Career thinking often involves what can feel like conundrums or dilemmas; choices between alternatives which can feel difficult to make. One such \u2018career conundrum\u2019 I encounter quite often in my conversations with students relates to weighing up the question of ideal job versus ideal location. What if you want or need to live in a particularly geographical location but your ideal sector doesn\u2019t exist there? Or are interested in a sector you\u2019re passionate about but this would involve moving to an area you don\u2019t want to live in?
Here's a few thoughts on how to approach \u2013 if not completely \u2018resolve\u2019 \u2013 this \u2018career conundrum\u2019.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Ask yourself \u2018what one thing is most important to me in my career right now\u2019? Asking myself this question really helped me when I was looking to buy a house and trying to decide whether to stay close to the city centre, which was more expensive, or move out of the centre to areas which were cheaper. Asking myself this question helped me realise that my priority for now was to stay close to the city centre; my priorities might change later on and this is fine.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Listen to what your gut is telling you about what you most need in your next career move. Pros and cons lists can be great \u2013 and I certainly used them in my house-hunting decision-making \u2013 but so can listening to what your heart is telling you.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Rather than thinking about this in terms of a black and white, binary choice, think about how you can flex your thinking or think more creatively. Are there jobs in your chosen location that are similar to your \u2018ideal\u2019 role or sector? Is doing your idea job in a different sector possible? Use mind-mapping to map out ideas you might not have thought about before, and you might well hit on careers that meet some of your priorities, if not all.<\/p>\r\n
Career thinking often involves what can feel like conundrums or dilemmas; choices between alternatives which can feel difficult to make. One such \u2018career conundrum\u2019 I encounter quite often in my conversations with students relates to weighing up the question of...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":389,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[748],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/389"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2953"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2953\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\u2022 If you really want or need to live in a particular geographical area but career opportunities feel limited, ask yourself what your maximum commuter distance would be. Broadening out the area you\u2019d be willing to work in might open up significantly more opportunities. Research transport options and costs. If there are organisation you\u2019d like to work for but commuting every day would feel too much, contact Bath alumni working there and ask about the organisation\u2019s approach to hybrid working. Bath alumni<\/a> could also provide useful insights not what living in a particular area or town is actually like; it might need your needs more than you think.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Job-hunting in specific geographical locations can take a little bit of proactivity and creativity. Use Chambers of Commerce<\/a> and Local Enterprise Partnership websites to source lists of local companies and info on the local labour market. Local council websites can be useful here too. Relevant professional bodies will often have directories of organisations which can be searched by location, and may have regional forums and events which are useful for networking. LinkedIn and the library company databases<\/a> are also great tools for generating lists of companies in particular sectors and locations. You can use speculative cover letters<\/a> to contact companies directly and ask if there are opportunities available.
As with all career conundrums, we\u2019re always happy to be sounding boards for your ideas. Pop in and see us in the Careers Centre anytime Monday-Friday, 10-4.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"