I met someone at a party recently, who told me she was a Receptionist. She was a little embarrassed and dressed up the title as the Director of First Impressions. And when I look around at my LinkedIn account or on Facebook, everyone is a Manager or a Director or a Partner. No one is an Admin Assistant, Labourer, Tradie or a Waitress. There seems to be the idea that the jobs that matter are not front line jobs, which is sad because these jobs are essential services! If you’ve ever done a crisis management plan for an organisation you know that the people at the top of the organisation are the least essential. You can go without a CEO for a few months, but a sales assistant or receptionist is a lot harder for an organisation to survive without, on a day-to-day basis.
The mother of a student who recently did a careers assessment—the online COPSystem—with us, was shocked to find out the results indicated the student would suit a trade. “But she’s at the top of her class in all her subjects” was her response. This widespread prejudice against practical occupations and front line roles, may be preventing us from achieving our true potential.
I’ve heard of a CEO who quit his job to pack shelves at the supermarket and a Marketing Executive who moved from the Banking sector to Youth Work. They found their niche in the end but it wasn’t where they first looked! If our preoccupation with executive roles is clouding our perception of what makes a good career, we are really limiting our options. Matching our strengths, interests and values to the right career—be it frontline or management—will give us all a better future.