What do you wish you had known about work when you were 16-18 years old?

[InThePresenceOfWeevil]

I'm supporting a volunteering session through my workplace for disadvantaged young people, to help them in their future working careers.

As part of one of the sessions, I will be interviewed by the host...and this will be one of the questions.

So it got me thinking what would your reflections be.

I think mine is that you don't need to have a defined career plan...it's ok to not know what your next move is even when you're in your 40s and 50s...I've often changed roles/been promoted based on one element of the job that I've particularly interested in and/or good at.

What do YOU wish you'd known about work at that age?

Echoing others - don’t worry if you’re not sure what you want to do, don’t be afraid to admit something isn’t working. BUT remember that it’s far easier to find something new while already employed, for a whole host of reasons, so don’t jack it all in because it’s hard or it’s not fun, stay and look for something else.

Don’t assume that a degree is the only way to go, even if you have good enough grades to do so. Apprenticeships are far more wide ranging than ‘on the tools’ jobs for mainly young boys now. Also, there’s nothing wrong with starting a job in retail or hospitality and working your way up if that is where your talent and enjoyment lies. So many people see it as a job for now, not a career, when for some people it really can be!

Networking and volunteering for things outside of your job description are fab ways to get noticed and get a reputation for being helpful, friendly, worth investing in etc.

Agree about standing your ground re boundaries etc. Don't be your employer's fall-back (woman). You'll never be thanked or rewarded for it, while opportunities get handed to others.

Agree about being (or appearing to be) positive about change, training etc. I've worked with people who constantly drip negativity and it's so corrosive.

Don't gossip about anyone. Ever.

Try to propose solutions, rather than problems.

I wish I had done a vocational degree or a graduate training course.
I am 46 and done lots of jobs, but still don't really feel I have found my career.

These are all brilliant!!! Thank you!

I wish I’d known more about industries with office based careers and the apprenticeships available that can lead to them, like AAT or CIPS (Not sure if CIPs is suitable for school/college leavers but it would have been nice to know it was an option for the next few years).

Not sure about today but 15 years ago it was generally medicine, education related and social work that were ‘known’ as career options (at least in my surroundings)

I only knew about apprenticeships that lead to trade jobs or beauty/hairdressing which I wouldn’t have been suitable for.

Now that I’m older there just isn’t a right time to reduce my hours/take on studying whilst working FT!

The variety of jobs out there. At that age and coming from a working class background, first to go to uni, I had no idea of what different degrees might lead to beyond the obvious jobs such as teacher, doctor etc. And also I didn't realise you might have to do an MA for certain careers and at the time there was no student loan to cover them (changed now I think).

You don't 'get promoted' you have to actually apply for other/better jobs. So work out your next steps!

Join a trade union.
Become an active member.
Go over your contract before signing it.
Log harassment/ bullying anytime it happens.
Never cross a picket.
Take up any training offered.
Don't be a brown noser

I wish I knew how boring and repetitive minimum wage jobs would be. I did a few hospitality, retail, services and they were all the same. Just robot say this do that, rinse and repeat infinitely.

Get yourself educated or skilled otherwise you’ll be peeling your eyes out/ears off if another fucking person says the same shit to you.

Accept all training. Its rare in life to get free stuff, especially where you are paid to do it too. So any opportunities offered go for it.

Some jobs offer less pay but better benefits like pensions, so look at the whole package.

Become qualified in a profession if you want to take a career break when you have children. Much easier to get back into (usually), than if you were in a job based on experience alone.
I’ve had this situation with friends. The teacher has walked back into a job and the one who was in finance can’t get back in as things have changed so much in the five years she was out.

Nobody else cares about your career. If you want opportunities it's down to you to go for them. No one else will notice and help you.

Sounding confident will get you a long way.

Join a union.

Absolutely echo working class pps saying they didn't even know what types of job there were beyond teacher/doctor as they had no role models. I'm still learning what some are!

Also, break it gently that 25% of your pay goes on tax/NI, I was aggrieved when I had my first pay packet 😄

My parents didn’t really work due to ill health and when they had worked previously it was labouring/factory work. A lot of my family were in the army too, as it was a good steady job for people who didn’t have any other options. I just had absolutely no clue about the world of work!

Other than knowing I didn’t want to do those jobs

To pick the things you enjoy and are good at and then see how you can make money from that and then research what results and courses you want to do.

The importance of getting work experience and Saturday jobs as a teenager to try out different things.

The importance of connections and how you know doing the job you want.

The fact that there is always a way to get to where you want to go even if you don't get the right course first time.

Jobs which will then put you through college fir example Lidl/aldi retail degree etc. Insurance & banking etc.

That there is learning in everything school,experience, good jobs,bad jobs, bad interviews etc.

How boring it would be at the start, and still is about 20% of the time even in the most fulfilling and meaningful job. I don't know a single job without boring drudgery and admin of some kind. Even if you delegate the drudgery you still have to manage it.

You aren't going to be changing the world on day one no matter how passionate you are.

Nothing is beneath you so never look down on any one or any job.

You can try and make your passion your job, but it is probably a lot harder work than you think when you're relying on your passion to pay the rent and that might kill your enjoyment of it.

in a job there is
a) the people and environment
b) the task
c) the money

make sure at least 2 are good!!

You will spend a lot of time at work -
Do not put up with being unhappy there!!

The vast majority of the careers and interview advice on the internet is for 1) actual careers and 2) Americans. If you're applying for an entry level, low-ish skilled job it's not necessary to pretend it's been your lifelong dream to work as a cleaner. "I'd like a job where I can leave at 5pm and not have to think about it again til the next morning" is a perfectly acceptable thing to say in an interview, as long as you're sure this is actually true of the job you're applying for.

Joining an agency and doing temporary jobs is one of the easiest ways to build up some work history. You don't need any experience and it'll help you get a feel for the sorts of workplaces you like and don't without having to commit yourself.

As long as you weren't in prison, no-one actually cares that much about gaps in your CV when you're young. Same goes for having a lot of short term jobs when you're at the start of your career. Don't let either of those things hold you back from applying for jobs you want.

In many, many jobs, people skills and ability to get along with others will get you further than skill or experience alone. This is true even of many jobs that are quite technical or academic. 'Networking' doesn't have to mean handing out business cards, it can be as simple as making an effort to befriend people beyond your immediate team or department.

1. Not everyone is cut out for a 'career ' and that's okay!

I am definitely in the 'work to live' camp and have zero regrets about that.

1. The atmosphere in the company you work for is as important (if not more so) than the job you do, a shitty job with great colleagues can be great....an amazing job with awful colleagues soon becomes awful all round.
2. If you are happy as (for example) a cleaner and your bills are paid there is no law saying you need a 'better' job.

I wish at that age the focus hadn't been so much on 'how to be the best, with the best career ' and more about looking towards what individuals would be good at and happy doing!

How difficult it is being an introvert in the working world. There are so few jobs where you can just get your head down and do it, without having to work alongside others. Or even worse, the general public! I wish I'd had more support as a teenager to understand the jobs that would be best suited for me mentally and emotionally.

I wish I had understood the importance of knowing not just what careers were available, but what I’d realistically be hired for in my local area. There are lots of adverts for accountancy but none for publishing, lots of doctors and nurses but no interior designers needed, lots of teachers wanted but no vacancies for trainee solicitors. It’s no good training as a museum curator or journalist unless you plan to live in London, and even then your chances of getting a job are slim. Kids get told they can study anything without considering that the jobs are only in certain locations.

I also wish I’d understood the importance of doing qualifications that lead to a specific career. Study something specific like accountancy or medicine, not something vague like business which has no defined job at the end of it. And if you want to study something obscure like Egyptology you can forget about getting a job at all.

At school I was always given the advice to choose a subject you love and go to the best university you can. Then you can work out a career from then. It led to much difficulty getting on most graduate training schemes as many only wanted applicants with business related degrees.

Looking back I would agree with the advice about not getting too worried about which career you choose, as it’s completely feasible to move careers, sideways etc and arguably leads to a more interesting and varied life. But better to start off on something (anything? ) with good training, ideally leading to qualifications so you can get on and get that under your belt (before starting families if possible) rather than working minimum wage temporary jobs for years before you work out exactly what it is you want to do.

Definitely pensions advice.

I disagree with qualifications. Obviously, I wouldn’t recommend not studying and working hard at school but I left school with 1 standard grade in Maths. I went to college and learnt to type for a year and did a few other admin modules and passed a standard grade in English. I made it to manager within a department of 12 in a tax planning department within an big 5 Accountants.

I did all of it and left. I didn’t enjoy it. Find something you enjoy.