To think I maybe stuck for life in dead end jobs

[Biscooits]

I worked hard at school and ended up getting 3 A-levels and a BA (hons) English Literature. I was very ambitious.

I even managed to briefly break into a career that is notoriously hard to get into. Then my world fell apart and I have never recovered from the turmoil.

Fast forward 20 some years later and here I am with a crap work history and no real job prospects it seems.

Is there any way to recover and actually get a career I enjoy or am I destined to a life of dead end jobs.

It is my fault. I am not making any excuses. I do feel lost though and would like to know if I can somehow claw my way out of the mess I have made.

Gah I wish I was in London 😂

@C152 I am indeed. I will definitely have a look at the options. Thank you.

Oh @Jknow I am so sorry to hear that. I do hope that you are getting all the support you possibly get.

Never lose hope. Opportunities can come when you least expect.

What did you do your degree in?

@Thenightcircus I must say, it is the land of opportunities!

@PrincessButtercupToo researching topics that I find interesting.

You are definitley not stuck for life in dead end jobs,. You have a useful degree and wide experience.

Have a think about what you need and what you want short term, mid term, long term. You could:

Start tutoring gcse English literature and language. That pays a minimum of £25ph up to about £50ph for A level and Oxbridge entry. Doing just two hours after school a week 4-6pm or 7-9pm if you have younger DC would give you a minimum of £250pw.

You could also tutor literacy refusers. Very satisfying transforming children from hating reading and writing into ones who beg for books and send you long letters.

If you can write concisely and persuasively you could become a copywriter and end up with a good salary. To gain experience, offer to do a friend's business website for free, then advertise locally to do local businesses,. Start at £20-25ph and then as soon as you get busy, up your rates by £5ph. Keep doing this until you get the right flow of work for the right price. You can charge £70ph if you get really good at it and specialise in a given area. You can use inside knowledge from shitty jobs. E.g. if you worked in the hospitality industry you can write for hotels, restaurant chains etc because you know what image the bosses are trying to present. Then if you really want you can apply for inhouse work. Salaries can start low but if you keep moving on every 6-12 months, they grow.

That's just a couple of ideas. But I bet there's loads more.

Interesting thread OP. I am the same. Just pottering about one job to the next. I'm mid 40's and just feel stuck. My problem is that I never got round to deciding what I want to be when I grow up. I have a couple of ideas, but they mean retraining and I can't afford the level 2 entry course I need, to then do the level 3 course (where I could get funding via student loans)

Still 20+ years of this and don't know where to start myself.

@goldfinchonthelawn I really like the idea of copywriting. Funnily enough I have just learnt to build websites. Using insider knowledge is definitely a great idea. I always did well in Sales type roles!

I no longer have the confidence to tutor unfortunately.

It's like stumbling in the dark.

I always knew what I wanted to do and then tragedy struck. At least I am still here.

I know there is a place that has free courses called skills for life or something. It's a Government thing. Have you looked on there to see if they have the level 2 course for free?

I've seen lots of free level 2 courses advertised, but I'm worried that come to do level 3 they wont be recognised. Seems to good to be true IYSWIM. I'll have a search at skills for life though. See if I can see a government site like this. The local college charge (I've looked into it)

@OrangeBananaFish

https://skillsforlife.campaign.gov.uk/

That's the link

Thanks @Biscooits

www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/index.cgi

Here's a link for civil service jobs. There are admin type positions in there so you might find something that would be a way in with your current experience. And see where you go from there.

Or what about some type of administration job in the NHS?

www.jobs.nhs.uk

It sounds like you've had a really tough time. I can't remember without looking back now and I'll lose my post but I am wondering if you've had any counselling to help process all that?

I may be way off the mark here but your account of being high achieving at school, then flitting about from job to job, not feeling you've reached your potential, low self esteem, sounds very familiar... there was a thread a while back for women like this and many of us were neurodiverse with recent adult diagnoses of ADHD, ASD. I just thought I'd throw that in there in case that resonated at all.

I hear you, OP.

My highest qualification is a GNVQ Advanced from 1999. I was a cleaner from leaving school. Was brought up to be taught that office jobs were not "real jobs".
I could not even clean offices... I got fired from so many.
Tried university 3 times, including Access courses twice.
Turns out, I just can't do life. Have not worked for 12 years now.
If I do get found fit for work, I would only be able to do the stuff like cleaning.. which I get sacked from. Even if I could keep a cleaning job, it offers no progression whatsoever.
If I get found fit for work, it is not like I have kids or something that depends on me getting money in. It is just me. No point. I am not worth working 60 hours a week in a crap job just to keep me alive. I would rather be dead tbh.
I am in my early 40s and feel too old to do anything. In the job market, I am the same as a school leaver in everything but age. I have tried the free Level 2 courses... I struggled horribly and gave up. I can not do distance learning. I have spent far too much in the past on OU courses that never got finished.

Funnily enough I was watching videos about this yesterday. The symptoms the doctor was talking about really resonated with me.

I am so glad you pointed this out. I did read that it is extremely difficult to get diagnosed, but I really need help.

I feel relieved that you have mentioned this. I would love to see the thread you speak of.

@Karamna I had help for a severe eating disorder but my insurance ran out.

Thank you so much for the links.

Oh XenoBitch please never put yourself down. At least you have tried.

It sounds like a bit of support and a strategy would help. Others have lots of advice from parents who have good careers etc. It is difficult to get back on track, but not impossible.

Any other adults who were highly gifted children? http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/4564898-any-other-adults-who-were-highly-gifted-children

It was this one.