Are you a 'people person'?
There's a career out there for you
Are you gregarious, communicative, and outgoing? If so, you're the kind of "people person" who can succeed in today's customer-service based economy. Years ago, people who enjoyed working with other people were steered toward professions in teaching and health care. But, these days, options abound. Here are five jobs to satisfy your social side, none of which involve schools or hospitals.
1. Executive/life coach. This career path is custom-made for someone who enjoys working intimately with other people. "Coaches facilitate change in their clients and help them seek answers from within," says Bill Sex, president and co-founder of New England Coaching, in Marlborough. Coaches motivate their clients to identify priorities (business and/or personal). Then, they hold their clients accountable until they achieve their goals. New England Coaching offers an accredited training program that runs part time over nine months. It's structured so that students can complete their training while maintaining a full-time job. "Our typical students are people in their mid-30s to mid-50s who have gone through the first half of their career and are looking for a change," Sex says. "They say, 'I want to do something meaningful, and I want to help people, but I want it to be a career.' Coaching offers them the best of both worlds."
2. Advertising executive. The business world is full of opportunities for people-oriented professionals. So, the key is to identify your core business interests, and then hone in on specific industries and functions, says Susan Brennan, director of Undergraduate Career Services at Waltham's Bentley College. For example, marketing and advertising positions are particularly well-suited to professionals who enjoy brainstorming new ideas with others. However, if you like working on teams and also enjoy quantitative or technical analysis, a job in accounting or finance may be a good fit. "These are just a sampling of the many possibilities for people-oriented business students today," Brennan says. "There are many ways people orientation can be incorporated into business roles."
3. Family therapist. People interested in a career as a therapist or counselor must have strong social skills, but they also have to be discreet and self-reflective, explains Gonzalo Bacigalupe, chairman of the Department of Counseling and School Psychology at UMass-Boston. "When you're a therapist and you're listening to someone else, you have to really hear their story, in their terms, and not just what it evokes in you," Bacigalupe says. A Master of Science in Family Therapy from UMass-Boston typically takes two to three years to complete and involves both coursework and a year-long supervised internship. Graduates then fulfill state requirements for supervised experience before becoming licensed and independent.
4. Hotel/Restaurant manager. According to Jim Miller, director of the Zammer Hospitality Institute (ZHI) at Cape Cod Community College, the ability to "connect" with both co-workers and guests is invaluable in the hotel and restaurant industry. "You have to love the idea of working with other people," Miller says. "You're interacting with people all day, every day." Students at ZHI learn about hospitality and culinary services through coursework and internships. The two-year program stresses cooperative work opportunities (what Miller calls essential "reality-based education") that help prepare students for careers in the field.
5. Tourism. People-oriented professionals may also enjoy jobs in tourism, Miller adds. Organizations, such as chambers of commerce, visitor's bureaus, museums, and art galleries, need employees who are comfortable interacting, both formally and informally, with the general public. Programs at ZHI offer training that's specifically designed for students looking for management careers in tourism and other service-oriented industries.
