As we navigate life, we’re all looking to achieve our corporate rags to riches story, whether consciously or subconsciously. This applies to whether you’re searching for a new job or growth within your current role. When choosing the right industry, it’s essential to consider more than just the role itself or the paycheck; you’ll also need to decipher if you’ll be happy with the job and if it has any room for development further down the line.
A career is crucial, but there’s no point in subjecting yourself to a role in which you’ll be miserable regardless of how good it may sound. To determine whether a job is right for you, it’s essential to assess if the position aligns with your values, lifestyle, and personality so that the job fulfils the personal and professional aspects of your life and keeps you remaining positive.
You may be thinking; How will I know if a job is right for me? How will I know if this role is a good match for me? When should I accept a job offer, and when should I decline? Sadly, there is no definite answer to these questions as they are all subjective.
However, you can quickly eliminate the chance of making any wrong decisions through careful consideration. Use the following list of our suggestions to help you choose the right industry and decide whether a job is right for you.
Does The Role Offer Opportunities For Advancement?
As we touched upon briefly in our introduction, one of the main factors to consider when accepting or declining a job offer is whether the role offers opportunities for advancement. Since we spend a remarkable amount of time in our place of work, it’s vital that we feel fulfilled and that our work makes us feel important or valued.
Tasked with the same work day in day out can become highly tiring, which is why roles that allow us to learn and do new things through career advancement are desirable so that you’re satisfied, new opportunities are created, and your productivity/engagement is boosted.
If you can’t see routes for improvement or see yourself feeling fulfilled within the role, we suggest continuing your search.
Will This Role Allow For Your Current Lifestyle?
Another factor to consider when deciding whether a role is suitable for you is if the job will allow your current lifestyle or the one you want to lead. Suppose that you have children at home? Or you’ve been recently married, and the prospect of children is on the horizon?
In this case, if the role requires travelling abroad for weeks at a time or involves you giving up many of your evenings, you may decide that it might not be best for someone in your scenario and look elsewhere.
Alternatively, you may not have any commitments tying you down, and the idea of travelling and seeing more of the world may seem like an attractive option for you.
Similarly, does the company offer flexible working options? Is a work-from-home day allowed occasionally? Do they have policies for parents who must collect and take their children to and from school etc.? Even if the role sounds like your dream job, ensure that it allows you to live your life to the fullest and that your future is in hand.
What Is The Salary Like?
No matter how perfect a job may sound, your opinions on it may soon change if you’re unhappy with the salary. A competitive salary is a definite perk when choosing the right industry, as direct correlations have been drawn between employee satisfaction levels and employers that compensate their employees well.
Higher salary levels make employees feel valued by their employer, make them much more invested in their job and boosts their loyalty levels for the company they’re working for.
Nothing is worse than leaving your current job for a similar position and finding out you’re getting underpaid than your previous employer or colleagues in similar roles. Minimise any salary surprises by conducting research into the UK average salary and finding out the average UK salary by age using salary calculators such as the one provided by Check-a-Salary.
Peruse their website for more salary information on every job in the UK, job alert services, help with your CV and much more to further assist you in your career decisions.
Is The Job Content Interesting Or Challenging Enough?
No matter how high-paying or prestigious a job role can be, if the content of the said role isn’t challenging or interesting enough, it can quickly become a chore, and you might find yourself job hunting before too long.
Familiarise yourself with the daily tasks involved within the role, and ask yourself if you’ll be able to perform to your maximum potential within the role? Will you be able to apply all the skills you’ve learnt in your previous positions? Are the skills used within the position ones that you enjoy using? If the answer to these questions is negative, it might be wise to continue your search.
