Career Resources - Research & Reflection

As I am continuing to look ahead towards my future career I have had some time to reflect and take into consideration factors that may not seem relevant now, but are in the long run. Although in this day and age I can't really afford to be picky, I chose to have a deeper look into what I want in the workplace and the sort of environment I am looking for in potential future positions.

I was asked to consider a few questions as part of an activity on my apprentice course based around the question 'What does your future career look like?'. After taking some time to think over my answers, I eventually came to a few conclusions based on my experience in the workplace so far and my own personal preferences. The questions were as follows:

'What does the job need to include for you to be interested?'

Although I am quite flexible with job positions, there are a few roles specifically that stand out for me. These are roles that I have found to be most interested in from working at OperaUpClose, mostly surrounding marketing, copywriting, producing, and creative campaigns. Aside from this, I am quite happy to do most things and am quite flexible when it comes to weekly hours, pay and etc, which allows me to look for a more broader range of positions offering different things.

What logistical details are important to you (place, money, organisational structure, close to home, happy to travel)?

As I am looking to move to Bristol, I am primarily looking for positions in and around that area, however I am quite happy to travel depending on how far the commute is and the amount I would have to travel. For example, I wouldn't mind commuting to London between 2-3 days for the week, but I wouldn't see travelling to and from there 5 days a week as sustainable.

I also ideally am looking for a hybrid job, where my working is flexible from working in an office to working from home, as I have found I adjust well to this since working with OperaUpClose. I have considered remote working, however I fear that because of my ADHD I would not be able to cope working entirely from home as it would more or less likely start to effect my mental health and/or the way I work.

'How do you work best (Independently or with others)?'

I can work confidently independently as well as in a team, so for this question i'm honestly not too concerned. However, I would see it as a positive and most likely preferable to have a mixture of both, rather than one without the other. Since working at OperaUpClose I have found I enjoy being able to work on projects and discuss things in a group as well as working on independent work so it would be nice to have a mix of both in a future work environment.

'What are your values and how do they factor into what you want to do? How important is it that your job and employer shares these values?'

I have values which seem pretty standard in this day and age, mostly regarding equal rights, EDI, sustainability and etc, so I would expect most working environments to have the same if not very similar values as well. However, I would preferably look for a role that promotes being a green company, as I have found a lot of larger corporations state they support sustainability when in reality they do not.

This is very important to me as I want to be able to work for a company that I can be proud of rather than the opposing. I would preferably work for a company that is open and honest about taking the extra measures to protect our environment, rather then ones that simply brush the issues under the rug as it shows that they take sustainability seriously.

Overall, by deep diving into these questions I have been able to learn about what I want for myself when looking at work after my apprenticeship. By respecting my own beliefs and prioritising what I think works best for me, I am allowing myself to look for a job that I would be better suited in rather than just applying for anything.

I have been researching more about creative roles in Bristol through the Bristol Creative Industries website I mentioned in a previous blog, and I have been able to find a fair few that would cater to my preferences. In addition, with Bristol being a forward green city I don't have to worry too much about companies being less sustainable as a majority of them state very clearly in their policies the precautions they take to be a green organisation.

I am excited to continue my search in future careers and am looking forward to begin applying - it can become slightly nerve wrecking at times, however I am staying optimistic and confident that I will find something best suited for me.