Career Advice :)

[King-Misbah]

Salaam everyone,

I am really struggling in my career. I am currently living in England but want to move out to another European country and pursue a career in software sales. I am really passionate about this field. Ofcourse I speak English and Urdu, this can be a hurdle. I am actually considering Pakistan too but yet again the salaries are very low so I will not be able to sustain myself.

It worries me that I am growing old without a proper career. I excelled in my studies and went to a good university but my career has been a mess. I see everyone around me doing well but I have zilch.

I recently had interviews and for one job I was rejected for silly reasons. Reasons that were contradictionary to the job spec. I have no experience in selling software so I am applying for trainee roles.

Is there anyone in this field on PP or anyone who can provide general advice?

 

[GBK_Fan]

Why do you want to move into sales? Sales is a very brutal field and if you don’t have the flair/contacts the grind will stress you out. Also a few months of not meeting targets will get you the sack.

If you really still want to, I would recommend checking with the larger shops like Microsoft or Google. They at times have remote jobs where their sales guys can converse in the local language with their customers based in India/Pakistan. So your knowledge of Urdu could come in handy there. The jobs/margins are not too stressful either so will be a good start to the field.

You should not consider Europe unless you can learn a local language. It’s far more competitive and cut throat

 

[King-Misbah]

Why do you want to move into sales? Sales is a very brutal field and if you don’t have the flair/contacts the grind will stress you out. Also a few months of not meeting targets will get you the sack.

If you really still want to, I would recommend checking with the larger shops like Microsoft or Google. They at times have remote jobs where their sales guys can converse in the local language with their customers based in India/Pakistan. So your knowledge of Urdu could come in handy there. The jobs/margins are not too stressful either so will be a good start to the field.

You should not consider Europe unless you can learn a local language. It’s far more competitive and cut throat

Well, I am passionate about software sales and willing to put in the hard yard. You can get sacked at any job if you dont meet set targets. I have an IT degree but I am not really technical so the Software development jobs are not really for me. Additionally, my concise communication skills and willingness to work in a fast paced environment really propels me to software sales.

I will definately check out the bigger companies but personally I would like to work for a start up in Switzerland. I really want to catch up with the lost time and I need a job that pays well. I am really ambitious but struggling to find an entry. I am keep on getting rejected and I believe its slowly impacting my confidence.

 

[GBK_Fan]

Well, I am passionate about software sales and willing to put in the hard yard. You can get sacked at any job if you dont meet set targets. I have an IT degree but I am not really technical so the Software development jobs are not really for me. Additionally, my concise communication skills and willingness to work in a fast paced environment really propels me to software sales.

I will definately check out the bigger companies but personally I would like to work for a start up in Switzerland. I really want to catch up with the lost time and I need a job that pays well. I am really ambitious but struggling to find an entry. I am keep on getting rejected and I believe its slowly impacting my confidence.

Have you worked/talked to successful sales guys? The compensation in sales is linked to the revenue you can bring in.

My friend works in sales and his start was at a base of around 15k. He then got 10% for all sales above 100k. If he did not meet 100k in sales he was out. You will also need to keep in mind that you should be ready to wine and dine with potential customers. So it may not always align with your religious views. And you should not be surprised when fellow religionists don’t adhere to your views either.

Re: Switzerland, check up on the cost of living there. If you have a young family, a startup sales job may not support you well there.

I don’t want to be a pessimist but I am just pointing out you are getting into a very difficult field where most operators may not have the same moral compass

 

[King-Misbah]

Have you worked/talked to successful sales guys? The compensation in sales is linked to the revenue you can bring in.

My friend works in sales and his start was at a base of around 15k. He then got 10% for all sales above 100k. If he did not meet 100k in sales he was out. You will also need to keep in mind that you should be ready to wine and dine with potential customers. So it may not always align with your religious views. And you should not be surprised when fellow religionists don’t adhere to your views either.

Re: Switzerland, check up on the cost of living there. If you have a young family, a startup sales job may not support you well there.

I don’t want to be a pessimist but I am just pointing out you are getting into a very difficult field where most operators may not have the same moral compass

The salary and atmosphere depends on the conpany but I do think that you have a point. May be my beard and religion does put many potential company's off and hence the rejections. I guess we can't always have what we want though sales is so appealing.

It is just really confusing for me to decide what field to pursue. I guess I should go for a junior project management role. May I ask what field you are in?

Thank you for your honest advice, I really appreciate it!

 

[GBK_Fan]

The salary and atmosphere depends on the conpany but I do think that you have a point. May be my beard and religion does put many potential company's off and hence the rejections. I guess we can't always have what we want though sales is so appealing.

It is just really confusing for me to decide what field to pursue. I guess I should go for a junior project management role. May I ask what field you are in?

Thank you for your honest advice, I really appreciate it!

I am a Quant trader in an Ibank.

If you have certificates, project management should be easier to get into. Also you don’t need to restrict yourself to IT then

 

[King-Misbah]

I am a Quant trader in an Ibank.

If you have certificates, project management should be easier to get into. Also you don’t need to restrict yourself to IT then

Wow, Quant trading is impressive mashallah Your very inspiring!

I do have a Project Management certification and experience. Well, I really do need to think of what I really want to do in life

I just want to get into a job that I enjoy and make good money. I am a competent person but have a lack of direction unfortunately. Good thing is that I am single

 

[GBK_Fan]

Wow, Quant trading is impressive mashallah Your very inspiring!

I do have a Project Management certification and experience. Well, I really do need to think of what I really want to do in life

I just want to get into a job that I enjoy and make good money. I am a competent person but have a lack of direction unfortunately. Good thing is that I am single

If you are single than you can and should experiment. Be ready to grind it for a few years and then you can relax when you start a family

 

[Kianig89]

Try to get a job forget about decent salary and perks believe me just getting a job and working for a couple of months will ease out your burden just nick in somewhere even if its a clerical work

 

[Itachi]

Why do you want to move into sales? Sales is a very brutal field and if you don’t have the flair/contacts the grind will stress you out. Also a few months of not meeting targets will get you the sack.

If you really still want to, I would recommend checking with the larger shops like Microsoft or Google. They at times have remote jobs where their sales guys can converse in the local language with their customers based in India/Pakistan. So your knowledge of Urdu could come in handy there. The jobs/margins are not too stressful either so will be a good start to the field.

You should not consider Europe unless you can learn a local language. It’s far more competitive and cut throat

Good advice. He's probably venturing into one of the toughest field.

 

[jaf348]

Salaam everyone,

I am really struggling in my career. I am currently living in England but want to move out to another European country and pursue a career in software sales. I am really passionate about this field. Ofcourse I speak English and Urdu, this can be a hurdle. I am actually considering Pakistan too but yet again the salaries are very low so I will not be able to sustain myself.

It worries me that I am growing old without a proper career. I excelled in my studies and went to a good university but my career has been a mess. I see everyone around me doing well but I have zilch.

I recently had interviews and for one job I was rejected for silly reasons. Reasons that were contradictionary to the job spec. I have no experience in selling software so I am applying for trainee roles.

Is there anyone in this field on PP or anyone who can provide general advice?

Could you give us a summary of your background and experience in IT. I work in the cyber security field. Most of the sales/pre-sales people that I deal with on a daily basis of have come from an engineering background with deep technical product knowledge combined with good soft skills.

 

[ElRaja]

Salaam everyone,

I am really struggling in my career. I am currently living in England but want to move out to another European country and pursue a career in software sales. I am really passionate about this field. Ofcourse I speak English and Urdu, this can be a hurdle. I am actually considering Pakistan too but yet again the salaries are very low so I will not be able to sustain myself.

It worries me that I am growing old without a proper career. I excelled in my studies and went to a good university but my career has been a mess. I see everyone around me doing well but I have zilch.

I recently had interviews and for one job I was rejected for silly reasons. Reasons that were contradictionary to the job spec. I have no experience in selling software so I am applying for trainee roles.

Is there anyone in this field on PP or anyone who can provide general advice?

i wont give you specific advice about your career prospects because i do not have the specialist knowledge you require, but i will say that i had a horrible few years after uni, quite a few, did all sorts of bits and bobs even worked for free for months.

i persisted with trying to do what i wanted despite people around me telling me i should get any 9 to 5. i got lucky eventually and a contact helped me land a very junior role in the right field and i never looked back.

moral of the story stick to what you are passionate about because eventually when you get the chance you will do far better than if u take the first job that pays your bills. also dont compare yourself to your peers although i know this is hard, compare yourself to yourself a month ago and see if you have done the things you had set out to.

never sacrifice the dream bro, and good luck!

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

Like some other posters have said sales is risky, however you are single so this is the time when you can take risks. Since you are passionate about this field, if you don't make an attempt now you might regret it later.

I don't know anything about your field, so i cant help you with specifics, but from what i do know about sales in general is that its high risk high reward, and you should be able to tell in a few months if you are good at it or not.

Also since you mentioned possibly going to Pakistan i would advise against that unless your family has a house in an Upper Middle Class area. Even staying with relatives is not really advisable for anything more than a short time.