EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
In days gone by , careers advice at school wasn ’ t always an inspirational chat . More often than not , it was a tick box exercise and pupils would be left holding a piece of paper with a random job scribbled on it which didn ’ t align with their interests or skills . Careers advice at school is a difficult one to get right . But what about in the world of work ? We asked four experts what inspirational words inspired them in their careers .
“ There are never enough hours in the day , so you have to invest your personal time in learning by attending industry seminars and conferences . I prefer to attend in person where I can , because you can rapidly absorb the experience of others in the informal conversations at events . Fortunately , these days there are so many virtual events and learning programmes that you can attend in your own time when work isn ’ t quite so hectic .
Paul Drew , MD and Founder , Apprentify Group
Paul Drew , MD and Founder , from apprenticeship provider , Apprentify Group , said : “ Never stop learning and developing . We live in a world where the only constant is change . Working in the learning and development space , we try to coach people into the lifelong learning mindset . That ’ s the best way to stay relevant and give yourself a good chance of success . Also , never stop running . In a physical sense , I learned this through football . I hung up my boots at 28 , thinking I could always take up the sport again but that ’ s just not going to happen . So , I try to keep ‘ running ’ in terms of learning new skills , meeting new people and understanding different perspectives .
“ Having been reasonably successful in my early career with a steady job that was well within my comfort zone , it would have been tempting to sit back and just carry on doing the same thing day in , day out . But by adopting the continuous learning mindset , I was able to think about new opportunities and spot new gaps in the market where my new skills – and I mean both technical and soft skills – could give me an advantage .
“ And learning is infectious . Once I moved into the L & D world , I found far greater job satisfaction helping others to build their careers based on the much in demand skills like digital marketing and data analytics . It ’ s gratifying to see people of all ages and all backgrounds gaining the foundation skills that will not only equip them for their first job but give them that level of agility which is going to be so important in building a lifelong career journey .
“ And learning can happen in the most unlikely places . You just need to have an open mind and most importantly the ability to listen . I have been fortunate to work with some fantastic mentors with decades of professional experience . People who have run multimillion pound businesses and have the scars to prove it but equally I can sit in on a session with 20-year-old apprentices and be amazed at what they can teach me about issues like inclusiveness and diversity , as well as giving me that burst of the enthusiasm of youth that we all need now and again , even if we cannot run the length of a football pitch any more .”
WHAT ’ S THE BEST CAREER ADVICE YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN ?
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