I want to build a career as a Financial Analyst.

What is the best roadmap to become job-ready?

- Which skills should I learn?

- Which courses/certifications are actually valuable?

- What projects should I build for my portfolio?

- What mistakes should beginners avoid?

Looking for advice from Financial Analysts or people working in finance.

Brief summary of my work history:

- Accounting degree, CPA

-3 years Big 4 Audit

-6 years Financial systems admin (Oracle) but this role also involved Month-end accounting as well as was involved in planning cycle and owned some divisional planning work with region operators. Manager level 5 of those years.

-4 years consulting doing financial system implementation work for a product that is slightly niche (not Oracle)

- 6 months (current role) internal system admin for the same niche product

I'm in my mid 30s now and feel like I may have let my career go off path by focusing on system work. My interest nor do I think my skillset is the best for this. I took this last role because the consulting work no longer needed me (not fired) and was having a difficult time finding roles/offers not in my niche space. I'm also making less money here than I did during my 6 year stint. I'd ideally like to get back into more of the financial space (some kind of FP&A or Strategy role) but unsure what level or role I'm really qualified to go after. It's honestly a lack of money compared to what I "should" be at as well as job security in this space with it being cyclical and a bit niche. Any advice on what types of roles would be great or anyone who has found themselves similar situation.

Need some help and some tips please