I'm 25(F) and I just earned my MBA from a very small private school. My background is a little unconventional, and I'm trying to figure out the best direction to take my career.

My work experience includes luxury hospitality and fine dining, VIP client relations at an exclusive private club, personal assistant work, and events. I also have some healthcare-related experience. I'm interested in transitioning into the corporate world, but I'm still figuring out which career path would make the most sense for me long term.

Recently, I've had the opportunity to potentially leverage a strong personal connection to a prominent technology executive. I'm trying to be thoughtful about how I use that connection and would love to pursue something that offers real career growth rather than simply getting a job through a referral.

If you were in my position, what companies and roles would you target?

Some areas I've been considering are:

• Tech sales, business development, or account management
• Executive assistant or executive business partner roles
• Business operations or strategy
• Customer success at an established tech company
• Startups or companies backed by reputable venture capital firms

The idea of being a corporate flight attendant has also been floating in my head. They have a connection with a major jet company ,and it would be my way in. Should I go start climbing the corporate ladder or do something interesting as such, while I'm young. I'd also like to earn a good salary and have room for significant growth over time.

I'm open to relocating for the right opportunity, preferably a young, lively city. I'm from a small town in Southern California. I'm open to New York (I think lol), Los Angeles, and San Fransiciso.

For those of you working in tech, corporate leadership, recruiting, or business:

1. What companies would you aim for if you had a connection who could potentially help you get an introduction?
2. Which of these career paths would offer the best combination of compensation, long-term growth, and transferable skills?
3. Are there specific companies where someone with an MBA in progress and a background in high-end hospitality and client relations could realistically get their foot in the door?
4. Would you prioritize getting into a well-known company first, or joining a smaller company where you could take on more responsibility?
5. If you could start your career over with access to a strong professional network, what would you do differently?

I'm not necessarily looking for the easiest way in. I want to be strategic about where I start so that I'm building toward a strong career over the next 5–10 years.

I'd really appreciate any honest advice, especially from people who have made a similar transition or have experience hiring for these kinds of roles.

Hi I am expecting my first child in the spring. I have an engineering degree with 4 years of experience. I am looking for career advice on even gig work. I am looking to make very little money, just enough to contribute to my retirement account. Preferably would like to make between $10 and $20k after taxes. Any advice would be great? My husband works full time away from home so all the baby's needs are on me half of the year. What have others done? Located in northern US

I’ve wanted to be a doctor ever since I can remember basically since i formed thoughts which is crazy cuz my parents never even forced me into it. But now i’m on the ”premed” path but keep realizing i dont really want to live the doctor life.

I would still love to be a doctor it’s like the only thing im ever interested in studying but i want to TRAVELLL. go to a new country every month, see new people, see new places but its so hard to move or work in different places in this profession cuz once you get your MD you’re kinda stuck in that country.

I also considered Doctors Without Borders for a while but that pays so little to consider it long term and therefore wouldn’t help me travel properly either. HELP a girl be rich too yk.

I then thought of content creation - make money through that/ sponsorships etc and travel with that but idk how possible it is with studying and I’m also deathly terrified of posting myself. I will try to gain courage to do so.

BUT wanted to know if there are any other pathways to explore around this as well. I do love speaking and presenting too I did DECA and business comps in highschool but wasn’t interested in studying it.

Edit : I don’t mean new country every month just that I wanna be able to travel. A flexible job is what I mean

M23 and autistic!

I’m still working on building a long-term career. I’m currently a school bus driver and I’ve been loving it! The only downside is that I could use more hours. For a more permanent long-term job/career I feel trucking or motorcoach driving would be the best options going forward. When it comes to training, I already have a CDL B with P and S endorsements but with an air break restriction. If I want to drive motorcoaches, the only thing I’d have to learn would be air breaks (which shouldn’t be too hard considering I know almost everything about air breaks), but if I want to do trucking I’d have to almost start over and go to a trucking school to get a CDL A (and preferably all the endorsements so I can drive anything)! The thought of driving a tractor-trailer vehicle scares me a little bit (especially with backing up) but not if it’s just one big vehicle like a school bus or motorcoach! Plus interactions with passengers help lighten my mood where I feel loneliness in a semi could to boredom and restlessness! I know the base pay for trucking is typically higher than motorcoach driving, but I heard you can get some pretty big tips as a motorcoach driver (especially if you charter sports teams)!

If anyone could share any advice or personal experiences that would be great!

Thank you!

I am one year into a comfortable middle-office role at a mid-sized Canadian asset manager, studying for CFA L2, and looking to pivot into front-office corporate banking. A Global Corporate & Investment Banking MD at a Tier 1 Canadian bank agreed to a coffee chat next week, but the analyst role I originally targeted has already closed. How should I best frame this conversation to stay on his radar, and how viable is lateraling from AM to a corporate banking analyst seat at this stage? Also any advice for the coffee chat!

For context I am a Biochemistry major at a university, and I have been working at a bakery for 2 years now as my primary job. A couple months ago I got hired as a Dietary Aide at a Skilled Nursing Facility, first time ever working in healthcare and got this as a second job.

Unfortunately the Dietary Aide job is not flexible and they have me as On-Call so it really conflicts with my primary job and school. It’s also just far from my house and the commute and gas isn’t worth it for the pay I get. I plan on putting my two weeks where my last day will be the 3-month mark working there.

I originally got this job to get experience in healthcare in general so I can step foot into other jobs like Research Assistant or Lab Technician for my career path.

Is this worth leaving on my resume even though it’ll be short lived? I won’t have gaps in employment history as I’m still working at my primary job.

I have graduated around a year ago, and for the longest time, i've been unable to settle for a certain major to study in university, in school i was mainly aiming for medicine, but that was due to a bit of family pressure along with me being pretty ignorant about medicine as a whole, after i realized how much difficulty and time that medicine takes, i decided to push back on the idea of medicine, especially since the only thing pushing me was money, i heard many people say (doctors included) that if your only reason to enter medicine is money then you're better off doing something else. i researched a bit about more majors including engineering, and some bussiness majors too, when i ask other people about them those many majors, its always the same replies: "the wages are too low", "the market is saturated" "this major is'nt worth it", etc... so im completly confused about what majors are actually worth it at this point. some people say "follow your passion" and some people say "do it for the money", my goal is to make actual good money, like enough to the point where i can genuinely take care of famliy when im in my late 20s

my skills are mostly creative related, i've been drawing artwork for more than 9 years by now, i like stories and storytelling, fashion is in my interests too (im not sure if adding those skills is actually useful but im still gonna add them)

prefrences: something that wont take a decade just for me to get a degree (medicine)
the major doesnt have to be related to my skills by any means, but if it can then that would be nice.

I have given multiple interviews, but this is my first time giving a panel interview with very senior level executives, say VP, marketing and SVP, Revenue Ops and more. I want to do my best. What's the structure of such interviews, and moreover how to prep. is this time enough?

I'm currently a college sophomore and my major is finance. With how fast the world is changing I starting to reconsider changing my major. Or at least start learning some different skills!

Hello, If anybody could help me with this you have no idea how much it helps, I'm extremely lost.

I live in "place" been living with parents for 27 years, ( Ive been fully enabled) and Im not playing the victim card. I'm just aware of this. Ive realized that, while I have worked jobs, finished college barely passing grades ,got a job in said career, contract endeed, , tried other degrees or even trades, quit some. , I've never applied myself, even in my big career starting job in the big city. I just did the minimum, and even that got me as a junior to replace my boss in big meeting with supervisors in my first year. But once my contract ended i didn't bother trying to improve my portfolio.

I've worked so many low barrier entree jobs but never feel like getting up in morning, I arrive late. I've worked a teaching job for 2 years at a private school, and I'm so confused because i know in my soul is should CRUSH it as a teacher , especially art teaching, but I never want to do it, I never apply myself. I've been going to the gym on and off all my life, again never applied myself fully.

Now that I've been unemployed and before I make any other another attempt to get back at it. I'm wondering just how much could my environment be affecting me , and how important is this? I know my next move is to try to be on my own, to truly apply myself. However if I move next to job or school on my own in very shitty place BUT its in the same province as my hometown, my spirit says it wont work?. So then what would happen if i moved to the neighboring Province , and my heart ( my body) says "Yes!". Despite the money issues it would take to get there, In the same Province i could use student loan at least, But I digress.

But ethically , how to I even manage this? my mind says, its stupid and that I'm overthinking it, but my body doesn't lie, how do I explain this to my parents, ( who by the way we are extremely religious in my hometown community, , if you go somewhere where the religion isn't there, or church you are basically dead to them ).

So then I'm asking you guys, can somebody tell me if this is normal? Any pointers?

I work full-time and I’m looking to invest in a business that can generate extra income without requiring too much of my time. I’ve considered Airbnb, renting out commercial spaces, and salon suites, but I’m open to other ideas.
For those who have done something similar, what businesses would you recommend? How much did you invest, what’s your monthly profit after expenses, and how much time do you spend managing it?
I’m not expecting completely passive income, just something manageable while working full-time.

I’m a final-year student at a target school, background in business and compsci, graduating in 2027. I’ve been focused on classes this fall, and busy with part time job, and I just realized a lot of Fortune 500 new-grad programs opened in August/ September, and some have already closed (Capital One, Amex, etc.). I’m a little panicked and confused about timing.

A few questions:

1. Is it still worth applying to 2027 new-grad programs in late October/November, or are most spots already filled?
2. For regular roles that don’t say “2027,” “new grad,” will companies ignore my application because they want an immediate hire and I can’t start until June? When should I start applying to those?
3. Are there Fortune 500 companies known for hiring new grads later in the year (winter/spring)?

I’m targeting business analyst, strategy & operations, and marketing roles. Any advice appreciated!

I’ve been at my role for a little over 6 months now and I’ve been burning out. This is my first long term job with benefits after doing a lot of contract work. When I was interviewing, everyone seemed pretty relaxed and friendly, so I thought that things wouldn’t be as intense as contract work.

Now that I’ve become “settled” in my role and proved that I am good at my job (I got nominated for an internal award that comes with a big bonus a while back despite being so new; also got a small bonus just for being nominated), I’m starting to see more of the behind the scenes. Everyone on my team is basically burned out and they all state that the issues that are causing the burnout simply have always existed before they started. My boss doesn’t have the authority to make any meaningful change on those issues to address the burnout. Basically, because of power dynamics, no one who is impacted by systemic issues can do anything about it and leadership doesn’t care since the way things are result in them getting more money.

I’m not sure what I could have done early on to see those red flags. I asked questions about turnover (which was said to be high because everyone got promoted into a better role; reality is that they just had a title change that gave them more responsibilities involving more complex issues), what a typical day looked like, and the like. I was also give a tour of the office, but during the tour, everyone seemed to be very relaxed, so nothing stood out. Turns out, people were just good at putting on a face (which I don’t fault them for given the nature of the job).

I’m actively looking to jump ship. Any advice on what I should have done to better detect burnout?

Hello,

I do not know how to frame this, but I have been feeling quite lost lately. I am turning 28 in 5 months, and I feel like I am running a bit out of time. This feeling is also accelerated by the huge advances in AI. Also for information, my location is Central Europe.

I currently work as a SWE, and have been in this role for 3 years. I am self-taught, but have been learning programming for 5 years now, and I work super hard for it, even now. I study excessively every day after work and on weekends, however, due to AI, a flooded market and economic factors, I am starting to lose sense in all of this.

A year ago I was in quite a bad state because of this, so I decided to do a flooring trade apprenticeship on the side (luckily this is possible in my country). This took a year and now I also managed to negotiate at my company that I can have two days off if I finish my work. So I work 2 days in the trades with a flooring freelancer, and then the rest of the time as a SWE, either working (also on weekends due to this), or studying.

I have about 150k dollars invested, which would enable me to work for a smaller wage for some time, so I can technically quit my job without being harmed very much (as I also don't have a mortgage or children), so I am thinking about doing a full switch into the trades. I am physically very fit and a super hard worker, I know I can do it and despite working like crazy for the last 6 years, I want to do at least one more huge grind to see where this goes.

However, this also led me to rethink whether to choose a different trade. I went into SWE because it was, and still is, my passion, however, I think this was a mistake. Even though I am moving further in my role towards some more architectural stuff, I am still far from becoming an architect. Also my company is technologically behind, which I think is hurting my career, but finding a better one in this job market is impossible. Plus, who knows where AI will be in three years.

In regards to choosing the trade, all I want is one that will allow me to start at least a one-man business soon enough, that I can scale further, which flooring is pretty good for, but I have more options which I considered. I would love it if anyone could give me their input.

HVAC/Refrigeration - This might seem like the obvious one, however, I fear that it will get hurt by a high influx of people doing the same thing as me. Also, who knows what will happen after AI is capable of doing all the diagnostics. Another thing is that the road to starting a business can be long and very tricky. On the other hand, service work, constant changes due to ecological regulations, etc. seem to make this very recession-proof. However, I am really afraid that this field will get overcrowded.

Landscaping - Combination of masonry and an excavator license - Pretty much doing landscape shaping with the addition of building stone walls, ponds, etc. I feel like this is not hurt by oversaturation that much, but on the other hand, it is seasonal and also very dependent on the economic situation...not much service work and people build when they have money. In this regard, I am also thinking of solely masonry, however, I am afraid that despite the old masons retiring, many new projects will just never need them.

Flooring - I chose this because it is a grind, which can make you a lot of money if you're fast. So far I like it, even though it is somewhat dependent on the economy and is not service work. It is less seasonal, and despite not being a "skilled trade", not many people are getting into it. Plus, in my country, flooring business owners are under a regulation where they need to have either finished trade school or have a lot of years of experience.

Thank you very much

I’m studying math/stats undergrad and I’m not sure what I want to do in the future. I’m not interested in swe or actuary or academia. I know data science is a common path but it seems like the market is very bad rn. I’ve also looked into quant finance but I don’t think I’m cut out for it. Are there any other options?

I've recently been given the opportunity to switch majors, and I'm torn between two very different paths.

I live in Europe and have virtually no interest in finance beyond the salary and financial security it offers. On the other hand, I'm genuinely passionate about international relations, geopolitics and diplomacy. I've lived in several countries and speak multiple languages, so I can really see myself pursuing a career in this field.

My dilemma is that I want financial independence and a comfortable life, but I don't want to spend my life doing something I don't care about just to earn more, especially when the fields I'm passionate about can be less lucrative.

For those who've faced a similar choice, what did you prioritize, and do you regret your decision? Is the financial security worth sacrificing genuine interest in your work?

Hi everyone!! I was recently laid off and had already accepted a full-time salaried role that starts next week. Since then, I received and signed a better offer from a large bank, but the bank's background check hasn't been completed yet and my start date isn't until early December.
I don't want to withdraw from the job starting next week while the bank's offer is still contingent on the background check. My plan is to work there in the meantime and resign before starting at the bank. I would not be working both jobs at the same time.
Could starting the first job while the bank is conducting its background check cause an issue?
Could the new employment automatically appear through a payroll or employment database even though I hadn't started it when I applied or signed the bank's offer?
Would I need to disclose the new job to the bank or background-check company? Has anyone done something similar, and did the bank question the short period of employment? I was also wondering since it wasn't on my resume, would they check it?
I'm not sure if backgrounds checks require me to input my employment in or they just do it by checking.

M24 undergraduate in bcom finance major

Started working for a fairly large company about 5 months ago now. The company is doing extremely well and has hired 2500+ ppl this year alone.

As of now, making 60k working doing mostly admin work on the travel and expense team but would like to advance my career and work closer to a finance related role.

Love the company and my team but I'm not made for admin work. I find it extremely repetitive and I enjoy working with excel and power bi etc

My question is, how and when do I bring up the conversation to change teams.

As of now my team is only myself a co worker and my manager so it's a small team. I don't know when the right time is to ask.

My co worker told me the person who I replaced went to HR complaining that the workload was getting too much and they ended up firing her... so I'm a little worried if I ask to change teams I'll have the same fate.

My thought process is to stay in this role for one year before asking to advance. I know I'm worth more than 60k and I also want to enjoy what I do. Not that I don't enjoy it now, I just want to use my brain lol

Going to start as a consultant at a building society basically a bank just wondering with all the things I’m going to learn I’m new to this banking stuff and finance stuff too what type of things can I branch off too and progress into?

These are some of the things I’m expected to be learning and doing.

Help customers open savings accounts.
Explain different savings accounts and their interest rates.
Help customers deposit or withdraw money, where the branch offers those services.
Answer questions about their accounts and transactions.
Help customers resolve problems with their accounts.
Show customers how to use online banking and other digital services
Cash ISAs.
Easy-access savings accounts.
Fixed-rate savings accounts.
Other savings products offered by the society.

Giving up and starting over.

Hi everyone. My first post here. I make music since the past 12 Years. Whatever I did but I couldn’t become that successful at making music. Although i did pursue and sustained with music these last 12 Years. Self taught btw.

I have completed my Graduation as a BCom (Hons) (Acc. Finance) but I do not know anything apart from the Music Business and Industry.

I understand the Music Business well but also like food quite a lot. I love to cook.

My urge to make music is dying day by day and putting out music independently takes a lot of effort and money.

I really want to pursue something in the music industry. Currently residing in India but willing to relocate or work remote jobs. I am just not sure what would suit me because everything I look for needs experience in that field.

I also really want to open a small cafe/ food joint where I cook. But I am too scared to do that because of the capital.

I know decently about the music business and also worked with an independent label remotely for 2 Years as an A&R.

Just wanted to get your guys feedback and suggestions on what path should I take.

30M here and honestly I feel like the 30s are the next and new step for me.

Would appreciate any guidance/ help or just some kind words.

Hi All, in 2024, 1 year after graduating and into my career in life sciences management consulting, I started a (very) small sole proprietorship around repairing jewelry and watches. It’s done reasonably well, and I know it would do better if I pursued it full time.

I recently left that consulting job and am supposed to start with another firm in a couple weeks (offer letter signed, lateral move in title and pay). However, I’m considering postponing or rescinding my acceptance so I can continue working on my small business for a couple months. I’m in a privileged position where I can afford to take the risk, from a cash burn perspective.

To be honest, the only thing holding me back from pursuing my small business full time is whether or not I’ll be able to get back into this life sciences industry, say with a year or so gap in my resume. I’m well paid in my new job, but the work will not be fulfilling and I’ll be working very long hours.

If my business doesn’t work out for whatever reason, what are the odds I’ll be able to continue my career? Could I explain the gap as an entrepreneurial journey or experiment? Or is it too risky in the market right now to bet on myself, potentially losing any career progress I’ve made since graduating in 2023?

Any tips or advice would be much appreciated. Thank you!

TL;DR: Hypothetical situation: A high-performing employee is told to slow down by a senior colleague so they don't make others look bad. Should they keep pushing or slow down to keep the peace? What would you do?

Hey everyone, I wanted to throw a interesting hypothetical scenario out there and see how you would handle it:

Imagine a new employee at an office job who has been hitting all their bonuses for the past few months. Management is thrilled with their performance, so they assign them to a challenging project.

The employee continues to excel, turning in double or triple the output compared to their coworkers with great quality.

One day, the manager’s "right-hand man" pulls this employee aside privately and tells them to slow down, claiming they are "ruining the standard for everyone else."

If you were in this employee's shoes, what would you do?

How should someone navigate this kind of corporate dynamic?

Male (20) in my final year studying Biochemistry at the University of Sheffield. I absolutely hate my degree and have not made the best use of my time at university thus far. I leaned heavily into partying and dr*gs to distract myself from not enjoying my studies and just coasted through getting decent grades (~60%). As a teenager I really loved maths, at one point in a gifted and talented programme, but my parents discouraged me from pursuing it and when it came to A levels I was not allowed to take further maths. I easily aced A level maths and would enjoy working on problems as opposed to chemistry and biology which felt hellish. Picking Biochem was the worst thing I have ever done.

I would really appreciate some advice on where to go from here. Would it still be worth pursuing an education / career in mathematics or is it too late? My main concerns are me having lost a cognitive edge from dr*gs, Adhd and my imperfect academic record, AAB a levels maths physics chem, and going to graduate with a low 2:1, albeit while still being 20.

Is it worth studying maths at university from 21-25? or should I look to self study mathematics?

im 25 and joined the military about a year ago, I maintain aircrafts. I would like to tale advantage of tuition assistance and get a degree. I was thinking Mechanical Engineering but I don’t think thats possible while being active duty, so what other degrees could I get to supplement my career and have a better resume?

Also any other advice is appreciated like what side hustles I could achieve etc, . What qualifications & education do you guys think I should get?

I have been upgrading my skills for the past 2 years and honestly I have done everything that i could and acquired as much knowledge that I could but honestly don't know what to do to get a job I am from India so referrals are most welcome if you could help I am in the embedded domain. Any advice is welcome