When I was at university, did I predict the career I have now? Not a chance! I was intent on becoming a barrister but, once qualified, I realised it wasn’t for me. I had a big decision to make: do I stay in a job for the next 40 years when my heart isn’t in it? Or do I abandon the law for something else after years of training. I needed a career that would make me jump out of bed in the morning and have a spring in my step. To cut a long story short, I decided to leave the law – and I have never looked back.
My career has been nothing if not flexible – private sector, public sector, academia, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, the environment, building materials, corporate finance, consulting – you name it, I’ve done it. Fast forward to the present, I am now the executive director of evidence in the Environment Agency and executive champion for gender, in a sector and policy area I hadn’t even considered at university.
To me, it’s been a form of yoga – career yoga if you will, and this phrase chimed with me as I was asked to speak to a mixture of public and private sector employees at professional services firm EY earlier this year. I shared the stage with Radhika Chadwick, lead partner for digital government at EY, who had forged a similar path to me, spanning several sectors.
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Together we discussed how a flexible career is about making the right decision at the right time, even if that means re-training or switching sectors. Confidence in following my instincts was key. I didn’t have a career plan, I followed my instincts and it paid off. While I’m a great believer in grasping opportunities, I realise that you make your own luck; by creating a good network, for example, as these things tend to be about relationships.
One key theme raised by Radhika was around technology and the role it is playing in shaking up the job market. She emphasised the significance of embracing technology and the importance of it in years to come. In the next five years, more jobs will be lost than gained through the rise in technology – mainly white collar – which demonstrates the scale of change we all need to be ready for.
I’m a strong supporter of mentoring and coaching, to help tease out whether you are ready to move on, or what you need to do to move to your next role. I mentor a lot of people either through the 30% Club, or in the Environment Agency, and many of my mentees talk themselves out of grasping opportunities because they feel they aren’t up to it. Almost invariably they are wrong but they hold themselves back because of these so-called “self-limiting beliefs”. It’s something we all do, but it results in missing out because you don’t feel you have all the skills and experience needed for the role, when actually you’re a 60% fit.
For my current role, and although I felt the job had my name written on it, I ruled myself out because I’m not a scientist as specified in the small print. I then got a second chance when a head-hunter contacted me, as they hadn’t found the right person via the usual channels, and to my surprise, I got the job. So always ask yourself “am I holding myself back unnecessarily?”
I have learnt a lot of lessons from every career move and the most important one is about transferable skills. Leadership, project management, strategic thinking, communication and finance are the “bread and butter” skills that all roles need. My top tip to others is to develop these skills and become an expert in them – you can then apply them to any role. And don’t be afraid to retrain and acquire new skills.
In summary, my top tips for a flexible career are:
1) Don’t be scared of re-training or switching sectors.
2) Be conscious of “self-limiting” beliefs and ask yourself whether you are shutting yourself off from opportunities unnecessarily
3) Seek support through a mentor or coach
4) Develop transferable skills because every role needs them
5) Switch sectors and learn things from each one. Ignore the saying “the grass is always greener on the other side” – this could hold you back making the jump to another sector.