career path to nowhere
I've been with the same company for 9 years now and in that time, I've gone from being a member of the team to the head of the department.
Not bad going right?
The only issue is that it's a department on borrowed time, working in a print based department when the entire business wants to go digital is a frustrating and disappointing experience. Particularly when the print side is profitable.
Of course, the company won't get rid of a profitable department, yet they're constantly reminding us that everything is going down; amount of pages, advertising coming in, readership... Down, down, down.
The biggest issue I have is that I've no idea where to go from here, I built up a career around an industry that I don't particularly like, in a sector that I've fallen out of love with and not a clue on where to start for that 'next chapter'.
I see the usual nonsense on LinkedIn "How embarrassing that people don't leave a job they hate, it's not that difficult" - which is akin to telling someone who's worked up to simply 'calm down'.
We know what we have to do, the problem is, when you're earning enough money to live on, you're good at your job and you're comfortable. Trying to leave is truly difficult. That little angel of fear on your shoulder is practically screaming that you can't go elsewhere because it won't work and then you'll end up losing your job, having no money and being homeless.
Dramatic? Perhaps... But I'd be lying if I didn't say it went through my head regularly.
An alternative then is to look at the digital world; making money online. Truthfully, I'd love to do this, particularly if it could be around writing a newsletter/blog - but then I have a whole host of other issues with that1.
Perhaps it's still worth trying while I'm still earning a regular salary.
Perhaps I should go back into education and get another degree.
Or, perhaps I'll just continue on this path until I hit the dead end and then deal with it.
Decisions, decisions.
Which I'll go into in another post↩