Are you thinking of switching your career into IT? Are you stuck in a job that isn’t you? Are you looking for a career switch but have no idea where to start from? Switching to a career in IT, even if it is within your reach, can be daunting. You must identify the right role and acquire relevant training before marketing yourself to the hiring managers. Here is the inspiring story of Rebecca Merrit; who took an unexpected career switch from being a personal assistant to becoming a Salesforce Admin!

Life as a Personal Assistant
Rebecca had no intention of changing jobs. She had worked at a company for more than 19 years. Fifteen of those years, she was the assistant to the CEO. She loved her job, enjoyed what she did as every day was different. However, suddenly, everything changed. Entirely out of the blue, the CEO passed away. “He was completely sound without any illness, and we certainly weren’t expecting it, we were all completely shell-shocked. It was a very emotional time for all of us at the company and, a much worse time for his family” said Rebecca.

The Show Must Go On
The company got a new CEO. However, he already had an assistant who came with him. She was working for him for more than 18 years. It just made more sense. But what did this mean for Rebecca? Maybe it was time for her to do something new.

One day, Rebecca received a phone call from a district manager she had worked with before. He said, “I think you’d be great for this CRM position we have open.” Rebecca knew nothing about Salesforce; she hadn’t even heard of it!

A Lucky Break

Rebecca applied and got the job! Even though Rebecca had zero technical experience she had plenty of other skills to bring to the table. Her institutional knowledge and understanding of the business were a strong plus. “At the end of the day, it was still business, and this was an important role. It was stressful and I knew I needed to focus on learning all these new skills” she said.

She jumped right in and started researching and studying about the role and the tech. She studied at home and work, at the same time, trained the new assistant. The company’s VP of Sales decided that Rebecca should take one of the Trailhead Academy courses and signed her up for the Administration Essentials for New Admins class. Unfortunately, Rebecca wasn’t successful in her first attempt. But she got back on with the course and tried again a few months later with much more confidence the second time around, and became a certified Administrator!

Personal Assistant to Salesforce Admin

When things change unexpectedly, sometimes you need to roll with it. Rebecca loved her old job yet working as a Salesforce Admin is exciting for her in a different way. She has the same feeling of newness which she felt when she had just started her career.

Rebecca enjoys working with Salesforce now, but it took some time for her to develop this love. It’s not necessarily going to be love at first sight for everyone, but you should certainly not walk away so easily. Remember you can learn skills at your own pace, no one has ever become an IT pro overnight.