It’s that time of the year again; students are fresh out of university, having recently graduated, and are now looking to make the next big step in their lives – a step in the direction of a career.
We’ve all been there. Even if we haven’t been to university, we’ve all made the choice at some point to start full time employment with the hope of learning new skills, gaining promotions and making a name for ourselves within whatever industry we decide to try our hands at.
So we asked the good folk here at Carrot, now that they’ve got at least a couple of years’ employment experience under their belt, for one piece of advice for our younger selves. Here’s what they had to say:
“I’m fairly laid back but I really wish I’d been more assertive to articulate my thoughts and ideas when I joined the world of work at 21 – I just did everything that was asked of me and as a junior never had the confidence to speak up against people with more experience. Ten years on, I know now that I probably would have progressed faster in the early years if I’d have made a bit more noise – luckily it didn’t take me too many years to understand that I’d be towing the line forever if I didn’t start to contribute more proactively” – Victoria Wooldridge, Market Access, HEOR and Values Consultant.
“My advice would be to take risks! Remember you’ll always regret what you didn’t do rather than what you did do” – James MacNab, Market Access, HEOR and Values Consultant
“Don’t apply for a million different grad schemes all in different disciplines. Focus on the area that you think you would like to go into and just apply for one industry/area and focus on that. Having focus will make your CV and examples more tailored to make you more likely to succeed. And at each interview you will get better and better.
“Also treat yourself and spend money on travel or nights out or whatever makes you happy. Don’t worry about buying a house or spending money on grown-up stuff, you’ll have plenty of time for that later” – Hannah Skillen, Pharma Sales Consultant
“Don’t spend too much time worrying about what people think of you – those who you need in your life will like you for who you are. Go on as many adventures as you can and do what makes you happy” – Alice Kirkland, Marketing Executive
“Budgets are always useful, but the odd splurge is okay. Have more faith in your abilities to get you where you want to be” – Suzanne Hodge, Market Research & Business Consultant
“It’s ok to not have a long term plan and to live in the moment more. Have a good work ethic but don’t forget that life is for living ... try and do something that you enjoy every day” – Laura Jones, Advertising Consultant
“Don’t get into too much debt or use credit cards without thinking about the consequences, and don’t do things just to please others” – Chris Newall, Market Research & Business Consultant