Wise words from…Samina Amin (BA Hispanic Studies and Italian, 2010; MPhil Modern European Cultures, 2012), HR Specialist at BBC
The best advice I’ve ever received is to think about your life as a series of choices that you can either own or let them own you. I actually use this as life advice to remind myself that it is okay to have some tough days, at work or at home and that I can always turn something negative into something positive. It is very hard to go straight into the world of work after Uni or even to keep up the strength to keep applying for jobs. As I reach my 10th anniversary of graduating (yes I said 10th), I’ve realised that I’ve never really regretted any decisions because I’ve always carefully considered the options and done what I wanted to do at the time. So in summary my wise Brummie words are: Whenever you are making a decision, truly think consider your options. You can choose to either let your present define you or let it help you on your journey.
Wise words from…Henrietta Brealey (BA English Literature, 2012; MSc Public Management, 2013) Director of Policy and Strategic Relationships at The Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce
If you’re thinking about whether or not you’re ready for an opportunity at the next level – go for it! There’s always more to learn and sometimes pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is the best way to do it. I was 25 when I was appointed to my role making me the youngest director in my company’s 206 year history. It was fantastic, and also a heck of a learning curve. A lot of my time is spent working with senior stakeholders who even now are generally significantly older and much more experienced in their fields than me. There were times when I really felt out of place. Luckily, one of my particularly blunt former managers gave me a very useful piece of advice: “you’re senior now, just act like it”. So I did. I faked it until I felt it and now four years on I don’t even think about whether I deserve to be here, I know I do.
Wise words from…Jake Trembling (BA Political Science, 2015), Audit and Assurance at Mazars
One of the hardest things when coming straight out of university is knowing whether you’re on the right path. If you throw yourself into work, say yes to new opportunities and give new jobs at least a year so you can get your teeth into the ‘real’ work you’ll give yourself a great chance. However, you shouldn’t be scared if it doesn’t work out. It can take a long time before you find your niche but with the right application and support structure, you will find it.