I’m looking to change my life.
Indeed, & a new job, would be a good place to start.
I have a Liberal Arts degree, elementary computer skills, a background in mapping, experience as a library tech, a bureaucrat (25 + years), have worked with the handicapped, & have a working knowledge of medical terminology.
I would like suggestions about job title search terms to use on Indeed.
I want to make a life change, so a different set of search terms would be great.
Please–no training suggestions. I would not regard that as helpful.
Gotta admit, I read this yesterday and tried to think of some advice, but I’m not clear what exactly you’re looking for. Just less bureaucracy? Maybe add terms like “flexible” and “motivation.”
Or are you looking for specific positions or fields? My own experience is pretty far from yours, so I can’t help much there.
I didn’t reply either, partly because you said you didn’t want to hear training suggestions. And yet you said your computer skills were “elementary”. Now I have no idea how you are defining that, and your skills may be entirely adequate. But most jobs I’m familiar with require some computer skills. Not Silicon Valley-level coding mastery level, but you should be comfortable with Microsoft Office, the web, email and so forth.
This is a very unhelpful post. I think it’s telling that it contains nothing regarding what you WANT to do.
If you are seeking a change, why not pursue your passions? What would make you want to get out of bed? Search for that. Hopefully, it’s related to your education and experience. If it’s not, look at jobs similar to that, but need people with your experience.
I had a friend who wanted to be a rock star. He didn’t go to university and toured the continent playing music. He never made it, but looked into jobs that were rock star-adjacent. He now makes a very nice living as a sound engineer, helping people who want to be rock stars sound good.
So, while you might not be able to do your dream job, think about jobs that are similar to that job and see if you might have the necessary skills.
Another idea; I think you’ve said you have a government job. Would it be easier to get another job elsewhere in the government than to find a private sector job? In my private sector experience, it’s easier for someone to make an internal transfer, even to a very different job, than it is to come in from the outside.
I started out as a computer programmer, mainly maintaining existing programs - steady work, but not exciting.
I was always fascinated by chess (and jolly good at it too. )
After I’d saved up enough money programming, I decided to branch out into my passion instead.
I was fortunate enough to then get a lot of work involving it:
A very specific filed that might use the OP’s background is working for firms that develop customized software packages used by 9-1-1 centers. Frustratingly theses systems are know as CAD programs (Computer Aided Dispatch) and results for those might be drown out by the more frequent Computer Aided Design version.
So I’d search on terms such as “public safety software” or look up names of companies that develop such programs and search on those company names instead. CentralSquare (f.k.a Superion) is one such company.
Left-field and potentially not-helpful thought: Maybe your initial search(es) shouldn’t be position-based, but rather location-based? Get on Indeed and spend an afternoon scrolling through jobs within X miles of home, where X = <# of miles you’d be willing to commute * 0.5>.
Might get some ideas that way. If not, replace your Target Commute Coefficient with “0.7” or “1.0” and work outwards.
(… Unless pulling up stakes and lighting out for the Territories is something you’d consider, in which case, damned if I know, sorry.)
Based on several years of contract work and finally landing a real job, I strongly suggest posting your qualifications on LinkedIn and setting your status to “looking for work.” That’s how I got several jobs. Let them come to you.
Might need the full website instead of the app, but hells yeah. Pop a ZIP code into the “Where” field (top right) and find the “Within X miles” drop-down lists on the left side. 5 - 10 -15 - 25 - 50 - 100 miles are the choices I see right now. (To be clear, my initial post assumes you’ll do the calculations yourself, and the choices aren’t continiuously-variable. But look for something within 10 miles and see if you get ideas/leads; if not, zoom out to 15 miles, etc.
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