Man, 30, earning $3K/month, feels overworked and unappreciated by his boss, sends out lots of job applications but not getting interviews

SINGAPORE: A 30-year-old man crowdsourced for advice on an online forum, saying he feels “stuck” in a low-paying field and asking how he can turn his career around.

It is his first job, and he’s fairly new at it, but he expressed that he’s having difficulty with his boss and the firm he works for.

In a Dec 17 (Tuesday) post on r/askSingapore, a Reddit forum, he explained that while he had a degree in marketing, he did not study in one of the big three universities. He has realised that his chosen field is “really tough” for fresh graduates, especially those his age.

He also wrote that the pay for marketing jobs is only about $3,000 per month at most and added that “the workload often feels way too much and unappreciated for what you’re earning.”

And though he has been proactive and has sent out many job applications elsewhere, he has not been getting a lot of callbacks for interviews. At this point, he is unsure if this is the career he wants for the next few decades.

“I’m serious about turning my career around and am willing to do whatever it takes—even going back to school, picking up new skills, or jumping into a completely different industry,” he wrote, adding that his top priorities at the moment are stability and a better salary.

However, he also wants a job where he can have long-term growth. “Or is starting a business my only way out? Anyone had similar experiences here before?” he asked.

Many Reddit users have obliged the post author by offering encouragement and suggestions to turn his career around, including one who suggested a career shift to healthcare, where many positions are in demand.

Another commenter, however, discouraged this, saying that healthcare workers have low pay plus a heavier workload than those who work in marketing. They added that healthcare workers also suffered the most during the pandemic.

Despite the points raised about low pay and a heavy workload, the post author appeared to appreciate the suggestion, saying he believes it’s a meaningful job and wouldn’t mind giving it a try.

Some pointed out that there are a number of other jobs in healthcare that aren’t necessarily related to the medical field, such as administrative work, corporate communications, or patient experience officers, which might go well with the post-author’s marketing experience.

Others, however, suggested that he go for a marketing job in the banking industry, which pays well, or go back to school and acquire an MBA, which would give him a good career pivot. /TISG

Read also: Gone are the days of “building a career” — Over 6 in 10 professionals globally think 3 to 5 years is the ideal average tenure at any company

Featured image by Depositphotos (for illustration purposes only)