Fatima’s next job could be in cyber

Well the country is headed into some pretty deep shit right now, both in terms of the virus, economic problems and brexit. I would never seek to dissuade someone from following their passion, but realistically with ballet, and indeed the arts in general there are probably way more people who would love to do it as a career than there are spots for them to fill.

I think where this poster is a little ill-advised is that most people who pursue dreams of pursuing the arts are intimately acquainted with this fact. However there is probably a more well thought out scheme to be found making the point that even trying something as physically and psychologically demanding as ballet, builds in a whole wealth of skills and determination that could be of huge benefit in many different areas.

I was somewhat under the impression that people who work in 'cyber' are generally shit hot mathematicians. Which isn't necessarily something achievable to all and sundry wanting to retrain.

It seems quite disrespectful both of ballet dancers (massively skilled, intense training) and to cyber types.

(As a writer of code, albeit nothing related to 'cyber', I wasn't at all impressed by the 'slumped eating Pringles' stereotype upthread )

Working in the Cyber Security industry my reaction to that advert was to shudder.

If the men working in Cyber Security weren't as awful to the women already working in CyberSec there wouldn't be a constant exodus of women and there wouldn't be as much of a skills shortage.

I'd never advise women to enter this industry it's toxic to women.

Sorry @ListeningQuietly I didn't think her feet look really Ballet - I apologise and am corrected

And once, just once, in DD's (very short) dance career has the costume person asked what colour her 'nudes' (skin-toned undies) should be.....

I'm Sorry to hear that.

Thanks for pointing out it's from 2017.

Imo even more short sighted given the summer's events re BLM protests.

Image almost certainly chosen by a white person.

Anyway, I wonder what the dancer thinks of the campaign?

I was wondering if it was a model retaining as a ballet dancer 😉

Plus her feet are not right if she is ballet trained
Original picture is here
www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-54505841
The girl IS a dancer

Plus her feet are not right if she is ballet trained

[quote NeurotrashWarrior]It's an interesting perspective op.

But it's really offended those who are dancers and in the arts.

Also, and no one has picked up on this, if she were a real dancer and if they'd though about it, she'd be wearing these shoes:

www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/apr/01/pointe-shoes-black-ballet-ballerinas-dancers[/quote]
Sadly not in 2017 when the ad first came out - skin tone ballet shoes are a very new innovation

For years daubing them in foundation to get the right tone was necessary

And once, just once, in DD's (very short) dance career has the costume person asked what colour her 'nudes' (skin-toned undies) should be.....

Which should be weight against the number of people who did not thing she should have a career in ballet as she is mixed

It's an interesting perspective op.

But it's really offended those who are dancers and in the arts.

Also, and no one has picked up on this, if she were a real dancer and if they'd though about it, she'd be wearing these shoes:

www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/apr/01/pointe-shoes-black-ballet-ballerinas-dancers

As an actual IT professional, I find all this "people just need to retrain into coding" rather naive and somewhat insulting. Most people (male and female) are rather shit at "coding", even with training.

This. I actually did "learn to code", and I was pretty shit at it; I worked really hard for mediocre results, which was soul crushing. I eventually transferred to UI testing, which pays less well but I happen to be good at it and it doesn't leave me drained at the end of the day. I have huge respect for people who can code well, and I think it's pretty insulting to say you can always just code if the ballet career doesn't work out.

It was a campaign to encourage people to work in Cyber from 2017. This is not a recent campaign.. this is not covid related and has nothing to do with this government

Storm in a tea cup

I have spent years at art school - many are called in the arts but few are chosen... so a photo of a woman in a manky apron, covered in paint, and with glue in her hair and hands covered in plasters wouldn’t offend me.

I know a few actors, musicians, photographers and an opera singer who have always struggled to make a living and a few (most) of them have moved away to a day job.

Yes I thought that too, Nandos!

There were other versions of the ad like this one which is unfortunate considering the current state of the travel industry

People need to retrain. Many people need to retrain. There are several jobs that won't keep body and soul together over the next few years.

I can't get angry about that, just sad.

Entire industries come and go, and people need to retrain.

I think professional drivers- taxi, Uber, lorry- are likely to go in a few years.

We lost most mining related jobs.

Other fields are cut to the bone, with people covering what was the work of several people.

No field is immune.

Musicians, actors, writers, artists- a back up or day job is the norm.

...

Well, that's a good point. Many people won't have the aptitude for cybersecurity, anymore that they'd have the aptitude for ballet (not Fatima, people in general).

“Cyber” has never meant cybersecurity. It means cybersex. This ad sounds like she is going to be working on OnlyFans.

This. Cyber = cybersex, and cyber job = cam girl.
Amazingly crass (and ignorant, since I assume this was unintentonal!)

Also, seriously... As an actual IT professional, I find all this "people just need to retrain into coding" rather naive and somewhat insulting. Most people (male and female) are rather shit at "coding", even with training. Very few have the required ability to make a living from it (just like most people could not be a professional footballer, or a professional artist, etc.)
It's not aspirational. It's misleading. Would be better (in term of communication, raising awareness, etc.) to positively highlight the kind of qualities someone needs to excel in the field, instead of randomly reallocating people to new occupations just because there's a shortage.