Careers for a social butterfly
June 24, 2011 2:51 PM Subscribe
What kinds of professional careers are there that involve working with people and helping them that won't bore me or burn me out?
I am ready for a career change, but have a hard time fitting what I like to do into existing careers that I know about. I'm hoping that MeFi can help point me in the direction of career paths I might not know about.
A little background: I'm one of those people who really excelled in school because the path to success was very clearly spelled out, but I've just sort of stumbled around from one job to another without a real plan or any idea of what I wanted to do. I have a BA in psych and an MA in linguistics, but just studied them because I found them interesting - I never did figure out how to turn them into a career. (FYI, I'm in my late 30s.)
In the meantime, my jobs have been very administration-focused, in either higher education or non-profits, but I'm getting very bored by that. Over the years I've realized that I love the times when I get to interact with people - I'm pretty good at talking and connecting with people and have a good memory for things like "oh, how was your cousin's daughter's dance recital last month?", because I'm genuinely interested.
But there are some jobs for the socially adept I couldn't handle so well. I've student taught a few times and while I liked the rapport with the students at times, for the most part it was extremely taxing to be "on" all the time. And I've been told I'd be a good therapist because I am a good listener, but I also have too thin a skin to not let people's problems consume me. I once worked really briefly as a phone sex operator and I heard so many sad stories from such lonely and depressed people that I would go to the bathroom between calls to cry.
So really, I would like something that is a lot less intense, but still with the human connection. When I was much younger, I had a brief job as a cashier, and while the work itself was boring, and the lack of autonomy and responsibility demoralizing, I really liked interacting with the customers and doing the best I could to make their time in the store as pleasant as possible.
So in my dreams, I would love to have that kind of interpersonal interaction, but still have it be professional and interesting - I don't want to be a cashier again! So I would love to hear about career paths that might fit my personality and skills that I'm not aware about or not thinking of (and that I can support myself on). And if this is a total pipe dream, that is useful information too!
I am ready for a career change, but have a hard time fitting what I like to do into existing careers that I know about. I'm hoping that MeFi can help point me in the direction of career paths I might not know about.
A little background: I'm one of those people who really excelled in school because the path to success was very clearly spelled out, but I've just sort of stumbled around from one job to another without a real plan or any idea of what I wanted to do. I have a BA in psych and an MA in linguistics, but just studied them because I found them interesting - I never did figure out how to turn them into a career. (FYI, I'm in my late 30s.)
In the meantime, my jobs have been very administration-focused, in either higher education or non-profits, but I'm getting very bored by that. Over the years I've realized that I love the times when I get to interact with people - I'm pretty good at talking and connecting with people and have a good memory for things like "oh, how was your cousin's daughter's dance recital last month?", because I'm genuinely interested.
But there are some jobs for the socially adept I couldn't handle so well. I've student taught a few times and while I liked the rapport with the students at times, for the most part it was extremely taxing to be "on" all the time. And I've been told I'd be a good therapist because I am a good listener, but I also have too thin a skin to not let people's problems consume me. I once worked really briefly as a phone sex operator and I heard so many sad stories from such lonely and depressed people that I would go to the bathroom between calls to cry.
So really, I would like something that is a lot less intense, but still with the human connection. When I was much younger, I had a brief job as a cashier, and while the work itself was boring, and the lack of autonomy and responsibility demoralizing, I really liked interacting with the customers and doing the best I could to make their time in the store as pleasant as possible.
So in my dreams, I would love to have that kind of interpersonal interaction, but still have it be professional and interesting - I don't want to be a cashier again! So I would love to hear about career paths that might fit my personality and skills that I'm not aware about or not thinking of (and that I can support myself on). And if this is a total pipe dream, that is useful information too!
You would be surprised to hear this, but my job as a lawyer fits a lot of what you are looking for.
To be fair, I am not a litigator - I don't go into court. I do administrative law helping clients before various agencies. I have lots of personal contact (usually via phone) and have been called on to be a combination of social worker, cheerleader, fire-lighter, etc. I really love what I do because I get to help people but I don't have to be on with people all of the time. I get to use my brain alot and be creative and I also get to hear all kinds of interesting stories (but usually not very depressing ones). Fits me pretty well.
posted by Leezie at 2:56 PM on June 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
To be fair, I am not a litigator - I don't go into court. I do administrative law helping clients before various agencies. I have lots of personal contact (usually via phone) and have been called on to be a combination of social worker, cheerleader, fire-lighter, etc. I really love what I do because I get to help people but I don't have to be on with people all of the time. I get to use my brain alot and be creative and I also get to hear all kinds of interesting stories (but usually not very depressing ones). Fits me pretty well.
posted by Leezie at 2:56 PM on June 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
I worked in a salon way back, and was very impressed by the nurturing/caring personalities of many of the massage therapists and estheticians - the really good ones had a true gift for the kind of customer interaction you're describing. You'd have to be interested enough in the field to get the training, but the courses are only about 3-6 months, I think. (There are probably lots of other fields that involve similar one-on-one with clients, this is just what sprung to mind.)
posted by ella wren at 3:03 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by ella wren at 3:03 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Best answer: If you have a background in higher ed, perhaps you'd like to work in admissions? Or move into high-school counseling? Both of those have administrative aspects to them, but both also afford an opportunity for a lot of contact with people. I work in law school admissions and this is a large part of my job. Traveling the country to meet prospective students in the fall, and recruiting admitted students in the spring. Not to mention all the work I do with administrators in other offices and current students who help with the recruitment process.
posted by soonertbone at 3:08 PM on June 24, 2011
posted by soonertbone at 3:08 PM on June 24, 2011
Are you willing to invest in further education? If the answer is yes, then maybe you could consider a career in nursing. There are countless paths within the field to explore (so as to avoid burnout) and you get all sorts of social interaction while helping people in the process. I'm smack in the middle of nursing school now and loving it (switched from a career in IT.) My clinical shifts at the hospital already surpass my happiest moments at a desk job.
posted by Rewind at 3:12 PM on June 24, 2011
posted by Rewind at 3:12 PM on June 24, 2011
You might like an industrial sales job. Your abilities to work with people would be valued, and the intensity of the job is "episodic," meaning you are not always "on," "on" being reserved for actual client interactions and meetings. Product training, client preparation, research, and traveling are generally activities you do alone, or with a small number of colleagues, where your analytic skills and personal attribute tend be more important. The one thing that most industrial sales jobs share, that causes turnover in these jobs, is a high travel requirement.
Some people like business traveling, others come to abhor it. Personally, I always valued the independence and significant alone time that business travel provided, and I enjoyed the consultative selling method, which I used with most clients. To be fair, I did a lot of that kind of work in the days before cell phones and WiFi hotspots; I have a sense that today's industrial sales reps are on a lot shorter leash from most home offices than ever I was, but even so, such shortened leashes are still orders of magnitude longer than most cubicle workers ever have. And frankly, in a down economy, most businesses really treat their successful sales reps as stars, because they recognize that such people have unique talents, and are rainmakers. If you are good at industrial sales, the money and opportunities for promotion come fast. And even if you are not a "star," but can plug along with steady results, you can easily find jobs in any area of the world you'd like to live, and have a pretty good standard of living.
posted by paulsc at 3:26 PM on June 24, 2011
Some people like business traveling, others come to abhor it. Personally, I always valued the independence and significant alone time that business travel provided, and I enjoyed the consultative selling method, which I used with most clients. To be fair, I did a lot of that kind of work in the days before cell phones and WiFi hotspots; I have a sense that today's industrial sales reps are on a lot shorter leash from most home offices than ever I was, but even so, such shortened leashes are still orders of magnitude longer than most cubicle workers ever have. And frankly, in a down economy, most businesses really treat their successful sales reps as stars, because they recognize that such people have unique talents, and are rainmakers. If you are good at industrial sales, the money and opportunities for promotion come fast. And even if you are not a "star," but can plug along with steady results, you can easily find jobs in any area of the world you'd like to live, and have a pretty good standard of living.
posted by paulsc at 3:26 PM on June 24, 2011
I also wanted to say, that if you are really at sea concerning possible career alternatives beyond suggestions you get here, that you might want to pursue vocational and aptitude testing and counseling. Sometimes, local community college student placement offices can provide low cost testing and basic counseling, that could helpfully shape your thought processes about future career paths.
posted by paulsc at 3:46 PM on June 24, 2011
posted by paulsc at 3:46 PM on June 24, 2011
You would be surprised to hear this, but my job as a lawyer fits a lot of what you are looking for.
I'm also a lawyer. It's great for intelligent people with good social skills, especially if they can also write. Many cases will be resolved within a year (though some take much longer), and all of your cases will have different facts (though they will often be variations on a theme). Also, the law evolves.
Within law, there are a lot of sub-fields to choose from. Most of my practice is criminal defense, but I also handle enough civil litigation to make for a nice change of pace.
posted by Hylas at 4:01 PM on June 24, 2011
I'm also a lawyer. It's great for intelligent people with good social skills, especially if they can also write. Many cases will be resolved within a year (though some take much longer), and all of your cases will have different facts (though they will often be variations on a theme). Also, the law evolves.
Within law, there are a lot of sub-fields to choose from. Most of my practice is criminal defense, but I also handle enough civil litigation to make for a nice change of pace.
posted by Hylas at 4:01 PM on June 24, 2011
If you are willing to get another graduate degree, speech-language pathology!
posted by onepot at 5:09 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by onepot at 5:09 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Have you considered development for a non-profit? The people I know in these positions all have excellent people skills and have the opportunity to interact with generally interesting people.
posted by statsgirl at 5:34 PM on June 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by statsgirl at 5:34 PM on June 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
Tutoring writing could work. I find myself invigorated after conferences with student writers. Lots to talk about. Lotsa laughs at times too.
posted by Jagz-Mario at 6:00 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Jagz-Mario at 6:00 PM on June 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
A help desk job sounds like it might be up your alley (providing help, but over the phone!) but I understand that it can be very low paying.
If you were in Canada, I would suggest a job on the customer service side within a government department, either in the passport office or with employment insurance or even the tax office. Some of those people have been so helpful and nice; they've really made my life better. Not sure if that sounds fun for someone living in New York. Often universities have special services for international students. That could be fun as well.
posted by kitcat at 7:14 PM on June 24, 2011
If you were in Canada, I would suggest a job on the customer service side within a government department, either in the passport office or with employment insurance or even the tax office. Some of those people have been so helpful and nice; they've really made my life better. Not sure if that sounds fun for someone living in New York. Often universities have special services for international students. That could be fun as well.
posted by kitcat at 7:14 PM on June 24, 2011
Best answer: Have you considered the PR or high level fundraising sides of non profits or higher education? I worked for a couple of years in the Public Relations (mostly Alumni focused) branch of my university and loved talking to people about what they were doing after school and people at the university about what projects they were doing, everyone was interesting and people were overall pretty happy. There can be quite a bit of admin (ex. planning events or reviewing correspondence) that balances out the face to face interaction and high end fundraising would specifically benefit from your ability to remember small details about people.
Also consider looking for jobs dealing with positive events or aspects in people's lives rather than negative (counselling type). Think: event planning, the travel industry, or working any kind of place that people go to treat themselves and feel pampered (you could even manage a B&B or work as a concierge in a boutique hotel).
One other job I had that involved working with people that I really enjoyed was in caring for the elderly. This doesn't necessary pay well, and some branches of it are depressing (hospice care), but something like being a caretaker or administrator in a retirement village, or working with a service that provides support to elderly people (ex. transit, physical fitness classes) can be both rewarding and interesting.
posted by skermunkil at 1:29 AM on June 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
Also consider looking for jobs dealing with positive events or aspects in people's lives rather than negative (counselling type). Think: event planning, the travel industry, or working any kind of place that people go to treat themselves and feel pampered (you could even manage a B&B or work as a concierge in a boutique hotel).
One other job I had that involved working with people that I really enjoyed was in caring for the elderly. This doesn't necessary pay well, and some branches of it are depressing (hospice care), but something like being a caretaker or administrator in a retirement village, or working with a service that provides support to elderly people (ex. transit, physical fitness classes) can be both rewarding and interesting.
posted by skermunkil at 1:29 AM on June 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
Not that the employment prospects are that good right now, but a reference librarian interacts a lot with people and requires a professional degree. You're also not likely to have to deal with people's deepest personal problems.
The best librarians (or at least the most visible in the professional community) are social butterflies and social butterflies are probably the most likely to get a job. You'll also need to really get involved in all things librarian starting now and believe in the importance of the profession.
posted by waterandrock at 5:48 PM on June 26, 2011
The best librarians (or at least the most visible in the professional community) are social butterflies and social butterflies are probably the most likely to get a job. You'll also need to really get involved in all things librarian starting now and believe in the importance of the profession.
posted by waterandrock at 5:48 PM on June 26, 2011
Response by poster: Wow, thanks for all the ideas - what a great variety of options! I should have mentioned that I have a big chunk of student loan debt and am not looking to go back to school (much as I love being a student!), but this gives me lots to consider. Thanks!
posted by Neely O'Hara at 8:45 AM on June 27, 2011
posted by Neely O'Hara at 8:45 AM on June 27, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
But the question is - how worth it is it to you? I'm a strong introvert and a high school teacher. The energy expense is totally with the student connection. YMMV
posted by guster4lovers at 2:54 PM on June 24, 2011