So I’m in a bit of a pickle.
I need a job. I’ve worked before, but this time around I want to actually get my foot in the door for a career path that I feel best suited for. I’m sick of working retail, and feel I’d be a better fit elsewhere.
I just don’t know where.
Growing up, it felt like anything I thought of would get immediately beat down by my parents. There were a few ideas, but of them, I can only remember journalism, with my father specifically telling me “anybody can be a journalist these days” in a dismissive tone, and that he expected me to come up with something better.
Data entry is something that’s also been on my mind for a while now. It sounds like something I’d be down to try out, but I have no clue how to get my foot in the door for something like that, and if there’s even any entry-level positions for that.
Another worry is that I don’t have any experience with these positions, and that that fact combined with no post-secondary would essentially be walking into a brick wall.
I’m not even completely sure about pursuing these options, like the worst case scenario for me would be getting accepted for something new only to immediately discover I’m a terrible fit and back at step one in finding new work while stuck at a job that quite literally drains my will to live like previous positions of mine did.
How can I at least get some semblance of an idea as to whether or not something will be a good fit for me? I’m fine working a job, I’ve done so without issue before, I just don’t want to find myself in a work position that kills my mental well-being again.
Just try em out! You can’t know until you perform the labor or at the very least shadow, that’s why internships are such a big thing. Your parents did you a massive disservice.
Before job shadowing through any persons you know (or can set up meetings with) that would help, consider the kinds of things you liked to do/imagine for play as a kid, and what it is about those things that you really loved. For each one type of play or role-playing you truly enjoyed as a kid, you can probably tease out several connected options. Then figure out which is most realistic to you, narrowing it down according to your present preferences.
Also, on the off chance your parents were so dismissive as to make you feel deep down like you can’t do anything or nothing you do matters, they were wrong-- you can and it does. Fight long enough that the story ends at the good part and not during the temporary disappointments along the way.
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The government often has training dollars/programs. When manufacturing slipped to offshore work, my friend retrained as an electrician via a govt trades program.
But its OK to not know your path, or spend time finding it.
I did some restaurant work early on, then did two years as electricians apprentice to save some money for University. I thought going to Uni for art was my path, but a year in changed plans and wanted to go into engineering. But tuition cost money so I started working at a manufacturing place on the shop floor, which led to moving upstairs to engineering. I enjoyed the software side a lot so moved to a company that sold the engineering software. Now my role is still deeply technical, but also sales.
Its definitely not the career I envisioned I would be in, but I get to meet some really awesome people in need of software or technical service. Every day is a new challenge but also rewarding to be able to help somebody that has been struggling with a software issue, workflow or technical technical problem. You fix their issue and they are super happy.
I haven’t used it myself in a long time, but What Color is your Parachute has a bunch of stuff about figuring out what kind of job you want, what skills you have, and then how to transition to it even if it’s an entirely new field for you. It’s also relentlessly optimistic.
Data entry is a waste of time. These jobs are already being taken over by AI. Any that aren’t already lost to AI will be shortly.
The world is being reshaped by AI and things there will only accelerate over time.
What ever you do consider how AI is going to revamp industries. Whatever you do invest in AI skills because that will be the most important skill over the next 20 years.
