Exploring Possibilities Within You

Hallo zusammen,

Welcome to a new month.

This week I am reflecting on my career journey so far. It has been a ride from different companies, countries, continents, industries, sectors, level, with different organizational hierarchy, experiences, competences and skill sets. In all, I thank God.

I used to be shy and most times ashamed of sharing my career experience during interviews and conversations because it been not a ladder or a "neat trajectory" as Eric Sim would call it . But having read from successful leaders with thriving careers about taking charge of one's career- Becoming Your Own CEO (BYOC), I began to embrace my own unique journey and appreciate the times I made career choices to pivot from Engineering to Business and Entrepreneurship.

“When I’m thinking about career choices, I always ask myself whether something opens more possibilities in my future life or closes more down. Narrowing down isn’t necessarily bad, but it needs to be done thoughtfully. – Sarah Warby , CEO, Lovehoney, and NED, MoneySuperMarket”

Career Ladder (CL) vs Career Portfolio (CP)

The traditional model of career progression allows professionals to envision their professional journey as climbing a ladder. As the future of work continues to evolve, new paradigms are emerging - one where careers are not just linear climbs but multifaceted portfolios. The AI era is here and there is need for one to rethink their career journey as companies can no longer guarantee lifetime employment with the recent news of layoffs, Merge and Acquisitions. Let's have a look at the comparison:

• Career Ladder often emphasises specialization whereas Career Portfolio encourages skill diversification.
• CL involves vertical progression within a single organization or industry as the individual advances via promotions. On the Other hand, CP promotes adaptability and flexibility as the individual pivot between industries, roles and career paths in response to market shifts and technological advancements.
• One of the challenges of CL might be the risk of automation as AI technologies have the potential to automate routine and cognitive tasks. Imagine waiting to be a manager who approves request only to find out that there's a workflow in place for the CEO to approve with a click of button already automated. CP provides a platform for individuals to explore entrepreneurship and engage in creative endeavors.
• Both for CP and CL, continuous learning is a must-have skill. However, CP learning model is not limited to advancing within a single domain/industry but encompasses acquiring new skills, exploring new interests and embracing lifelong learning.

Eric Sim, CFA: The Diversified Career Portfolio

沈文才Eric Sim brought a ray of hope to me when I came across his article on Diversified Career Portfolio and that immediately sent me into a reflective and appreciative journey in my career. I started becoming aware of the skills and talents that I have developed over these year. Here is a picture of how diverse his career is:

Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis: The Squiggly Career

I remembered being in a career development session in 2020 and this theme - The Squiggly Career- was mentioned but I couldn't place a picture as to what it was. Special thanks to my MBA Director Joanna Pritchard who is always generous to share her knowledge and experiences with students and anyone. The picture below is that of Joanna:

In one sitting, I read a book and here is an excerpt from Sarah's story to her mentees in the book -The squiggly career- “my advice was: ditch the plan, explore possibilities and you’ll have a career that works for you”

Chidera Bassey: The Multifaceted Career

Having shared other peoples' story, Here is my own story. Apologies in advance for no sketches. That will be shared in days to come.

Growing up, I loved the idea of being an accountant maybe because of my love for maths calculations, however I was very good in the science subjects. I got two admissions in two different universities- either to study Petroleum Engineering or Estate Management. At that time (2009), I didn't have much inform to make informed decision but one thing I did was to research on what was market demand. Energy demand topics was a hot one so I opted to study Petroleum Engineering at FUTO. I didn't see much prospect in Estate management because I couldn't find much motivation within my locality. But now, the world is a global village.

While I kept engineering at the top of my to-study list, I still had the idea at the back of my head to study a management course at a higher level than bachelors. I made a resolution that I will go for an MBA in the future. That dream got fulfilled 10years later (in 2019) when I relocated to UK to study for my MBA immediately after my MSc. in Petroleum Engineering and Project Development. Within the space of these 10 years, I have had the opportunity to work for different companies at a junior level both in Engineering practice and Business Practice.

• Drilling Engineering Intern (Schlumberger)

• Business Development Officer (Chesroc)
• Well Performance Engineer Intern (TotalEnergies)
• Process Engineer Trainee (Saipem)

From 2019 till date, the career ride diverted from engineering to fulling business and management, thanks to the opportunities that presented itself.

• PMO process Specialist (NHS)
• Senior Business Analyst (KPMG)
• Knowledge- Based Entrepreneur

These are just the professional ones that I invested my time and energy. Did I work someone else, of course yes. I worked as a trained Mental Health Support worker at hospitals, Business Developer for several family businesses, and fulfillment associate for one the biggest e-commerce companies in the world. My career thus has been a flavor of adaptability, flexibility, and continuous learning in response to change - environment, interest, and the market. Change in the sense of adapting to the dynamics of my environment (PESTLE), and harnessing the opportunities while keeping my dream alive.

Key Lessons

• Never loose your dream, passion, and Interest. If your dream is to climb a particular career ladder, please by all means possible- ethically and with integrity without kicking someone off the step - go for it and embrace the opportunities that comes as you step up. When you find an area that interest you, add that to one of your feathers.
• Fail forward: I have encountered some failures along that I wasn't proud of, but I never left the lessons behind. When you fail, fail forward and move, embrace the opportunities that lies within your area of strength.
• Discover the WINDFINDERS and Ride: This is one thing that I have come to learn in 2024. These windfinders will help to define the directions for how individuals, institutions, and industries transition, adapt and dominate in our evolving World.

How has your career been so far?

What lessons can you share with us?

I want to hear from you.

Till we meet again, Auf Wiedersehen!