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Change

JT

The industry I work in as a freelancer (design) is changing so fast due to tech advances that after 15 years doing it at a high level, I am exhausted at trying to keep up. It moves SO fast that I don't understand how anyone stays up to speed with that amount of data.

I always thought, once I was skilled up, that whatever job I committed my career to it would take me to my old grey years. But if now seems, in my early 40s, that I need to change careers in order to find any sort of security long-term.

Do any of you feel this way?

I resent the idea that I need to have multiple careers running at once just to secure my families future

  • in reply to Desmond79

    There's also the Affinity packages, Affinity Designer, Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher - all excellent in their own way, and have a perpetual one-time licence (so not a subscription like Adobe now extracts from it's once-loyal customers). Plus, they're made in the UK - Nottingham, I believe.

    They're not free like the FOSS examples mentioned by Peter, but they're a lot more... polished.

  • in reply to Desmond79

    There is always gimp, kreta and Inkscape if you don’t mind using open source softwear.

  • in reply to JT

    Scientific research. There is always a new tool, or piece of equipment or software to use. The average scientist is usually more worried about how to persuade their boss to pay for it than learning to use it. Often times the right tool isn’t out there and then you have to code / build it yourself… but that’s exciting too in my view.

  • I wanted a career in graphic design, but I had no Art background. And the industry wouldn't hire anyone without prior experience. Plus, Adobe was too dear for me to maintain. 

  • I'm in exactly the same situation, but in my late 40s. I'm back freelancing as a graphic designer after a pretty horrible burnout working for a pretty dysfunctional and chaotic organisation for 8 months (I normally manage several years in each job, but this was a particularly bad one!).

    It annoys me no end that pay has stagnated over the last quarter of a century - what was once a good job is now paid the same as a barista in much of the country (and there's absolutely nothing wrong with being a barista, but it doesn't take a degree to do it or come with all the stress of clients and project management), unless you work for a fintech or similar evil company, and are happy destroying the planet and society!

    You're not the only one feeling like this, JT, really.

  • That must be difficult for you to have to deal with. I haven't managed to find a job or career yet but I am looking. Like you though I want something which will take me in to elderly years and then retirement. Try to be kind to yourself and give yourself unwinding time. When things move fast it can be easy to get overwhelmed and swept under the current.

  • I'm a freelancer in my mid 30s and have similar concerns. AI has recently become better than me at most aspects of my job. I do not feel capable of working a traditional job so I'm not sure what my plan is.

  • in reply to Peter

    Mind me asking what it is you do, or at the very least the industry you work in?

    I enjoy change, as far as challenges, but when I learn some software for example and then 12 months later everyone shifts to a new product, it really becomes tiring starting again

  • I wouldn't say multiple careers but yes, I chose an industry where you have to keep learning. I love it. The idea of changing careers on the other hand ... well I'm still establishing mine and it's at a precarious stage. frankly ... I really like what I do.