ᐅ Continuing education for architects, fully qualified lawyers,...
Created on: 21 Mar 2021 07:31
S
Seven1984
Hello everyone,
I would like to hear the forum’s opinion.
I am 36 years old, have one child (6 years old), and although I am fairly well established professionally, I am very dissatisfied. I am a trained IT specialist and studied business informatics (bachelor’s degree) alongside a full-time job. My career steadily progressed. At its peak, I was an IT project manager responsible for an 8 million budget and 70 project team members spread across Europe and Russia. My then superior’s manager wanted to promote me into middle management. I work for a DAX 30 company. That didn’t happen back then, probably partly my fault. I think I also reached my personal limit at that level. That was about 1.5 years ago.
Currently, I have a job that allows me to build my house on the side, which hopefully will be finished at some point ;-) However, it is not satisfying at all, and I no longer really enjoy working in IT. I also expect to be offered a severance package in the next few years (standard procedure in large companies), so I will face the question of what to do next at the latest then. Since I like to take a proactive approach, I am not waiting that long.
IT is no longer an option for me, and I am now exploring long-term alternatives. After all, I plan to live for at least another 50 years, so in my opinion, it’s still worthwhile ;-)
As a child, I had two other career wishes: architect or fully qualified lawyer. Regarding architecture, I could imagine working as a technical expert or construction manager. As a construction manager, my project management skills would probably help, but I would likely have to be self-employed or work for another large corporation. Smaller firms tend to prefer, I think, master bricklayers or craftsmen with stronger hands-on skills. I have no reservations about self-employment but would need to clearly understand my added value and target market if I decide to go that route ;-)
As an architect, I would probably enjoy tasks related to obtaining building permits / planning permission, but I am not sure if I would be good at detailed design work yet ;-)
As a fully qualified lawyer, I would typically plan on working independently. I won’t elaborate on that here since this is not a legal forum.
I have not discussed this much with my personal circle besides my partner...
If you have alternative ideas or suggestions different from mine, feel free to share.
Regards
I would like to hear the forum’s opinion.
I am 36 years old, have one child (6 years old), and although I am fairly well established professionally, I am very dissatisfied. I am a trained IT specialist and studied business informatics (bachelor’s degree) alongside a full-time job. My career steadily progressed. At its peak, I was an IT project manager responsible for an 8 million budget and 70 project team members spread across Europe and Russia. My then superior’s manager wanted to promote me into middle management. I work for a DAX 30 company. That didn’t happen back then, probably partly my fault. I think I also reached my personal limit at that level. That was about 1.5 years ago.
Currently, I have a job that allows me to build my house on the side, which hopefully will be finished at some point ;-) However, it is not satisfying at all, and I no longer really enjoy working in IT. I also expect to be offered a severance package in the next few years (standard procedure in large companies), so I will face the question of what to do next at the latest then. Since I like to take a proactive approach, I am not waiting that long.
IT is no longer an option for me, and I am now exploring long-term alternatives. After all, I plan to live for at least another 50 years, so in my opinion, it’s still worthwhile ;-)
As a child, I had two other career wishes: architect or fully qualified lawyer. Regarding architecture, I could imagine working as a technical expert or construction manager. As a construction manager, my project management skills would probably help, but I would likely have to be self-employed or work for another large corporation. Smaller firms tend to prefer, I think, master bricklayers or craftsmen with stronger hands-on skills. I have no reservations about self-employment but would need to clearly understand my added value and target market if I decide to go that route ;-)
As an architect, I would probably enjoy tasks related to obtaining building permits / planning permission, but I am not sure if I would be good at detailed design work yet ;-)
As a fully qualified lawyer, I would typically plan on working independently. I won’t elaborate on that here since this is not a legal forum.
I have not discussed this much with my personal circle besides my partner...
If you have alternative ideas or suggestions different from mine, feel free to share.
Regards
Seven1984 schrieb:
If you have any alternative suggestions or ideas beyond mine... feel free to share.Yes. First, have a professional analysis to understand what’s really holding you back.
If you want to completely change direction, it will take 10 years or more to regain your current salary level. Until then, expect tight finances and limited creditworthiness.
This needs careful consideration.
Otherwise, even in IT, I strongly recommend leaving the corporate world (but again: first investigate what exactly bothers you). Move to the mid-sized business sector.
Maybe even consider the public sector, where the pay might be lower, but you get a 40-hour workweek, regular holidays, and no calls at 10 PM.
I recently saw a job posting, I think it was a charity organization looking for IT management. They don’t pay well (it even said so in the ad), but they emphasize “meaningful work.”
It really is more satisfying to know what you are working for and see the impact, instead of just improving a KPI from 0.4 to 0.3.
For me personally, once the corporate world, never again.
H
hampshire21 Mar 2021 16:55Impression:
You are currently very dissatisfied and want to get as far away from your environment as possible. You also associate this with the topic of "IT." At the same time, you have no real heartfelt desire, otherwise you wouldn’t be considering such different alternatives.
Experience (several major career changes):
A lasting sense of well-being does not come from running away from an unsatisfactory work situation. You always take yourself with you, and with that, part of the problem as well. Changing only the external conditions is not enough. Reflecting on your own life goals, strengths, weaknesses, talents, and interests before making a major change—whether in job role, industry, or both—is critical to success. A lasting improvement in well-being comes only with moving toward your own life goals. It makes sense to identify these first—they can also change throughout different phases of life. Every change involves financial risks, which can be more or less stressful for different people, and having a financial cushion helps maintain peace of mind.
I made my last major change 2.5 years ago, as the sole breadwinner and in the middle of starting a house build. I needed a physical wake-up call. I then agreed amicably with my employer to end my position and prioritized the house build and defining my own goals—I wanted to do something socially meaningful. What I now earn as a self-employed person in six months, I earned at best in one month. So, it’s no race—if it’s enough, it’s enough.
Cautious advice:
Find out what motivates you positively—not exactly what you want to do, but what you associate with it and what meaning it has for you. A sign that you are ready for a change is when your thoughts about your goals occupy you more than the reasons for wanting to escape.
Opportunities in the job market:
Those who do what they want, radiate personal maturity, and can therefore present themselves clearly and recognizably will find their place even at 50 or 60. Such a person is not the statistical average and does not have to measure themselves by average statistical chances.
You are currently very dissatisfied and want to get as far away from your environment as possible. You also associate this with the topic of "IT." At the same time, you have no real heartfelt desire, otherwise you wouldn’t be considering such different alternatives.
Experience (several major career changes):
A lasting sense of well-being does not come from running away from an unsatisfactory work situation. You always take yourself with you, and with that, part of the problem as well. Changing only the external conditions is not enough. Reflecting on your own life goals, strengths, weaknesses, talents, and interests before making a major change—whether in job role, industry, or both—is critical to success. A lasting improvement in well-being comes only with moving toward your own life goals. It makes sense to identify these first—they can also change throughout different phases of life. Every change involves financial risks, which can be more or less stressful for different people, and having a financial cushion helps maintain peace of mind.
I made my last major change 2.5 years ago, as the sole breadwinner and in the middle of starting a house build. I needed a physical wake-up call. I then agreed amicably with my employer to end my position and prioritized the house build and defining my own goals—I wanted to do something socially meaningful. What I now earn as a self-employed person in six months, I earned at best in one month. So, it’s no race—if it’s enough, it’s enough.
Cautious advice:
Find out what motivates you positively—not exactly what you want to do, but what you associate with it and what meaning it has for you. A sign that you are ready for a change is when your thoughts about your goals occupy you more than the reasons for wanting to escape.
Opportunities in the job market:
Those who do what they want, radiate personal maturity, and can therefore present themselves clearly and recognizably will find their place even at 50 or 60. Such a person is not the statistical average and does not have to measure themselves by average statistical chances.
Seven1984 schrieb:
Regarding architecture, I could imagine moving towards being an expert or construction manager. [...] As an architect, I would definitely enjoy working on building permit planning, but I’m not sure if I would be good at detailed design.... I don’t know yet ;-)To me, that clearly sounds like a contradiction: a construction manager works primarily with detailed design in practice, so why would you not want to work on detailed design in theory? Permit planning basically means schematic design plus drainage planning—translated into IT terms, it’s like “turning on the printer,” which could quickly lead you to the next bore-out ;-)https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
guckuck2 schrieb:
For me, I can only say: once working for a corporation, never again. My husband is similar. But many things are also the same in the public administration (which is my field). The latter has the advantage that you are not under the kind of pressure you experience in a corporation. However, you face different pressures.
Many comparisons are similar though: employees, team leaders, hierarchy... there are always cases where a colleague dies on the toilet, heart attack or a similar work-related illness. Is that due to the corporation?
Sometimes I think that a job with less responsibility plus a part-time job earning up to €450 (about $500) at the baker or supermarket down the street is more balanced and pleasant than a lousy team leader position where you still get praised.
@saralina87
Administrative staff can also be found at the police, even in the more interesting roles.
hampshire schrieb:
Anyone who acts according to what they want, shows personal maturity, and can therefore present themselves clearly and confidently will find their place even at 50 or 60. That’s easy to say. I don’t believe in that. As a commercial employee with qualifications and work experience (also within a corporation), it is very difficult to find a suitable position at 50+. That is the experience of some of my husband’s former colleagues who have accepted this reality. At the moment, that calculation does not add up.
My opinion: Administration, commercial employees, media, marketing, IT, medical assistants, etc.—all professions where changing employers is possible and can contribute greatly to personal fulfillment.
Would there possibly be something within the current company that you could work towards? Investing another 5-8 years in further training at age 36, only to start over again in terms of salary and skills, certainly won’t make things any easier.
In 2017, I accepted a severance payment and changed employers.
About a year ago, I also became dissatisfied. This time, however, I didn’t want to change employers, so I asked around to see if anyone might be retiring in the next 1-2 years and whether there was anything that might interest me.
I found out that a colleague is retiring in February 2022. His position interests me a lot and falls within my area of interest.
I then enrolled in further training to learn certain basic skills and completed it in December 2020.
Two months ago, I went to the HR department and explained that I would like to change my career path but wanted to stay with my current employer. I mentioned the training I had completed and presented my certificate.
The HR manager said she would think it over and get back to me.
Last week, I met her in the office (we are currently doing a lot of home office) and she asked me if I could imagine taking on the position of the colleague who will soon be retiring;)
At the moment, the request for the transfer is with our managing director for a decision.
In 2017, I accepted a severance payment and changed employers.
About a year ago, I also became dissatisfied. This time, however, I didn’t want to change employers, so I asked around to see if anyone might be retiring in the next 1-2 years and whether there was anything that might interest me.
I found out that a colleague is retiring in February 2022. His position interests me a lot and falls within my area of interest.
I then enrolled in further training to learn certain basic skills and completed it in December 2020.
Two months ago, I went to the HR department and explained that I would like to change my career path but wanted to stay with my current employer. I mentioned the training I had completed and presented my certificate.
The HR manager said she would think it over and get back to me.
Last week, I met her in the office (we are currently doing a lot of home office) and she asked me if I could imagine taking on the position of the colleague who will soon be retiring;)
At the moment, the request for the transfer is with our managing director for a decision.
H
hampshire21 Mar 2021 22:54ypg schrieb:
That’s easy to say. I don’t believe in it. That is just as easy to say as “not believing in it.”
The real question is what you are willing to risk. I did not believe I could maintain my health if I had stayed. The financial aspect became much less important in comparison.
Some people prefer the stable certainty of a bad situation and feel threatened by change.
Others prefer the risk of change and feel threatened by the stability of the bad situation.
Either way – it’s not a situation for the faint-hearted. I wish the original poster all the best. At mid-30s, there is still plenty of opportunity. I believe in that.