The transient nature of the current employment market requires people to be flexible, and even to change careers a few years into a job.
There are other reasons for changing careers, of course. Job dissatisfaction, a lack of growth potential, or even waning interest can all contribute to a desire to change careers.
But changing a career is easier said than done—you will most likely have chosen a career with careful consideration.
You would have studied for it, practiced the skills required for it, and built up an online portfolio, along with years of experience.
But if the prospect of doing the same thing for the rest of your life is so daunting that you can’t get out of bed, let alone function well at work, a career change is what you need.
How can you make this massive change in your life without getting overly stressed about it? Here are some tips.
Research New Careers
You can’t decide to change careers overnight—the process will require due diligence and plenty of research.
If you aren’t ready to make a massive change into a brand new field you know nothing about, then stay closer to home with your career change.
Do you know how to measure the customer service KPI? Perhaps you have an affinity for numbers and could move into an analyst’s role.
Don’t set your sights too far and wide or you will end up aiming for a career you cannot reach—if you know how to create a free WP Reset plugin, your skills likely lie in web development and not mechanical engineering.
Instead, spend some time looking at careers where you can use some of your existing skills and learn about the requirements.
Some new careers may need you to get certifications and licensing, while others would need you to adopt more practical skills. Find out what is needed before making the big career change.
Examine Your Hobbies
If you’re still lost as to what career to move into, look no further than your hobbies. Is there something you particularly love doing which you wish you could do more of?
Perhaps you have an interest in renovations and interior decoration with a vast knowledge of premier range kitchen splashbacks.
Or you might have an eye for data visualization that could be useful in marketing and reporting.
If you find yourself doing something in your spare time and wondering why that can’t be your full-time job, a career change may be in order for you.
We often learn a host of unexpected skills with regards to our hobbies, which could lead to our hobbies becoming our jobs. Or we could learn transferable skills for our new careers.
Plan Ahead
As we have mentioned, changing careers overnight is not an option. It requires a great deal of advanced planning, particularly with regards to finances.
The last thing you want to do is to sink a great deal of money into improving your in-app marketing skills, only to find out that you aren’t as good at it as you wanted to be.
Or that the job is so competitive, that you need more experience than you have time for to get into the career.
Examine your financial assets and liabilities so you know when you can start moving towards a new career.
It can be an expensive proposition and you will likely spend some time without any money coming in, so you must ensure that you are financially stable enough to undergo such a change.
Learn New Skills
This goes without saying, but if you are looking to change your career, you will have to learn new skills. Though some of your existing skills will be transferable, additional abilities will be required to make a positive impression on a new career.
Study the industry you want to enter and look at the kind of skills people in that industry include on their LinkedIn profile and LinkedIn summary. Those are going to be the skills you need to attain.
You should consider taking short courses to develop these news skills, or maybe even take a break from professional life to increase your academic knowledge.
If you haven’t been on the job hunt for a while, it couldn’t hurt to become familiar with new recruiting practices so you know how to handle video recruiting software and creative resumes.
Meet People in Your New Career
Online research will only get you so far into understanding how to change into a new career. If you want to take the plunge, you need to meet people within that field.
Look for networking opportunities at conferences such as Content Marketing World or even local meetups.
If you are taking a short course on shipping info at a university, you may meet professionals from your potential field during your classes.
Even if you take online classes, you could still connect with your fellow students and teachers on LinkedIn and other social platforms.
Networking can be difficult for introverts, but if you can find common interests beyond the job you are looking for, you may end up enjoying the process of networking more than you would have otherwise.
Tailor Your Resume for Each Application
Once you successfully choose a career that you feel will interest you—joining freelance writers or in F&B social media management—you will have to create resumes that appeal to that industry.
Your resume design should reflect not only your skills and interests, but what the industry, and particularly the job you are applying for, needs.
You can use one particular design which you adapt for different jobs but ensure that you include the specific skills and requirements the job asks for in your resume.
By tailoring your resume to the needs of the company you are applying to, you improve your chances of getting a job in your new industry.
Begin Your Career Change Today
Changing careers can be stressful but by following these few steps, you can make the process more painless, and even enjoyable.
Remember to plan ahead so you are well-prepared to make the change, so as to not shock your bank balance.
With the right planning, research, and some networking, you can enter a new career without much stress.