Searching for the "right" profession

Die Komplizen Chemnitz e. V.

The possibilities for pupils after graduation are seemingly limitless. Anything can be learnt, anything can be studied. However, young adults are often at a loss. Many can't see the proverbial wood for the trees. Since 2014, for example, the association "Die Komplizen Chemnitz e. V." has been providing a remedy. Among other things, the Chemnitz Komplizen offer a mentoring programme in which pupils can gain insights into various professions with the help of mentors, thus clearing some of the fog in the career hype.
Die Komplizen organised a meeting with a mentor-pupil tandem for the official gazette. We were able to meet with mentor Anja Jungen (counsellor at Haus E alltag&anders) and her mentee Sebastian Ressel and talk about mentoring.

What does "Komplizen Chemnitz" e. V. do?
Anja Jungen: As a mentor, you are assigned to a mentee - if it's a good fit. If they already know roughly what they would be interested in, Komplizen looks for someone who already works in the profession or has experience in it. In our case, however, it was a little different because Sebastian didn't really know what he wanted to do after leaving school.
Sebastian Ressel : We first heard about the project at school in year nine. At the beginning of year ten, representatives from Komplizen e. V. were there again and presented the project. Then you could sign up on a list and take part.
I didn't even know what I wanted to do after leaving school. Anja was explicitly chosen for me because she has already gained a lot of experience in her (professional) life and knows a lot of people. And can therefore handle almost anything.
Anja Jungen: In terms of content, it's really about giving the mentee an insight into real working life. The project should help the students to make a decision.

So the project is primarily intended to provide career guidance. Or does it go beyond that and the mentor also helps with other life issues?
Sebastian Ressel: Partly yes, partly no. Of course, you get to know a lot of people through the mentor who can also help you later on. You can make wonderful connections and build up a network. However, the accomplices are not an active help in life. I think it's still a great support. At grammar schools in particular, the topic of "job search" tends to be left out. In secondary schools, you are taken by the hand much more and they look at what would be suitable for the student. The support starts much earlier there. There's simply nothing like that at grammar school.

How did you come together?
Sebastian Ressel: At the very beginning of the project, there is an introductory meeting with all the pupils who want to take part. At this meeting, they are asked what interests they have, what they could imagine doing professionally and so on. The two employees Daniela and Markus from Komplizen Chemnitz e. V. moderate the meeting and develop a feeling for which mentors would suit the pupils. The Komplizen then find a suitable mentor who is a good personal and professional match.
Anja Jungen: Then there is a "kick-off" event with all the mentors and mentee. The pairs are then brought together and have 30 minutes to get to know each other. This gave us the opportunity to find out whether we get on with each other and whether we like each other, which is a basic prerequisite for working together. Afterwards, both sides have the chance to say whether it's a good fit or not.
Sebastian Ressel: It works like a kind of blind date.

How often did you meet and how long did the mentor and mentee work together?
Anja Jungen: We met once a month. The mentoring programme lasts six months. If you still need to meet after that, because the career decision process is not yet complete, you can continue to do so on a private level.
Sebastian Ressel: We actually organise these meetings between ourselves. The accomplices have no direct influence on that. We've known each other since March 2016, but our programme is now finished.

And what is the result of your collaboration?
Anja Jungen: Something completely different to what we wanted came out of it, of course.
Sebastian Ressel: I still have no idea what I want to do after school - but at least I can now rule out a few things. And that's a good thing.

What's the exciting thing about being a mentor? Why did you decide to take part in the programme?
Anja Jungen: The exciting thing about being a mentor is the contact with young people. It has given me a lot personally. I have a good opinion of young people again. In our conversations, I was able to form a new opinion about why it is so difficult for this generation to commit to something. I still come from the old GDR era. That means everything was a bit different for us. I couldn't understand at all why people would start three degree programmes, stop again and try everything possible. My opinion was: "You have to somehow know where you want to go." The programme enabled me to revise my opinion. It does help you move forward. It was really exciting for me.
Sebastian Ressel: That's why it's so good to start as early as possible to get an idea of where you want to go. Then you can also choose your advanced courses in secondary level two more sensibly.

Anja, what methods did you use to tease personal things out of Sebastian? After all, he had to open up to you.
Anja Jungen: Common sense definitely helps. In this case, the challenge was: where does he actually want to go? I have to ask what I don't know. I tried to start with concrete suggestions that we had already touched on in conversations and that he had an opinion on. Even if he had previously said that he wasn't interested, it's still worth trying to show a young person that there's more to a potentially excluded career and that you can take a look at it. But after the kick-off, I already had a lot of ideas in my head. I got to know him there, realised how he talks, how he presents himself and various things come to mind. Of course, a certain age and the experience you have helps. Then I started making a long list for myself. I spoke to various people and more or less overran Sebastian in the first conversation. What is also very important: you have to be able to listen.

In addition to the meetings with the mentor, the students can visit companies. The mentors invite interested mentees to their companies. There they can take a look behind the scenes of the companies. What does a web designer actually earn? What are the actual working hours and how can work and family be reconciled? "These are questions that no one else can answer for a pupil," says Anja. "Especially in secondary schools, young people are always told that they can do anything and that every door is open to them. But what exactly does that mean? What is everything? And what's the best way to find out what's most suitable for me?" These are the questions that the Komplizen e. V. programme tries to answer.

Would you work as a mentor again?
Anja Jungen: Yes, absolutely! I already have an appointment for the next kick-off. But as I said, it's like a blind date. I don't know who will be assigned to me yet. I'm more interested in the difficult cases. Just like with Sebastian. Those are simply the more interesting ones for me. I've travelled a lot with him, we've listened to a lot. I talked to a lot of people during my research and got to know a lot of professions that I hadn't dealt with before. For me, that's a clear advantage of the mentoring programme.

You looked at a lot of companies, you know a lot of people - would you say that Chemnitz is an attractive city for young people to stay in?
Anja Jungen: Absolutely! I think Chemnitz really offers a lot of potential. I would also include the surrounding area of Chemnitz. Chemnitz is small enough that you can still meet up and not lose sight of each other. In this respect, Chemnitz is a bit like a village. You always meet several times and simply can't get past each other. On the other hand, it offers a lot of potential for further development. But of course it's also about gaining experience. Chemnitz has so many companies that also work internationally. There are also many exciting companies in the neighbouring Ore Mountains that you don't even know here.
Sebastian Ressel: And that's the problem I see: It doesn't reach us! The size of the city is not necessarily the problem. But we simply don't know what's going on in Chemnitz. We also don't know what opportunities there are to find a job in Chemnitz. I've often talked about it with friends. We all think that Chemnitz is a great city to grow up in. But it's totally unsuitable for working life - you just can't find a job.

What would you wish for? How can you communicate that for your generation in particular?
Sebastian Ressel: Now the big puzzle begins. (laughs) Social networks are still the number one means of communication and I think that will become increasingly important in the future. There are simply so many ways to reach the younger generation in particular. We simply don't read newspapers any more. That's why the information has to go through other channels. Career guidance programmes like Komplizen are of course ideal for such career issues. And the best way to do this is simply to go into schools and present the programmes in concrete terms.
Anja Jungen: The big problem that the city of Chemnitz has is its poor image in the media. There are many companies in Chemnitz where you can combine family and career wonderfully, with great working conditions. The problem is that this is not talked about. The only thing you hear about the city in the media is that it is ageing, nothing is happening, little things are being discussed in public. Rather than simply trying to show the positives. The public perception simply does not correspond to the actual picture.

Anyone interested in becoming a mentor or mentee for the accomplices can get in touch at team@komplizen-chemnitz.de.