You may have noticed that the "Careershifters"
logo has had a more regular presence on the Escape Stories
newsletters lately. I've linked up with them as I think
it's a great group of people who've gone through career
changes themselves and want to offer a one-stop shop for
other career changers. So this month I want to introduce
to you Richard Alderson, the guy behind it all...
How would you describe yourself? Who is Richard?
If I have one overriding passion, it's about creating
things. Also, anything that involves making a difference
in the world, foreign cultures, technology and good food
gets me buzzing. On the less positive side, I'm often a
rebel for the sake of it, I'm compulsive and I'm a
never-ending perfectionist.
What are you working on now?
I've got three big projects on the boil, with several
others brewing for the future consumption...
First of all, I'm setting up a new charity in Mumbai in
India. The idea to is help individuals with ideas that can
tackle some of the social problems around them bring their
dreams into reality. It's based on the model used by an
amazing charity in the UK called
UnLtd, where I've been working for the past three
years. We're in fundraising mode at the moment, so I'm
spending a lot of time between the UK and India.
Secondly, I run a social enterprise taking leaders and
change makers from all over the world to learn from some
of India's most exceptional social entrepreneurs and NGOs.
Thirdly, I'm developing
Careershifters, which I'm sure most of your readers
will have come across. This started off as an idea in my
head three years ago and has blossomed into an incredible
community of people passionate about helping others get
excited about their work.
For the future, I'm planning to start a whole bunch
more of socially-focused businesses, including an
incubator for social web projects, a retreat for social
entrepreneurs in India, and a bunch of things I haven't
yet dreamed up...
What has been your journey to what you are doing
now?
It's been a winding journey but one where all the pieces
of the puzzle finally feel like they're falling into
place.
At university, I avoided the corporate milk round like
the plague. I had no desire to go straight into the "rat
race" - or that's what I perceived it to be anyway. I
wanted to see the world. More than that, to live and work
in different countries.
So, my first stop was Tanzania. I worked there for
three months as an Environmental Assistant in the tropical
rainforests in the north of the country. I lived in a
bamboo hut, measured trees, counted butterflies, learnt
some pigeon Swahili, caught some tropical diseases and
loved every minute of it.
From the simplicity of the forest, I went to the
complex and fascinating country of Japan. I worked there
as an English teacher for 1½ years, living between Osaka
and Kobe in the west part of the country. I also pursued
my long-standing interest in writing by becoming a
journalist/editor for the biggest English language
magazine in the west of Japan.
Inspired by an American I met in Japan, I then went to
India, with the aim of learning more about Hinduism,
Buddhism, and yoga. I spent five weeks in the foothills of
the Himalayas stretching my body into interesting shapes
and learning about Hinduism, followed by a month in the
east of India learning about Buddhism. I ended up
volunteering as assistant to the head monk who was
organising the Dalai Lama's teachings in the place I was
staying.
At the end of 1998, I returned to the UK and started to
look for a "proper job". I was fascinated by possibilities
of the internet, so I applied for a variety of
technology-focused graduate schemes. I got offered three
jobs: one at a large investment bank, one at IBM and one
at a small cutting-edge web consultancy. The latter felt
the most exciting, but my practical/rational side got the
better of me and I ended up going for a more established
blue-chip. And IBM won out over the investment bank
because I wanted the variety of a consultancy role and was
scared silly by the hours people work in the City.
I spent the next four and a half years at IBM. Although
the job satisfied some of my needs - stimulation (I worked
with some very switched on people), variety (I worked on
all kinds of projects) and international travel (I got to
live in Holland and Dubai) - instinctively I knew it
wasn't for me longer term.
The moment of truth came one grey morning in early 2003
when I was at our offices in central London overlooking
the Thames. I was there with my fellow team members
reporting back on our various projects. Sitting there in
our suits and ties, we were all trying to impress our boss
(and each other) and to sound important about the,
frankly, humdrum things we were doing. Suddenly it hit me:
"This is all crap! We're all pretending to be something
we're not. It's so fake." I felt physically sick, I felt
drained. All the instinctual feelings I'd had previously
came to the fore. I think what most scared me was reaching
60 and regretting not doing something I could truly be
proud of with my life. I knew that at that moment that I
had to get out of the company.
From that day on, I lost all motivation to work. I'd go
to my client site in a trance, I'd come home and wrap
myself in my duvet. I knew this wasn't what I wanted to
do, but also didn't have a clue what to do next. So for
the next six months or so, I spiralled into a period of
depression and frustration. During that time, I did
everything I could think of to figure out what I could do
next: I read every book on career change, talked to
friends and family, went to meet a careers counsellor,
used a life coach, searched the internet and went and
"spied" on my friends in their jobs.
I also looked at the people who really inspired me.
Gandhi and Mandela came up on the list, but there were
also people like Michael Young who'd set up the Open
University in the UK and Tim Smitt who's behind the Eden
Project. The common thread? These people were passionate
about their work and were doing something that made a
difference in the world.
The eureka moment came in about July 2003 when I got
introduced to the Chief Exec at UnLtd, a charity which, at
the time, was 3-4 month old. It was a young, dynamic,
un-voluntary sector like organisation, doing incredible
work supporting social entrepreneurs - individuals who
wanted to change the world in small or large ways. What
was also particularly attractive was that there were a
bunch of ex private sector consultants working for the
charity using their business skills to help these
entrepreneurs grow their projects. They were paid far less
than they were in their old jobs, but were bouncing off
the walls because they loved their work so much. Suddenly
here was something that was totally exciting for me. So, I
arranged a sabbatical from IBM, ditched my suit and
started to do some volunteer work with them. That led to a
full-time job offer in early 2004 to join their
consultancy team, and then the easy decision to throw in
the towel at IBM.
Now, three years on, I'm entering the next phase in my
life, continuing with UnLtd but in India, and developing a
number of my own ideas. This is my road to becoming a
full-on social entrepreneur, and it feels absolutely like
where I'm meant to be.
How are you feeling now?
Never been happier. I'm totally in my groove and it's a
wonderful feeling. I'm dog tired too, because you tend to
work even harder at things you love! But it's a good tired
feeling, if you know what I mean...
Would you do anything differently?
For sure. I'd have taken notice of what my heart was
saying a lot longer ago. I'd have had more balls to quit
my corporate job early and strike out on my own.
What advice would you give to other people in
similar situations as you were in?
If you're unhappy in your work, see it as an incredible
opportunity. The world is crying out for people to be
passionate about what they do, and with the right mindset
and effort, you CAN absolutely make a positive shift.
Going through the process is also a hell of a valuable
learning experience.
Practical steps:
- Look inside yourself first. For God's sake don't start
from what your CV says about you or what your parents say
you "should" be doing. Instead, really try to understand
what's important to you in your life and what makes you
tick. We're moving to an age where more and more things
are possible, which is both scary and exciting. What do
you want to make possible?
- Connect with people who've made a successful shift.
Their stories can be both inspiring and confidence
building.
- Get a support network (Editor's note: go to a
Careershifters monthly event to meet likeminded people!)
- Be patient. Change doesn't happen overnight. It's also
almost always an emotional journey too. But it's worth the
effort.
- Realise that fear will almost certainly be your biggest
barrier. Be aware of it, accept it, but don't let it stop
you - find ways around it.
- Most importantly: act! You can sit and think about it as
much as you like, but the only way to really change is to
take some steps forward. Sometimes it's only in taking
action that you'll find what your purpose and ideal work
really is.
