At least half of us are considering a career change. But what do you actually want to do? Many of us know that we don’t love what we’re doing right now. Yet looking into the future and imagining that new career can seem impossible. This article is going to help you work towards a career change.
Get A Career Coach
A career coach is an individual who can help you work out your core skills and values. The aim of this approach is to help you match your abilities and strengths to a desired career path. Career counselling usually takes place over a 3 – 12 month period, depending on how long you need help with shaping your career change.
The first few sessions will focus on you as a person, to help draw out your strengths and preferred ways of working. The last few sessions will take all your research and help you direct it into some potential new career options.
Do A Personality Quiz
How well do you know yourself?
You might think that you like to work independently, but you actually thrive in a team environment. Perhaps you consider yourself an individual who likes to work from home, when hybrid working actually suits you better. Take a personality quiz and see if any of the results surprise you. A good free personality test is 16personalities.com, which helps you identify your ‘personality type’, as well as some of your key personality traits.
Work Out What Makes You Unhappy
The first step in changing your work is identifying that you need a career change. But the practicalities of how to make that happen might escape you. Sit down and write down the things you don’t enjoy in your current job.
- Is it the sector?
- The people?
- The work environment?
Working out what you don’t like is an important step in the right direction. Logically, if you don’t enjoy the type of people you work with, you might find they all fall within a set personality type that doesn’t sit well with your own. Working with people more aligned with your values and personality might help you feel happier and more connected with your job.
Start To Save And Invest Money
People tend to stay put in their current career if they don’t want to risk their finances. The idea of retraining and losing money often puts people off embarking on a career change. Starting to save or invest money can help you build up a buffer fund to protect you against any temporary financial losses. It can also give you the drive you need to get your career change moving, as well as give you options for retraining or further study.
Conclusion
It’s natural not to have a perfectly formed idea of what your ideal career looks like. If you do realize you want a change, then doing even one of these steps can help set you off in the right direction. Better understanding your motivations for changing jobs, and establishing what your core values are can help get you started. A career coaching and saving money can also help you with the resources and focus to establish what you want to do next.