Any creative thinking process must go through a ‘divergent’ phase before then narrowing down and converging on an idea.

  

 

In this divergent thinking phase, we generate lots of ideas without placing any filters or restrictions on our search. This can unearth all sorts of possibilities, many of which probably didn’t exist a couple of years ago. Make sure you are familiar with opportunities that you may never have thought of before, where you could apply your skills and experience.

 

The diagram below demonstrates how, by just exploring a little further from the familiar roles around us, we can start to unlock a wide range of possibilities. Possible careers or employers are listed in the table. As you move from left to right, the careers become less familar to academic research. Also, from left to right, the skills you would use in each career become less research specific and more transferable, as mentioned in section A4 (Audit your skills)  and the number of options broaden significantly.

 

Image from The Career-Wise Researcher booklet, Vitae 2013