Plan Your Career Change
Posted in Changing Career
Career change is a natural life progression; the average job seeker will change careers several times over the course of his or her lifetime. Use this step plan to help you on a path toward career change success.
Evaluate your current job satisfaction. What are the aspects of your current job that you like/dislike? Why are you not satisfied at your current job?
Assess your interests, values and skills. Review past successful roles, volunteer work, projects and jobs to identify preferred activities and skills. Think about what you want to do as well as what you can do.
Career alternatives. Have discussions about your values/skills with the people around you. Network with others in your industry and other job seekers. You should use business information as key tools:
Conduct an evaluation of several fields and compare them with your interests and skills.
Make an evaluation of the size and the structure of company you would like to work.
Reasons to work for a large company:
More stable employment
More advanced technology
Provide more training
More job opportunities on different areas
Stronger legal protections
Better benefits
Better company status
Better company structure
Reasons to work for a small company:
Get more control and authority
Less approval processes
More recognition for promotion
More task variety
Easier to get hired with less experience
More creativity
Get Information about those fields and find contacts in those areas to get more information.
Follow professionals in fields of primary interest to observe work first hand. Spend time following people who have jobs that interest you.
Learning opportunities could help yourbackground to your new field as course or seminars. Consider both personal and professional self-development options. The key is to never stopping learning about anything and everything you can.
Develop new skills in your current job. Look for ways to develop new skills that could help you with a future job change. Developing mentors and partnering with your manager to continually upgrade your knowledge and skills will help you stay marketable.
Consider alternative roles within your current industry to change positions. Consider vertical and lateral advancement.
Have realistic time frames and expectations to get the career you want
