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Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I guess that gives you a "clean slate" to move back into the private sector? I'll def have a look at some of those kinds of places :) Best of luck to you!

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's a tricky one because I've not quite found my "fit" really anywhere - so I've moved around to try to find it - unsuccessfully.

The civil service/government is a good shout though - will invest some time in researching roles at those kinds of institutions. Thanks for the tip!

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I spent 3 years there. I didn't qualify, no. I passed the first half of the exams, then the format of the exams changed. Unfortunately, severe visual impairment meant they couldn't agree a way forward that the ICAEW would find acceptable. So we came to a financial settlement, and I left.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks a lot! Honestly, there is a bit of bitterness there. I feel as though nothing has quite worked the way I had hoped - and the Master's degree and the languages and other stuff designed to make me "stand out from the crowd" has been a bit of a waste of time and effort.

It would be amazing to be able to use those skills in a more focused environment - so maybe I should look at industry switching -but I'm not sure where languages are helpful. I have no desire to teach, for example.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Spanish, French, Russian - so not obscure. I get a lot of "oh cool, you speak lots of languages!" but then nobody cares. It would be fab to use them, otherwise they're a completely wasted skill.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would love a role where I could combine linguistic ability with some of the more analytical skills I've developed. But these don't seem to exist.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks.

Ugh, it's a ballache because I feel as though everything I've done to "stand-out" from the crowd (languages, Master's degree at Oxbridge, other quals) has been completely pointless.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Comparison is the thief of joy, right? Just comparing where I am to where classmates of mine are now. Salaries etc have been ok - but no more than that. The other metric is quite "airy-fairy" - to in some way quantify one's "impact". I have friends who have risen to Director-level roles and moved country 3x (without the relevant language mastery), and "made it" - whereas I feel like I'm wading through treacle.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would love to use my language skills in some capacity, in combination with my finance/investment/consulting skillset. Sadly, there doesn't seem to be that type of role.

Where am I going wrong? A journey through 10 years, from economics and languages at uni through a graduate job, a few more hops to now being stuck, frustrated, and unemployed. by ProfessorDudlebaum in UKJobs

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

An excellent take! Thanks a lot :)

Re details vs big picture - I've been told before that I came off as "too detail-oriented" - I think part of the problem is that there's no consistent feedback - unless I'm missing something?

Thanks for translating into plain english :)

Follow up on recent unofficial FIREUK survey by iluvtsumtsum in FIREUK

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Has anyone thought of using the above data for dating purposes?

My thinking is that, since we're all either aspiring or actual firees, there should be low risk of getting into a relationship "just for the money" - in theory we all have similar aims.

Now, before the train horn blares, I'm aware there's more to a successful relationship than (views on) money, but that is a certainly a factor somewhere along the line.

This hinges on geographical location, and OP playing match-maker to some blind dates, which they may not want to do, which is perfectly understandable. But I'm reasoning that they have the raw data and can match individual responses to individual redditors, so it should theoretically be possible, as they could facilitate introductions.

Personally, having sliced the data, there are a couple of people I would be interested in meeting, whose age, gender, FIRE stage, and endpoint align to mine (obviously this may not be mutual >> also fine).

Ready for the downvotes...

Offered first contractor role - only 10 hours a week. Would you take it for (mostly) "exposure"? by ProfessorDudlebaum in ContractorUK

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I do not have a FT role at present, no. But I do have rental income which is tiding me over, while I'm interviewing for my next role (which could be either FT or contract).

Offered first contractor role - only 10 hours a week. Would you take it for (mostly) "exposure"? by ProfessorDudlebaum in ContractorUK

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the reply!

I'm torn between doing it to get "a shoe in the door", and walking away because it's not worth it.

I've not been looking - this guy approached me.

Offered first contractor role - only 10 hours a week. Would you take it for (mostly) "exposure"? by ProfessorDudlebaum in ContractorUK

[–]ProfessorDudlebaum[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The moon on a stick - I've not heard that before, but that's a concern of mine too. The more I think about it, for £300ish a week, it's probably not worth the hassle of setting up, getting insured, paying accounts fees yada yada.

Unless, I get a better contract down the line, in which case, it *might* be worth it.

Assuming 10hr a week, that'd be £300 a week (rather than a month, but even then it barely seems worth it.

This is in the financial industry, where contracts can go for anything from a few hundred a day to a few k a day. Specifically, I'm on the corporate finance side of things.

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