picking a high-earning, niche career changed my life (pt 1)

I picked a high-earning niche career, no job. Last time I talked about it, everyone wanted to know what it was exactly that I did. I thought I'd make this into a three-part series on executive search. And if you're new here, I'm Daria, and I'm a headhunter and I turn what I see in hiring into advice for girls building big careers like me. I graduated from Cambridge with a double first in 2019 with no idea what I wanted to do. I studied languages, I'm fluent in five. And I knew that the route of diplomacy, civil service, translation wasn't for me. Also consulting, finance, banking, finance wasn't quite the right match. After doing some early research, a friend's dad was very high up and successful in this career. I decided to take the plunge. So here's a five-step explanation as to what it is I do, in case it might be the right career for you. One, in its simplest place, I place C-level and board-level roles in businesses. I work in the consumer career. My early career, I used to hire CEOs and listed businesses before pivoting into the venture capital space, which led me to private equity where I help funds hire their leadership teams before appointing a CEO, then commercial, marketing, financial, operating, and so on. So how does this happen? Step two, in a deal or in a situation where a business is going through growth or transformation, there may be logical gaps where investors or businesses might hire an executive search firm to bolster those. Or in some cases, you will be confidentially replacing someone. This is of course a super sensitive job. It's also why we usually under NDA. Three, I will caveat at this point that this is not as glamorous as it sounds. The start of your search career is a learning curve, to say the least. There is a lot of phoning people, there is a lot of graft you do before you build a specialization or network. That's why there's a super high dropout rate, why a lot of people don't stick with it. I, that I love that stage and I'm so glad I did because now I'm an expert in my space. I'm the go-to for what I do. I'm often the youngest person in the room, which is a lot of people understand be you're thinking recruitment, which by the way, no shade to that industry. They have so much in common. The two have in common is that a candidate's place at the end is typically a search process. Even processes that can take a year before there, you're advising the client, investor, CEO, or chairman. They will be consulting their lawyers on contracts, firms on strategy. We'll be asking us about org design, leadership assessment, succession planning, and of course, which there is so much money in businesses understand person because it is hard. Skill. A lot of companies try to do themselves and fail. Be the whole fail if we don't spot the signs, assess that person. That is on us. The typical model in search firms is that most firms will charge a third of a candidate's first year cash compensation. Plus their bonus. If these earning high six figures, if not that. That is why you can get paid so well in this career and why the earning potential is uncapped. Of course, this doesn't always best behaviors in these firms. That it means as you get better at your job and your network deepens, you have real expertise, judgment, and advice for your clients. You can earn six figures in your mid-twenties and take home seven-figure salaries as you reach partner level. Honestly, I have no idea why more people don't do this as a job. Personal just unmatched incredible business exposure. If this resonates, follow along. Still part two and three to come.