Have you retrained for a new career after children - what do you do ? I need inspiration!

[amiheckaslike]

Due to a promotion for DH I am in the very fortunate position of being able to think about retraining for a new career but I have no idea what is possible.

I had a senior management job I really enjoyed but it wasn't possible to do it part time and I stopped when DC2 came along. I have a related position in the same industry but I'm not enjoying it and really think I need to create a new phase in my life rather than look back wistfully at what I used to be.

The problem is I have never had any grand passion and I don't even know what options are out there to retrain at the advanced age of 40!

I have a good BA degree, very good people and management skills & am open to anything.

So if you've done this please let me know what you did and how!

I am not in the same position but always like these discussions

I know you say you have no particular passion but what sort of thing do you want to do? Work with people? Children? In what area? Health? Education? Be employed or self employed?

What sort of thing do you like to do? Advice? Solve problems? Research and stats?

Would you like something part time or full time? Would you want to leave it at the end of the working day or be working on it in the evenings?

Would you consider retraining? Doing another degree or course?

They are my only questions for now

Great a sounding board!!

I would like a career that can sustain me for a good few years and that can step up as the children become older...a career with an element of flexibility would be ideal but standard Mon-Fri working hours would be important as DH job involves alot of travel.

In a couple of years my youngest will be at school and I could dedicate alot of my time to studying/training.

I do not need to leave work behind me at the end of the day as I am good at switching off when I need to.

My lovely former job covered commercial skills, people management, project management, writing reports and promotional peices, research, meeting deadlines, mentoring new recruits. (WHY did I give it up!) The work was very unique to a somewhat limited industry. Although my skills are transferable, in the current climate part time roles are very hard to come by unless you have a identifiable role.

I am what people call a good all rounder and can become interested in almost anything which is my challenge right now.

The only thing I wanted to be when I was a teenager was a doctor but didn't have the dedication.

ami, your skills do indeed sound very transferable. Do you want to continue using those skills or switch completely?

If you want to continue using those skills, you have got to have some idea of what industry /sector you want to be in? Rather than being in a related position in the same industry, perhaps be in the previous position you liked but in a different industry?

You are spot on about pt jobs being somewhat elusive in this job market. That is realistic, I like it.

How long ago did you leave your last job?

Thanks Blueshoes - I left my last job a year ago. I would love to continue to use my existing skills and am using them now but I am also completely happy to acquire new ones.

If I have a secret hankering it would be to work in property as I have developed 5 houses for DH and I to live in (but lack capital to be a budding developer!) - anything from a highly successful but part time estate agent who doesn't work Saturdays (ha ha!) to a project co-ordinator for a local builder.................Or perhaps a relocation agent but how on earth do you get into that ?!

Other than that the one thing I can rule out though is anything creative - that gene went to my sister.

I WISH I had some idea of which industry. I really envy friends with a 'profession'.and it has to be something I have a realistic chance of breaking into in my early 40s. That's why I'm interested in what other people have done! I am hoping that I will suddenly be inspired.

Project manager for building projects?

That would combine your skills and your interest in developing (not entirely 9 -5 tho)

Have a look at this

I've been thinking that speech and language therapists have an interesting job and I might look into that in a few years... just a thought.

ami, property sounds interesting but is probably one of the sickest sectors right now.

If you left work a year ago, that is not too long a gap in your CV to be able to market yourself based on your skills, that is, if you are not switching completely.

I am in my 40s and currently retraining. I suppose I am in one of the 'professions' in that I am a lawyer by training, but now moved into an in-house role legal role, still in a law firm but in risk management.

I too did a lot of project management in my most recent role. This role requires a lot more analytical skills and very little project management, but I was able to leverage the fact that I understand the business of a law firm (being a lawyer myself) to convince them to retrain me.

So basically I stayed in the same industry but changed role.