Bob Schreiber from Meppel also changed course after decades as a pastry chef. “I could have been a pastry chef until I was 80, but I don’t know if that would have made me happy.” But for him the next step in his career was not so obvious. “I knew it had to be something creative, but I never expected to work as a florist,” he says.
To find out which profession suits him best, Schreiber calls in a career coach. “I just couldn’t figure it out myself. There are so many other fun professions you can do,” he says. When he examines his work experiences, interests and even hobbies together with the coach, it soon becomes apparent that the work as a florist suits him well. “Then I emailed a number of shops and I was able to follow along. Eventually I ended up at Elisha’s flowers, here in Borger.”
Schreiber says he is very happy with his choice. “I can really lose myself in making bouquets. I used to make beautiful things with flour, flour and sugar. Now I do that with flowers,” he says enthusiastically.
It does take some getting used to for Schreiber to be involved in a completely different profession. “I’m just a student again. The ladies here on the floor are doing great with flower arranging, but I still have to learn those skills. I can already put together a bouquet, but not yet like they can.”
Also for Linnemann it sometimes takes some getting used to. “In elderly care you have a lot to do with people who are in the last phase of their lives. So also with deaths. I had to get used to that in the beginning, because that can sometimes be emotional.”
But the fact that the work also has its difficult sides, according to him, does not outweigh all the beauty that elderly care entails: “Actually, I should have done this much earlier. The gratitude and love you get from people, that is fantastic. This work is so captivating and then when you see a smile on people’s faces, you do it so well.”
He can therefore advise everyone to take the step and change jobs: “Go after your dreams. Just do what you like. I can advise everyone.”