Singaporeans are quick to look for greener pastures if it means being more content with their career.
By Victoria Lum
Jan 6, 2020
If you are thinking of switching jobs because your current job is unsatisfactory, chances are, you are not alone.
According to Business Insider Singapore, a study by human resource agency Randstad revealed that nearly two in five Singaporeans intend to leave their current companies in 2019.
“There are many reasons why people change careers, I believe a few of them could be related to job satisfaction. People are unhappy with their current place,” said Mr Eugene Ang, 39, an education and career guidance counsellor from Ngee Ann Polytechnic.
Take Miss Liu Ru An, Marianne for instance.
The 27-year-old worked in guest services and relations in the hotel industry for two years upon graduation. She then switched to a total different industry and became a pre-school teacher in 2018.
“I thought of the future; hotel shift work may not be feasible should there be any other commitments in life. I prefer regular working hours. On top of that, I have a passion for kids,” said Miss Liu.
During the process of changing jobs, she wondered if it was the right move, and considered the fact that she had to pick up an entirely different skillset. In the end, knowing that she was adaptable gave her the confidence to make the switch.
For one year, Miss Liu trained under the National Institute of Early Childhood Development, and attained a Diploma in Early Childhood Education while working on her new job full time. She struggled with juggling both work and studies at the same time. Moreover, she had to serve a one-year bond upon graduation.
One of the challenges of being a pre-school teacher, is that she now has “more responsibilities due to taking care of kids”.
When asked what was the biggest difference between her previous job and current one, Miss Liu said that she has “more workload now as compared to before”. This is because she has to look after children, do up lesson plans, and prepare materials. As a result, she has less time for herself.
Nevertheless, the satisfaction that Miss Liu gains from her job as a pre-school teacher motivates her to keep doing this job for the next five years at least. “I feel satisfied when I see them applying what I teach, like self-help skills,” she said.
Increasingly, young Singaporeans are not afraid to pursue a job that is completely unrelated to what they majored in school. According to a study conducted by recruitment company Monster.com, “79 per cent of young professionals in Singapore would consider a career outside their field of study”.
Another example is Miss Kimberly Lam, 25.
Miss Lam’s initial dream job was to be a news anchor. She worked with sports network Eleven Sports for a year. Now, she works as a senior financial consultant under insurance company Prudential.
Photo on the left credit: Miss Lam’s Instagram account, @kiminpei
Photo on the right by: Miss Kimberly Lam
Miss Lam majored in Mass Communication with a specialisation in broadcast journalism at Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University.
In her third year of studies, she worked as a news anchor for a sports network, hosting a fantasy football programme. However, “the satisfaction just wasn’t there”. She did not really enjoy the job as it was not how she thought it was. While Miss Lam liked the media industry, she did not see herself working there in the long run.
After talking with friends to get advice on what she should do next, she found out about financial consultancy, and decided to become an insurance agent.
To get her mandatory financial license, she had to self-study and pass five financial papers, which was the most challenging part of the switch for her, as she is “not the exam kind”. She even failed some papers and had to re-take them.
All her efforts were worth it, as Miss Lam now feels much more fulfilled in her current job. To her, job fulfilment is “value-adding” to the people around her. Instead of being a media personality, she finds more meaning in helping the masses by educating them on financial plans, and taking responsibility for her clients’ portfolio.
“I like to talk to people, I like helping them, I like making a difference in their life for the little things,” she said.
According to Mr Ang, talking to a career counsellor is especially important for people who have never changed careers before. Photo by: Victoria Lum
Switching careers may be worthwhile in the end, but it comes with challenges. Besides educating oneself with a new skill, “Another area of challenges would be to fit in the work environment and culture,” said Mr Ang.
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