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I have been a long suffering employee (now a team manager) of a federal claims processing department. Whether a processor, or in my current front line role, I have never had much job satisfaction in this cube farm environment. I took the supervisory position on the off chance that more interaction with staff, and different duties than moving electronic widgets across a screen may alleviate my disatisfaction. However, to no avail, I am no happier and maybe less so due to some increased stresses. (Mostly due to the fact some of our workforce does not behave like adults, and the beaurocracy of civil service makes it very difficult to take action).
Anyway, I feel I am in need of some sort of change to get through the second half of my career and am unsure really what direction to go.
I do know I like to work a little more independently, with some variety in my day. My best skills are researching (most experience in regulations research) and writing (I have written policy, training, etc). I have strong financial/mathmatical skills too (I do a lot of financial audits and such on things), but little in the way of formal education (my degree is in liberal arts) I have decent to good public speaking skills and ability too, and have done enough of it to be comfortable in front of groups.
My biggest hurdle is that I am trying to find a field, which I think are a good fit for my skills, and in which there is a need in my area for people. Getting additional education or training is something I am willing to do, if I feel there is going to be a payoff with opportunities at the end of it.
It has just been difficult identifying things. Sources I find online which proclaim needs, once I look deeper, find that the info is old, and those needs are filled.
So I was curious to hear what others may have done in a situation like this, a career change, identifying a field of interest with opportunities in it, and making the move.
Identifying a "field with opportunities" is tricky.
I switched careers to get a certification to go into healthcare. There are abundant opportunities in this particular field, although the pay isn't great. But its easy to get a job in a pinch if you need one.
I used to do administrative assistant work. The problem with that is, the entire admin field has been taken over and controlled by temp agencies. It is almost impossible now to get a direct hire, permanent position as an administrative assistant. Also, companies don't use as many admins as they did 20 years ago. Actually, they use more project managers (who are more highly trained). Also, companies won't pay for training for software programs they require for their job, but they wanted the admins to go pay for their own training, I got tired of that.
I know people who went back to to school to get their master's degrees in things like "philosophy" and of course, they remain unemployed.
I do know I like to work a little more independently, with some variety in my day. My best skills are researching (most experience in regulations research) and writing (I have written policy, training, etc). I have strong financial/mathmatical skills too (I do a lot of financial audits and such on things), but little in the way of formal education
Advanced tax preparation, maybe? There are year-around jobs at places like H&R Block: contractors have est. quarterly payments and stuff like that. You have to research problems at the advanced levels and need to be good with numbers, but you can get company training and don't have to have a college degree or CPA at the lower levels, although many preparers often end up taking some additional college courses, such as tax law, because it interests them and they are aspiring to become Enrolled Agents (represent clients at IRS meetings).
The other possibility which will prolong the problem but maybe make your days easier is to transfer to another division where there is less drama, although you might be going from the frying pan into the fire.
I used to hear your complaint from state workers when I lived in Ohio. Second careers for some of them were: tax preparation, paralegal or law (one had connections and a keen interest in environment law and is doing that, now), dog trainer/groomer (now owns own dog wash van and goes to client's houses), restaurant owner (went bankrupt), financial adviser (Raymond James Investments), and some other businesses that failed.
I feel for you and wish I had some better answers! But perhaps I've given you a few ideas that may lead to others.
Do you belong to any professional groups? That's a topic that's frequently discussed.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Checkered24
I do know I like to work a little more independently, with some variety in my day. My best skills are researching (most experience in regulations research) and writing (I have written policy, training, etc). I have strong financial/mathmatical skills too (I do a lot of financial audits and such on things), but little in the way of formal education (my degree is in liberal arts) I have decent to good public speaking skills and ability too, and have done enough of it to be comfortable in front of groups.
Ok, you have some great background, and this would take some work, but energy policy, specifically cleantech, but even just generally, energy policy. Lots of starts ups on the tech side, and tons of growth, but lots of the battles are in regulatory reform (to create a landscape for the culture), fiscal analysis, and there is tons of speaking and writing for different audiences. The public speaking skills are especially critical and desirable.
There is a large and growing world in this area, and the government policy / regulations / public speaking / being able to analyze, distill down, and present regulations and finances, are great skills in this arena.
There are usually several groups in each region that work in the landscape / culture generation in energy. In NY, http://www.nyserda.ny.gov/ is the government wing, but there are private non profits that do similar. Just a thought.
Advanced tax preparation, maybe? There are year-around jobs at places like H&R Block: contractors have est. quarterly payments and stuff like that. You have to research problems at the advanced levels and need to be good with numbers, but you can get company training and don't have to have a college degree or CPA at the lower levels, although many preparers often end up taking some additional college courses, such as tax law, because it interests them and they are aspiring to become Enrolled Agents (represent clients at IRS meetings).
The other possibility which will prolong the problem but maybe make your days easier is to transfer to another division where there is less drama, although you might be going from the frying pan into the fire.
I used to hear your complaint from state workers when I lived in Ohio. Second careers for some of them were: tax preparation, paralegal or law (one had connections and a keen interest in environment law and is doing that, now), dog trainer/groomer (now owns own dog wash van and goes to client's houses), restaurant owner (went bankrupt), financial adviser (Raymond James Investments), and some other businesses that failed.
I feel for you and wish I had some better answers! But perhaps I've given you a few ideas that may lead to others.
Do you belong to any professional groups? That's a topic that's frequently discussed.
Hmm, I had not thought of anything along those lines. I know my education end would be a little flimsy on a resume, but as you said that may not be too bad at the lower levels. I certainly have a lot of experience handling financial issues for the government to lean on. It is something worthy to look at further.
Funny you mention law too, as that was always an interest of mine. Getting into government was in part along those lines. I used to be our station's appeals coordinator and worked heavily on the regulatory end of what we did, writing statements of the case which interpret and explain regulations to clients and stakeholders. I have written policy (and trained on it too). So maybe moving that way, more towards a legal end of things may be a good avenue.
Ok, you have some great background, and this would take some work, but energy policy, specifically cleantech, but even just generally, energy policy. Lots of starts ups on the tech side, and tons of growth, but lots of the battles are in regulatory reform (to create a landscape for the culture), fiscal analysis, and there is tons of speaking and writing for different audiences. The public speaking skills are especially critical and desirable.
There is a large and growing world in this area, and the government policy / regulations / public speaking / being able to analyze, distill down, and present regulations and finances, are great skills in this arena.
There are usually several groups in each region that work in the landscape / culture generation in energy. In NY, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority is the government wing, but there are private non profits that do similar. Just a thought.
This is an interesting suggestion too, and something else I am certainly going to explore. I know even here, energy policy has been hotly debated in NY. We have interests going back and forth on whether to allow gas fracking, but beyond that, we may also be attracting other clean energy sources (such as a large solar pannel manufacturing plant).
This could be a sector which is ripe for getting into around here. Thank you for the suggestion!
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
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You're welcome. Private utilities, and even demand response companies like Enernoc and the like are heavily involved with policy and reg reform too, and probably pay better than the non profits and government wings.
Funny you mention law too, as that was always an interest of mine. Getting into government was in part along those lines. I used to be our station's appeals coordinator and worked heavily on the regulatory end of what we did, writing statements of the case which interpret and explain regulations to clients and stakeholders. I have written policy (and trained on it too). So maybe moving that way, more towards a legal end of things may be a good avenue.
If you go that route, perhaps first carefully research administrative law in your area. Given your past connections, will that help you break into it? The gal who went into environmental law was already working in the OH EPA (and had a 4-year degree in science) so she was a known entity. Someone else would've been very lucky to get an internship.
Don't be afraid to take some of these co-workers of co-workers to lunch and get their opinions. If you don't have the support, look into something else because a law degree is expensive, as you probably know, and today, outside of the special areas like admin and patent law, a lot of it is divorce and bankrupty, which gets really old, really fast. Talk about drama . . .
You could possibly look into a role like a grant writer at a non-profit, which would give you some variety as well.
Basically you need to be able to write, research, network, and understand financial stuff.
This is a pretty typical job description:
Quote:
The functions of this position include: researching funding sources; drafting, writing, assembling and submitting proposals, solicitation letters and reports; tracking submission deadlines, proposal status, and follow-up with potential funders; compiling progress and financial reports to funders; recording receipt of grants; processing timely acceptance and acknowledgment of grants; ensuring regular communication with prospective and existing funders; and maintaining database and filing system. In addition this position will produce accurate communications and reports of the Museum and its programs. Writes and adapts existing boilerplate proposals to the requirements of each specific grant opportunity and submission preference.
Works closely with development, program and finance staff to prepare and update standard program descriptions, communications and reports. Proofreads, edits and provides constructive feedback on letters, proposals, reports, and letters of intent. Routes grant applications/reports and supporting documents to appropriate staff to solicit feedback verify information and receive approval for submission; and ensure program managers/directors understand the requirements of all grants.
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