Soul searching led to a career change for Jei.
Returning to his hometown
Originally from Sri Lanka, Jei moved to Bridgend in South Wales, with his family in the 1980’s when Jei was a young child.
Jei moved away from Wales in his late teens, to study at university, and began a career in corporate sales and consulting in the news media and financial services industries. For over 30 years Jei worked with international organisations, and through his job he enjoyed travelling globally, to London, Europe, and Asia.
Jei decided to make a break in the summer of 2023, and instead of looking for a similar role, he decided to return to Bridgend and take the opportunity at age 50 to do some soul searching on his next steps.
Thinking back on this time, Jei says “I was asking myself what I wanted my life to look like. I felt like I wanted to be on a new learning curve but wasn’t sure where to.
I was also aware that living off my savings meant I’d soon need to make some decisions about what I wanted to do in my career.”
Awareness of Working Wales
Jei wasn’t sure where to turn but was directed to his local Job Centre.
The Job Centre referred Jei to Careers Wales and the Working Wales service for more specialised support. Jei was put in contact with careers adviser Mike Crowell who is based in the Bridgend careers centre. Jei started getting careers support in November 2023.
Jei says, “I remember Careers Wales from when I was in school, but I didn’t know they would be able to support me now in my current position of having been in employment.”
Embarking on a new career journey
During one-to-one sessions with Mike, Jei was able to reflect on his career so far and discussed his thoughts and ideas for the next chapter of his working life.
Jei says, “Through talking with Mike, I began to discover that my career in sales and consulting had unlocked a passion to be more creative and had developed into me wanting to step behind the camera.”
With help from Mike and Employability Bridgend, Jei applied for and took several fully funded filmmaking-related courses at the National Film and Television School in Cardiff. Inspired by these courses, Jei self-funded a documentary filmmaking course in London, resulting in a short film depicting family life and the importance of food within his culture.
Since producing the documentary, Jei continues to undertake relevant courses and attends industry networking events. He has also put himself forward and been successful in working on numerous production sets and production companies.
Jei says, “Like in any industry, you need to make yourself available and put yourself forward for different opportunities when they arise.”
Jei is enjoying continuously learning and experiencing more by working on various assignments. He is looking forward to what this new chapter will bring.
If you've been inspired by Jei's story, you can book a free career review to help you make a career change.
