The working world can be hard to engage with on an emotional level. For some people, a 9-to-5 desk job is perfectly fulfilling, providing a steady, sustainable way to make a living. Others crave something a little more engaging, seeking out interesting careers and alternative jobs to make the daily grind feel a little less monotonous.
Finding a new, more exciting career path isn’t something that can be done overnight, but there are plenty of options out there for people who want something a little different. This article will highlight some of the more “out-there” careers that people can seek out in this day and age, giving some guidance on how to make each of them a more tangible reality.
Tour guiding & heritage interpreting
If you love to perform and meet people, as well as having a passion for knowledge, offering guided tours could be the perfect pathway for you. Tours can take place through food hotspots, outdoor adventure destinations, sites of historical significance, museums or even industrial locations.
The joy of this job is that you get to enjoy different interactions every day, sharing insights about a topic you love while moving around on your feet.
If you’re interested in becoming a tour guide, there are pathways you can take:
- Getting qualifications from the ITG
- Researching your own interests to the max, going independent
- Learning about audio guide equipment to support more immersive experiences
- Working your way up through an existing museum/heritage site framework
Exhibition design & curation
The next level up from tour guiding comes in the form of museum and exhibition curation and design. The same passion that drives a good guided tour can power the energy used to build physical and digital spaces for people to learn in. Figuring out the layout and presentation of information will define how visitors experience what they’ve come to see.
These interesting jobs require a keen visual eye and capacity for research, offering a chance to get up close and personal with thrilling artefacts and records. It’s not an entry-level position, but could be something you work up to through tour guiding or other museum roles.
Entry-level film & TV roles
If you’re a big fan of cinema and television, working in the field could be a lot more attainable than you might think. It’s not all about the glitz and glam of Hollywood, because the UK has a fairly active industry with plenty of entry-level behind-the-scenes roles.
Some of the roles that people can take to enter into the entertainment industry without many complex qualifications include:
- Production assistant roles, based on running errands, setting up equipment and generally offering assistance.
- Camera trainees who support the photography department by unboxing gear, charging gear and managing batteries.
- Location trainees who support the location department by helping manage parking and keeping noise levels down during the shoot.
- Casting assistants, helping to organise the casting process, booking audition rooms, maintaining databases of actors and coordinating background actors.
- General runners, who support production by moving things back and forth, helping the actors and making hot drinks for people.
With these kinds of careers in mind, dreams of Tinsel Town might not be so far away!
An interesting job is just a search away
Interesting careers are in the eye of the beholder. To some, working in a garden centre might be enough to satisfy their biophilic tendencies. Others might prefer the time pressures and plate spinning of event planning. The key is to look inward at what you really want from a career, then be willing to take time to progress in a new field, accepting that it might mean taking a pay cut or temporary loss of position.