Initiative · Careers
Changing direction is common. Doing it with information is not.
People who moved from one role, industry or kind of work to another describe how they did it — what carried over, what they had to rebuild, what it cost — for people who are thinking about a move of their own.
On this page · jump to a section
Most career changes are planned alone, at night, on job portals.
A few years into work, many people realise the role they started in is not the one they want to stay in. What follows is usually private: reading job descriptions, wondering whether the experience counts, and not knowing anybody who has made the same move.
The questions are specific. Will I have to start again at the bottom? Does a course help, or is it a way of postponing? How do I explain the change to an interviewer? They have answers, and the people who have them are the ones who already moved.
So we put them in the room.
Who this is for
- Working professionals considering a change of role or function
- People moving between industries, from services to product, or from a company to their own practice
- People who started in a field because of a placement and want out of it
- Anybody weighing a course, a certification or a degree as the route to a switch
A session may cover
- Working out what you are moving toward
- What carries over, and how to describe it
- The pay and seniority question, answered honestly
- Whether a course or certification is the way in
- Testing a direction with a project before you resign
- Rewriting a resume for a role you have not held
- Explaining the switch in an interview
- Using the people you already know
The format
Two or three people who have made a move describe how it actually went, followed by questions and small-group conversation. Evening or weekend sessions, in person or online. Nobody is selling a course, and speakers agree to that in advance.
Also available on request
9 further topics in this area. Tell us which fit your group and we will find the right person for it.
- Deciding Whether to Switch
- What Carries Over: Describing Transferable Experience
- Switching Industry Without Starting Again
- From Services to Product
- From Technical Work to Management, and Back
- Is a Course the Way In?
- Testing a New Direction Before You Resign
- Explaining a Career Switch in an Interview
- How I Changed Careers
What you should come away with
- A clearer statement of what you are moving toward, not only what you are leaving
- An inventory of what carries over from the work you have done
- A realistic view of the pay and seniority trade-offs
- Ways to test a direction before committing to it
- A resume and a story that make sense to somebody hiring for the new role
- Conversations with people who have already made a similar move
Who runs them
Sessions are run by people who do the work
Practitioners, not trainers. Nobody here is paid to speak.
Scheduled
Nothing scheduled yet
This one is not in the calendar yet
It runs when a college, company or community asks for it. That is usually how the first one gets scheduled.
How GullyFuture works
What each side brings
Most sessions are free for participants. Institutions provide the group and a suitable space. Contributors give their time and experience. GullyFuture shapes the format, coordinates the people and documents what happened.
Bring this to your group
Tell us:
- Who the participants are
- Their current stage
- Approximate group size
- City and institution or organisation
- What you want them to understand or practise
- Preferred timing
Contribute
You do not need to be famous or senior. You need relevant experience, the willingness to speak honestly, and respect for the no-selling rule.
You can contribute as a speaker, mentor, interviewer, reviewer, facilitator, host, partner or volunteer.
Contribute your experienceWhat we record
Counted from what happened, never estimated.
- Sessions completed
- Participants reached
- Contributors involved
- Practice or feedback activities completed
- Participant usefulness feedback
- Follow-up actions and resources provided
- Participants who later return as contributors
Participation is free for students and individual participants unless a programme says otherwise. Speakers may explain their work, but a session is never a sales pitch.
Come with the move you are considering — or the one you have already made.
Join a Career Pivot session.