25 and quit my job, looking for advice

[cowbell11]

I'm 25 years old and recently quit my job as a business analyst at a large bank. There were several reasons; this wasn't a path or industry I want to stay in long term, the work has been all consuming and unfulfilling for the past year or so, and I have an emergency fund that covers 6-8 months of expenses. I have experience with SQL, Excel, data visualization and automation in Python, and I've worked on projects related to credit valuations, commercial banking and digital marketing. I like turning confusing data into clear stories, making beautiful spreadsheets and project management.

My questions are 1) What types of jobs might fit based on my background 2) What skills could I develop to open my options? 3) What would your framing/mindset be in this situation 4) What are common mistakes people make in this situation?

I am very open to different types of jobs and industries, even something not corporate. Or something unrelated to my skill set - like an executive assistant, chief of staff, event planner, corporate training... etc. I'm actually pretty flexible on salary range, as I'm *somewhat* prioritizing enjoyment and long term sustainability. I know there are all sorts of positions out there I've never heard of, and this has been a wonderful group for exploring possibilities. I'd love to hear about your jobs + appreciate all the advice!

[Lalalauren]

Im an actuary and just moved into product/state management. You can really use your skills in either of those fields at an insurance company or a consulting firm. Insurance can be interesting enough!

[cowbell11]

Im an actuary and just moved into product/state management. You can really use your skills in either of those fields at an insurance company or a consulting firm. Insurance can be interesting enough!

Thanks Lauren! Are you in product/state management at an insurance company + were you originally an actuary then moved into product management?

[MayDay]

I work in manufacturing and we have lots of people who do similar things. Supply chain, systems engineering/process engineering, the IT group that makes all our quality data magically go from a big database to PowerBI or other similar visualization tools, the IT group that writes power apps for manufacturing, black belts, etc.

[cowbell11]

I work in manufacturing and we have lots of people who do similar things. Supply chain, systems engineering/process engineering, the IT group that makes all our quality data magically go from a big database to PowerBI or other similar visualization tools, the IT group that writes power apps for manufacturing, black belts, etc.

Thanks Mayday! I've heard that working in manufacturing in an analyst role can be a better work/life balance (than financial services, for example), not sure if you agree. Do you know if those IT people started out in manufacturing? Or how easy/hard it is to move into manufacturing without industry experience?

[Lalalauren]

I work in manufacturing and we have lots of people who do similar things. Supply chain, systems engineering/process engineering, the IT group that makes all our quality data magically go from a big database to PowerBI or other similar visualization tools, the IT group that writes power apps for manufacturing, black belts, etc.

Yes, I worked in actuarial depts for 8 years. Just switched over to the product management side to broaden my business knowledge. I’m still an actuary, but that’s no longer my title.

[MayDay]

I work in manufacturing and we have lots of people who do similar things. Supply chain, systems engineering/process engineering, the IT group that makes all our quality data magically go from a big database to PowerBI or other similar visualization tools, the IT group that writes power apps for manufacturing, black belts, etc.

Thanks Mayday! I've heard that working in manufacturing in an analyst role can be a better work/life balance (than financial services, for example), not sure if you agree. Do you know if those IT people started out in manufacturing? Or how easy/hard it is to move into manufacturing without industry experience?

I think it's pretty easy. We have people from all kinds of backgrounds. It's just a matter of getting in. Once you get in there are all kinds of different jobs you can do that need that skill set. Our IT leader started as a supply chain analyst, then supply chain architect, then IT individual contributor, then IT leader....ost manufacturing systems are some combo of homegrown and purchased, with lots of customization and linkage between systems, so the skills needed are varied but at the end of the day we always need people who can get data from one place and make it go to another, in a usable format. And I'd say work life balance overall is good with occasional emergencies. The emergencies are tangible (like the production line is down) so I think it's a nice balance as I get energy from the occasional emergency - just don't want to always be in emergency mode!

[cowbell11]

I work in manufacturing and we have lots of people who do similar things. Supply chain, systems engineering/process engineering, the IT group that makes all our quality data magically go from a big database to PowerBI or other similar visualization tools, the IT group that writes power apps for manufacturing, black belts, etc.

Thanks Mayday! I've heard that working in manufacturing in an analyst role can be a better work/life balance (than financial services, for example), not sure if you agree. Do you know if those IT people started out in manufacturing? Or how easy/hard it is to move into manufacturing without industry experience?

I think it's pretty easy. We have people from all kinds of backgrounds. It's just a matter of getting in. Once you get in there are all kinds of different jobs you can do that need that skill set. Our IT leader started as a supply chain analyst, then supply chain architect, then IT individual contributor, then IT leader....ost manufacturing systems are some combo of homegrown and purchased, with lots of customization and linkage between systems, so the skills needed are varied but at the end of the day we always need people who can get data from one place and make it go to another, in a usable format. And I'd say work life balance overall is good with occasional emergencies. The emergencies are tangible (like the production line is down) so I think it's a nice balance as I get energy from the occasional emergency - just don't want to always be in emergency mode!

That's interesting and very helpful, your feelings about the emergencies make sense - it's fun to have the occasional shake up! It sounds like that's where most of the urgency comes from. All the different ERPs/systems have scared me off manufacturing in the past, but I assume they're generally easy to pick up. I wonder how to communicate that to an interviewer...

[Silrossi46]

@kellywin sent you a DM.

[mistymoney]

sounds like data science would be a good avenue to pursue.

[the lorax]

Dat analysis/insights roles would often use those skillsets. I've done some of that kind of data work in the healthcare system - lots of data there re patient journeys, trends, utilisation etc your skills would be a good fit for. Plent of government departments here employ data analysts to support reporting, eg environmental reporting so that could be worth looking into too

[jrhampt]

Yes, data science would work, or something with a machine learning/AI focus. I might be careful about getting into the insurance industry, though, as suggested above (speaking as someone in health insurance).  P&C insurance in particular is doing a lot of layoffs right now in response to the very difficult climate (pun intended) of increased disasters and rising costs to insure.  Health insurance is also quietly doing a lot of layoffs, although I'm not entirely sure why- could be related to increasing healthcare costs driven partly by pandemic reasons - staffing shortages, deferred health care during early part of the pandemic leading to a spike in UM claims now, a difficult individual market...etc.

[Laura33]

I'd suggest looking at it from the opposite perspective:  what companies/areas are you actually interested in?  Would you be excited about working for SpaceX/competitor?  Do you want to work for a nonprofit where your skills would directly help people?  Do you geek out about how in the world we are keeping up with demand for internet and other similar services?  Do you want to find ways to reduce our carbon footprint?  Would you be excited about providing access to medical services?  Have you just always loved hot air balloons or diet soda?  Is there a particular part of the country you'd like to live in?

Your skills are broadly applicable to any number of fields.  So why not start by prioritizing options that interest you, then looking for jobs where your skills seem like they would be helpful?