I often talk to clients who are keen for a career change but have no idea where to start. Sound familiar? Changing careers can be a daunting prospect, and for some the impending uncertainty often results in little or no action instead of branching out and finding their dream role. Changing careers can be overwhelming and feel like a big step into the unknown. Here are 5 tips to get you started on the journey to working out the right next step.
- Know what you love
Know what you love means getting to the core of what makes you tick, what you are passionate about, what engages and excites you. To help with this, think about the types of activities that you really enjoy or look forward to doing. If you are still unsure consider keeping a diary where you track activities and tasks that you love and also those you that you loathe. This can be a helpful reference when considering the ingredients of your perfect job.
- Decide what you value most
Taking the time to reflect on what matters most in your life and your career will be one of the best investments of time you will make before changing career. A high salary might be top of the list, or you might place more importance on flexibility of hours, or performing a role where you can make a real difference in society. Your chances of happiness will be increased if you transition to a role and organisation that is aligned with what you value most. Being clear about what matters to you will help to ensure you don’t set off climbing the wrong ladder!
- Discover your strengths
Most people think they know what they are good at but often it’s difficult to pinpoint our own key strengths. Research shows that a focus on strengths at work can lead to higher levels of engagement, happiness and productivity. Do you know what you do best? If not ask for the opinion of friends, family and work colleagues, and consider using a tool like StrengthsFinderÒ to discover your strengths.
- Review your career toolkit
Your toolkit contains the knowledge and skills that are portable as you change careers. It includes all the skills and experience you have acquired through the journey of your life and career roles to date. When considering what’s in your toolkit, a good starting point is to reflect on your proudest achievements. Document the specific actions you took that contributed to these successes and the skills you used to achieve them.
- Begin to draw up a wish list of ingredients for your next role
Once you have clarity around your values, passions, strengths, and your career toolkit, begin to draw up a wish list of ingredients for your ideal job. Think about what an ideal day at work would look like for you. What types of activities and tasks would you like to be performing? What type of environment would suit you best? Build your list then you can begin researching and exploring industries, organisations and roles that closely match your role ingredients.
Good luck!
Growing Talent delivers coaching, learning and team building solutions. We help individuals, teams and organisations to maximise their talent potential to achieve great performance and happiness at work. Get in touch to discuss how our career coaching solutions can help you to unlock your career potential.
