Find your career

If you make choices based on what you enjoy then your passion will come through and, ultimately, you’ll be happier. If you don’t know what you enjoy yet then have a go at lots of different things. Will from the Science and Technology Facilities Council told us, “If you’re interested in doing stuff don’t worry about what other people think, try things out at home if you can. There are things you can do online with a web browser, like coding online or setting up your own server at home.”

If you already know what you want to do in the future, that’s great. If you’re in the majority and aren’t sure yet then don’t worry. You don’t need a plan in order to be successful. Ruby from Microsoft commented, “Don’t try to decide what you want to do with your career too early on in life, I was pretty set that I wanted to be a physio from when I was 14 or 15 and because I didn’t think about anything else I had such a set mindset that that’s what I wanted to do, I potentially restricted myself and didn’t look at the options into IT for example earlier on in life so I would just say keep open minded.”

When choosing your next steps, have confidence in yourself. Don’t worry that you don’t know enough about a certain topic or subject. The key is being passionate and open to learning. Nobody can ever know it all, especially with technology because things change so fast! Laura from Microsoft says, “Remember there’s no expectation to know everything, that’s what it’s all about really, the learning and how to implement it.”

Be open to new ideas, new ways of doing things and new opinions. A thirst for knowledge and experiences will grow your knowledge and skills. Natasha from John Lewis advises, “Be really curious about stuff and don’t worry about making a mistake or failing because you can always learn from something that didn’t go well. So always try and see the flip side of something not going brilliantly, how can I learn something from that experience.”

See a chance to do some work experience, shadowing, or to find out more about a company? Go for it! Amber from Google says, “Take every opportunity. Throw yourself into everything, and if you choose to do anything, do it with everything you’ve got. Put 110% in.”