the point now where the nature of my work is making me very depressed as well as using certain things at work that give me horrific allergic rhinitis. Now is the time to get out.
Does anyone have any ideas for reasonably low ish barrier to entry, potentially lucrative professions with sane working hours where staff are looked after? Happy to consider most things that fit the brief points in this post as I think I'd genuinely enjoy anything more than what I'm currently doing!
Many thanks for reading and sorry for such a long post full of waffle!
I've been in my career for almost 14 years now, hate it more than ever, but it pays the bills. I've felt stuck for such a long time, but now at the age of 31, I may actually be able to do something about it.
We have quite a cheap house and it's coming up to remortgage time where I could free up some money, pay debts off, and live off much much less money, even if kids come along etc we should be okay.
I want to do something totally different from the engineering role I've been doing for so long (not qualified, just handful of gcses).
Main priorities are:
Something I'm interested in, or the scope to work indirectly in those areas (finance, problem solving, dealing with/managing people)
Flexible-ish, some home working, sociable working hours
Something that leaves me energy to exercise/cook dinner in the evenings
Good benefits
Potential to earn a good salary
I've been spoilt really and earned between 35 and 55k per year since I was around 21 but it hasn't ever improved much. My working hours have always been awful, I don't enjoy the job, no autonomy or flexibility.
I have tried to side step in to office roles which I've enjoyed moreso but the unprofessional and last minute nature of the industry means I just want out.
I'm numerate, manually dextrous and work in a technical environment reading engineering drawings at the moment.
I can spare some money to do some courses and I've been thinking about trying AAT accountancy, to see if I enjoy it. I used to crunch a lot of numbers as a self employed contractor who had problems with his accountant, and quite enjoyed filing my own VAT etc.
I have also considered HR and purchasing related jobs, but it seems like the qualifications required to get that foot in the door require some work experience to get competencies signed off on the job (the job I can't get due to lack of experience. .)
I'm happy to start again with a very low salary, something which I've never been able to justify to myself, but it's getting to the point now where the nature of my work is making me very depressed as well as using certain things at work that give me horrific allergic rhinitis. Now is the time to get out.
Does anyone have any ideas for reasonably low ish barrier to entry, potentially lucrative professions with sane working hours where staff are looked after? Happy to consider most things that fit the brief points in this post as I think I'd genuinely enjoy anything more than what I'm currently doing!
Many thanks for reading and sorry for such a long post full of waffle!
Edited by Clappedoutvolvo on Tuesday 21st February 10:54
adamfawsitt said:
Have you considered a career in IT, it's well paid and well suited to an engineering brain.
I would caution you against not leveraging the skills (sorry for the double -ve!) that you so obviously have currently - low barriers to entry mean low value and low pay....
I am concerned about this and I would need the wages to rise back to current levels after a few years preferably. I would caution you against not leveraging the skills (sorry for the double -ve!) that you so obviously have currently - low barriers to entry mean low value and low pay....
I have thought about IT but if I'm honest, I know nothing about it. I can use MS office fine but other than that, not a scooby.
If I investigated and enjoyed this sort of work, how would one go about landing their first IT job? It's a broad area so are there any areas you can personally recommend?
I like the lifestyle that these sort of jobs appear to afford, from what I've seen of friends, WFH and good remuneration, but not sure I would be suitable or indeed enjoy the work as I have no idea what people working in IT do generally!
rewild said:
What are the roles in the teams you work with that you fancy a go at? If you can take any experience and knowledge to the new role, you won't be starting from scratch.
If you can read techy drawings, what about some sort of CAD/ Draftsman training?
Thanks for your reply, If you can read techy drawings, what about some sort of CAD/ Draftsman training?
I don't want to work in a related role if I can help it, I'm sick of it. At a push I might try quality inspection, but the money is less, no flexible working what so ever, I'm in the same boat I'm in now for the rest of my working life.
I'm just aware I have over 30 years left of working, god willing, and I don't want to spend them being over worked, unfulfilled and working in a workshop or factory environment. I feel like I'm at the age where if I don't do something then I'll be a bit more stuck going forward, and a grumpy miserable t
t if we ever have kids and I'm doing silly hours in a job I hate even more so. Edited by Clappedoutvolvo on Tuesday 21st February 12:29
Could have written this myself.
I'm at the point now where I'm less fussed about what I do, as long as it enables me to have a better quality of personal life and health.
You see everyone now swanning about in the middle of the day, working from home, making their work fit around them, and why shouldn't it be this way if you are able to make the change?
A good work life balance and good pay doesn't have to be mutually exclusive either.
I'm at the point now where I'm less fussed about what I do, as long as it enables me to have a better quality of personal life and health.
You see everyone now swanning about in the middle of the day, working from home, making their work fit around them, and why shouldn't it be this way if you are able to make the change?
A good work life balance and good pay doesn't have to be mutually exclusive either.
Clappedoutvolvo said:
adamfawsitt said:
Have you considered a career in IT, it's well paid and well suited to an engineering brain.
I would caution you against not leveraging the skills (sorry for the double -ve!) that you so obviously have currently - low barriers to entry mean low value and low pay....
I am concerned about this and I would need the wages to rise back to current levels after a few years preferably. I would caution you against not leveraging the skills (sorry for the double -ve!) that you so obviously have currently - low barriers to entry mean low value and low pay....
I have thought about IT but if I'm honest, I know nothing about it. I can use MS office fine but other than that, not a scooby.
If I investigated and enjoyed this sort of work, how would one go about landing their first IT job? It's a broad area so are there any areas you can personally recommend?
I like the lifestyle that these sort of jobs appear to afford, from what I've seen of friends, WFH and good remuneration, but not sure I would be suitable or indeed enjoy the work as I have no idea what people working in IT do generally!
I've always liked the "idea" of switching from design engineering to IT, and like you, have no idea how to use any existing skills or any idea on what job to move towards. What do IT people do?
I never see the IT dept at my work, as they all work fully remotely.. If you need your salary to increase to where it is now, then regardless of the barriers to entry, there will have to be barriers to that (new role with current salary) position. So either there is a high barrier to entry (very specialised experience, or high qualifications) or the barriers appear along the way (on-the-job training/qualifications/exams and the like).
There are other possible barriers (geographic location?, resource availability - no good being an ocean-going windsurfing instructor in Warwick), so worth considering those as well.
If you want to be able to fit work around home, then that suggests you need a fair degree of autonomy, so either working for yourself or being fairly senior.
Dentistry was always one that seemed to tick lots of those sorts of boxes. Train driver? Short-haul pilot? Air traffic control (though there might be an upper limit on age to start training for that).
Have you considered trying a voluntary role - you might have to stick at your current job to pay the bills, but you could get a lot of non-financial rewards from e.g. governing bodies for schools, charities etc. (Politics in charities are no better, and possibly worse, than in other environments, and you might find all of a sudden that managing people isn't quite as interesting as it seemed!)
There are other possible barriers (geographic location?, resource availability - no good being an ocean-going windsurfing instructor in Warwick), so worth considering those as well.
If you want to be able to fit work around home, then that suggests you need a fair degree of autonomy, so either working for yourself or being fairly senior.
Dentistry was always one that seemed to tick lots of those sorts of boxes. Train driver? Short-haul pilot? Air traffic control (though there might be an upper limit on age to start training for that).
Have you considered trying a voluntary role - you might have to stick at your current job to pay the bills, but you could get a lot of non-financial rewards from e.g. governing bodies for schools, charities etc. (Politics in charities are no better, and possibly worse, than in other environments, and you might find all of a sudden that managing people isn't quite as interesting as it seemed!)
What about something in construction?
Project Manager
Construction Manager
QS
Building Surveyor
Sales
Materials
The list is endless
See if you could get onto a day release HNC/HND/BSc while working and gaining experience and in 5 years you should easily be back at your previous salary range.
Project Manager
Construction Manager
QS
Building Surveyor
Sales
Materials
The list is endless
See if you could get onto a day release HNC/HND/BSc while working and gaining experience and in 5 years you should easily be back at your previous salary range.
I’m thinking twice about posting this. Maybe I will whisper it really quietly for fear of a beating 
HMRC. There I said it.
A friend of ours took a job with them she’s a trained lawyer everyone was like WTF! But she travels the world has changed jobs twice a lot is problem solving thinking analytically. Investigating companies for dodging tax etc… pay is good as are working hours. No idea about entry criteria but they are always recruiting.
HMRC. There I said it.
A friend of ours took a job with them she’s a trained lawyer everyone was like WTF! But she travels the world has changed jobs twice a lot is problem solving thinking analytically. Investigating companies for dodging tax etc… pay is good as are working hours. No idea about entry criteria but they are always recruiting.
I feel exactly the same. Being doing this over twenty years now and for the last three years, although it's been four on four off shift pattern, I get up 4.20am and dont get home til 6.20pm but only get paid for 12 hours. The rest of the team are lazy twonks who wait for me to get in after my days off and say X Y Z needs doing. Yesterday I told one of them to do it himself which resulted in him having a paddy, swearing and launching a seat across the office floor. Supervisor saw it and didn't say a word. Anyway, got a job interview Monday which is right up my street. Same pay but better hours, ten minute drive from me, flexitime, less hours needed to work etc etc.
Have you considered looking into a franchise? The main reason people choose franchises to effect a career change is that they are generally only really qualified to get a job that's broadly the same as the one they've already got. Which they hate.
So, franchising is a route to a complete change of direction. Yes, it will require an initial investment, but (the good ones) will make it easy to get funding for this and of course the whole model is that the 'franchisors' (the ultimate owners of the brand) usually derive their income from the 'franchisees' (you) doing well out of it, so they are motivated to see you succeed.
It's not all 'man-in-a-van' businesses either. Have a look here:
https://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/professional-ser...
(Oh, and BTW - don't be put off by the "all franchises are a scam" brigade who like to pop up on posts like this one. These are usually people who know nothing other than hearing about a friend of a friend who lost some money on a cr*p franchise in the 80's. The vast majority are actually really good, and far more brands than you realise are very successful franchises).
So, franchising is a route to a complete change of direction. Yes, it will require an initial investment, but (the good ones) will make it easy to get funding for this and of course the whole model is that the 'franchisors' (the ultimate owners of the brand) usually derive their income from the 'franchisees' (you) doing well out of it, so they are motivated to see you succeed.
It's not all 'man-in-a-van' businesses either. Have a look here:
https://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/professional-ser...
(Oh, and BTW - don't be put off by the "all franchises are a scam" brigade who like to pop up on posts like this one. These are usually people who know nothing other than hearing about a friend of a friend who lost some money on a cr*p franchise in the 80's. The vast majority are actually really good, and far more brands than you realise are very successful franchises).
Quantity Surveyor seems the job for you by what you said in your OP. It's basically an accountant for projects / building works. Not in the office all the time but most of the time (if at the right company where you are not site based), good money and you're never struggle for work as their is a shortage of QS's. With your engineering background this gives you an advantage straight away.
Interesting thread. I feel like we could swap jobs! I am very practical and can learn most manual type things - teaching myself how to rebuild cars, most house DIY stuff. I feel like I have an engineering / architectural type brain. I currently work in public sector as a Business Architect - this is lots of computer driving and abstract description of how a business should operate - translating strategy into execution.
I feel like I'd be better in a more hands on role, but also quite interested in getting more into IT having done BCS course and TOGAF. However, im not really techy and not particularly interested in computers etc but sure I could learn it relatively quickly to a basic level. Im more physical nuts and bolts rather than virtual / electronic nuts and bolts.
Not sure where to go in terms of moving into IT - perhaps solution architecture? That would suit your engineering type brain but could also involve your number crunching side if getting involved in bids for funding etc and building business cases?
I feel like I'd be better in a more hands on role, but also quite interested in getting more into IT having done BCS course and TOGAF. However, im not really techy and not particularly interested in computers etc but sure I could learn it relatively quickly to a basic level. Im more physical nuts and bolts rather than virtual / electronic nuts and bolts.
Not sure where to go in terms of moving into IT - perhaps solution architecture? That would suit your engineering type brain but could also involve your number crunching side if getting involved in bids for funding etc and building business cases?
I think I can safely say (without sounding elitist), that you can't move into IT as a Solutions Architect. That's the role you get after years of experience solving problems and learning how systems should hang together, and learning what's wrong with existing systems and how to get them from bad to good with minimum cost and zero disruption to services. You can certainly get into IT though, but not straight in at the top telling everyone else how to build things. It's not that simple, and there's no guide book for that. You gotta serve time and learn from mistakes. If that's your end goal, then an IT role that's varied and exposes you to as many companies as possible will be the way to accelerate experience. Don't go in to one company and work on their systems for 5 years; instead go to a IT support/managed services company with many clients and get exposure to many systems.
Thanks for the advice and reality check; I wasnt thinking waltz straight in but more in response to 'get into IT' as in, how do you do that? Whats the entry path? Fully accept and prepared to start at the bottom(ish) and work up if its something I want to pursue.
Any tips on how to start and areas to look into? Might have missed the boat though, I guess.
Any tips on how to start and areas to look into? Might have missed the boat though, I guess.
Willber said:
Thanks for the advice and reality check; I wasnt thinking waltz straight in but more in response to 'get into IT' as in, how do you do that? Whats the entry path? Fully accept and prepared to start at the bottom(ish) and work up if its something I want to pursue.
Any tips on how to start and areas to look into? Might have missed the boat though, I guess.
My BiL is an IT 'geek'. He left an admin job and did one of those basic IT training courses where they place you in a job at the end. He was placed at BT, then got transferred over to them (from being contracted) and then on and on. He isn't management and is quite a quiet type so going around sorting IT issues and working on company upgrades suited him perfectly.Any tips on how to start and areas to look into? Might have missed the boat though, I guess.
'IT'
'Finance'
Don't mean to sound a dick, but the above are very vague and encompass about 25% of the workforce.
Employment rule #1: employers don't pay high salaries unless you have the high skills/experience to match.
If you want to retrain completely, you're probably going to take a salary cut (unless you're transferring skills, which it doesn't sound like?)
'Finance'
Don't mean to sound a dick, but the above are very vague and encompass about 25% of the workforce.
Employment rule #1: employers don't pay high salaries unless you have the high skills/experience to match.
If you want to retrain completely, you're probably going to take a salary cut (unless you're transferring skills, which it doesn't sound like?)
I'm a chartered engineer and made the move over to projects a while back. I'd built expertise in a particular niche and after 15 years just fancied a change. Career progression has been better and the work is quite varied with new interesting stuff coming in.
It's fairly transferable to other industries too.
It's fairly transferable to other industries too.
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