I move job as soon as I no longer feel challenged – and it's happening again
How can I make my job more interesting? I can do it blindfolded and my salary hasn't increased by more than £5,000 in 15 years. I'm 42 and unmarried and don't have children, so having a job that really makes me think is extremely important. I work as an executive assistant in Manchester and have been a personal/executive assistant for the last 20 years, moving firm every four or five years when I get used to the duties and no longer feel challenged.
I'm lucky enough to work in an organisation where the core business is really interesting (sport), and in all other respects, colleagues, commute etc, I'm very happy. If I moved, I'd feel the same ennui after a couple of years.
However, I would like more responsibility and challenge. My firm has a complete lack of understanding about continuing professional development – they are happy to pay for training for technical staff, but won't even consider it for administration staff. A language would be useful for my job but they won't pay for it, or even let me finish a little earlier so that I could attend (and pay for) a class myself.
Any suggestions? The lack of career progression is getting me down. Do I try to do something about it – or re-adjust my work-life balance to spend my free time taxing my grey matter outside of work? I've still got 25 years of working life left, and the thought of still doing this is frightening me to death.
Jeremy says
For fairly obvious reasons, many companies are in favour of continuing professional development only when it's in their own immediate interest to do so. They're happy to pay for their technical staff to undertake regular retraining because the technology they work with is constantly being upgraded; they see it as a practical necessity rather than the benign development of existing personnel. I'm not condoning this attitude; just suggesting it's a fact of life.
There's a second reason, too. Technical staff cover a broad range of responsibilities; there's usually room for promotion and advancement. Your own role, as a personal or executive assistant, is rarely seen as a stepping stone to other roles. Indeed, the more effective PAs or EAs are, the more invaluable they become to their bosses – which in turn makes their bosses instinctively resistant to any idea of career development.
It is possible for executive assistants to escape from this cul-de-sac but, as you've discovered, it's by no means easy – particularly within the same organisation. After years of being known as an invaluable assistant, being taken seriously in a more responsible role doesn't come easily.
This leads me to believe that, despite all the agreeable aspects of your current job, you need to look for another one – but this time be rather more ambitious. Look for jobs which, from the outset, ask more of your brain than it's been used to. It may not be easy, but it won't be as difficult as trying to negotiate more interesting work while still a PA. And, as a possible bonus, when your present company knows you're deadly serious about needing more stimulating work, it's not impossible they'll want to find it for you in order to keep you.
Readers say
• There's no progression in an admin role and as tech staff bring in the cash, they'll get the training. Invest in some training in your own time and move on. Life's too short to be bored and frustrated. MrsCratchit
• Have a look at the International Association of Administrative Professionals' website to see how others improve their job prospects. Then sit down, make a plan and follow it. And be prepared to move to another city or another country, if that's what it takes. SophiaE
• You're 42 and you have no unbreakable commitments. The world is your oyster – you can do whatever you choose to do. bigDave2
Dream role in tourism industry has turned into a bit of a nightmare
Two years ago I found what I thought was a dream job in the tourism industry as an account manager. The company is a leading firm and there seemed great opportunities for a long-term career. However, I am getting to understand the way things work internally.
There are very strong politics, and meritocracy seems not to exist, so there is little chance to grow professionally. In the majority of cases people moving into senior management positions first become a "protege" of a director, and there seems to exist a non-written understanding that this is the way of the company. Even more disappointing is that I have witnessed cases of bullying and people being laid off when they fall from grace.
I enjoy the role but, being 38, I know I have limited time to make the jump to a higher position in a company and if I don't do so in the next couple of years I will miss the chance altogether. On the other hand, I have a dream to start a business where I can manage my own time and agenda, maybe finding hotels to represent in the area of the world where I am a specialist.
Should I enter the rat race to go up the chain, or should I instead risk the security of being a paid employee and venture to uncertainty and create (if successful) my own dream job with my own efforts and work?
Jeremy says
All companies have cultures – and the culture of your present company sounds deeply unhealthy. When such a culture becomes embedded in an organisation, it tends to regenerate itself for years. If you chose to play the game, you might well succeed in climbing the corporate ladder, but I doubt if you'd be proud of yourself for having done so. I suspect you'd feel trapped.
So I believe you should plan to get out before it's too late. But that doesn't mean plunging into the scary uncertainties of starting up on your own. By all means consider it – but not "as a dream". It needs cold, ruthless assessment and steely determination. You might be better advised to offer your services, your experience and your specialist knowledge to other established travel firms – ones with cultures you'd be a great deal more comfortable with.
Readers say
• You are only in your late 30s. It's not too late to fulfil your dream of working for yourself, but if you value stability self-employment might not meet your needs. Hold on where you are for now, but use this time to do plenty of research. There are many people out there who share your values and have ambitions in similar areas, in big companies and small ones. Getting together with them may well be the key to you actively creating and shaping something more like your picture of how you would like work to be. noughtforconduct
• Quite a few businesses operate this protege model. It is a valuable way of identifying and developing genuine talent into very senior roles. Meritocracy is OK for middle management, but you need to take a longer-term view for your next generation of directors. Burzmali
• If you're not confident about being an entrepreneur, the chances are you're not cut out for doing it. You need a shed-load of self-belief to overcome the horrors of running a small business for the first few years. I've always found that jumping ship offers the largest increases in pay and promotion. harrytheardvark
Do you need advice on a work issue? For Jeremy's and readers' help, send a brief email to dear.jeremy@theguardian.com. Please note that he is unable to answer questions of a legal nature or reply personally.
