|
Career Transitions: Creating Complementary Careers in a Day
Down-sized? Outsourced? Burned-out? Wizened up? That's what I said. Wizened up! Now is not the time to be depressed. Now, is the perfect time to assess your life and what you want to do with the rest of it. One easy way is to explore career options that are complementary to you. Whether you are leaving by choice or have been asked to leave, you probably have more courses of action then you think. Give yourself several, uninterrupted hours to perform this task. Find a quiet, comfortable place to sit. Have paper, at least five sheets, and pen ready. Do not use a pencil for this. You want to put down everything that comes to your head. No erasing or changing allowed. Relax, take a deep breath, and begin. Think about the job you just had. List all the types of businesses you or your company worked with while you were there. Include customers, vendors, suppliers, buyers, and strategic partners. Go to the second sheet. Make a list of all the skills you gained from your education and employment experiences. Don't forget to include your first paper route or babysitting jobs. If nothing else, it will bring a smile to your face and keep you relaxed. On the third page, itemize your hobbies, interests, and favorite leisure activities. You can make these subcategories on the page or put into the same list. Finally, write down on the fourth page the careers you considered before going in the direction you did. Also, put down ones that you would consider dream jobs. Don't let anything stand in your way here. Remember the operative word, dream. Disregard your monetary situation, your education, your appearance, age, or gender. If your inner critic shows up, and this is the place they usually do, tell them to go take a coffee break. This is your time to only listen to your soul talking. Finish up the list by adding any careers from comments that people have made to you over the years, such as, "You would have made a great teacher. You really know your history." Take a moment and look over your four sheets of paper. You did a lot of hard work. Congratulate yourself with a stretch and go get yourself a favorite beverage. But, don't let too much time go by, no more than ten minutes. You're on a roll and you don't want your bored inner critic to find you hanging out at the water cooler, if you know what I mean. Lay your four pages side by side across a table. Take your fifth and last sheet. List any combinations or connections from your four lists that could go together or would be fun to have go together. Your list may look something like this: IT person - tutors senior citizens about computers and email. Boat captain - runs ecotourism tours for the visually disadvantaged. Nurse - owns a wellness spa. Pilot - is an aviation school owner and expert witness. Your complementary career options are only limited by your creativity. This is the time to be open to all ideas and daring in your resolve to consider them seriously. Seek out others who have blended careers or made career transitions successfully. Study the biographies of people like stars, sports personalities, and even military personnel. Many have made transitions out of necessity or desire. Soon, you'll find yourself moving into a life you had never before dreamed possible. Copyright 2005 Kathy Iwanowski. All Rights Reserved. Kathy Iwanowski, a former cancer nurse and manager, creates art, speaks, and writes about creative living and work. Her articles, editorials, and reviews on art, business, creativity, and nursing subjects have been published in newsletters, ezines, and books in the United States. To arrange for Kathy as a speaker for your next event or to find out more about her work, visit her website at http://www.kathyiwanowski.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Jobs City of Rochester (.gov)
Careers Washington State University
Careers Freedom of the Press Foundation
Careers Gwinnett County Public Schools
JobFeed NSW Department of Education
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Unemployment Survival: Creating a Sense of Security
In a time of economic downturn, international turmoil, company restructuring and corporate mergers run amok, thousands of people are either out of work or fearful of losing their jobs.Is there, then, such a thing as job security?No job, in itself, is totally secure.
Applying for a Job in Another Country? International Resumes
Is an International Resume still a Resume? This is a very common question among those looking for work overseas for the first time. When you contact companies about applying for a job with them you will not often be asked for a resume, you will be asked to send along your CV.
Three Steps to Writing Your Own Resume
While most professionals hire a professional resume writer, some draft their own resume. People who write a lot for business usually have more success in putting together a sharp, focused presentation; still, anyone can learn the basic steps to prepare his or her own resume.
Doing What You Love
What do you want to be when you grow up? I'm sure you were asked this question at least once when you were a youngster. When asked the question, did you have an answer at the ready, or did you need a few minutes to think about it? We all had dreams of becoming something great, like a fireman, a teacher, or a rock star, just to name a few.
Creating a Feng Shui Power Office: 6 Easy Tips to More Successful Surroundings
More and more people are looking to gain an edge in their working environments. One method that business people are increasingly turning to is feng shui.
Networking Masterclass - Part 1 - Practicing Empathy
Practicing Empathy A vital part of your networking skills is your ability to build rapport quickly and effectively with others. To build rapport successfully with another individual you need to understand 'where' they are coming from and have 'empathy' with them.
20 Powerful Tips For Advancing Your Career
You don't want to stay in your current position forever..
Formal Business Attire is Making a Comeback
The dot com boom of 1990s brought with it a laissez-faire attitude to dress code. Business casual was not a word that was part of our daily vocabulary.
Working On A Farm In Kent
Being a student, a person needs to look for summer jobs, to keep up with the expenses for school and fun activities. This task is not always easy, especially when you are studying at an American branch university and you have to pay tuition as well.
Make Your Resume Keyword Rich and Scanner Friendly
If you haven't looked for a job recently, there are new tactics that hiring professionals are using that you should be aware of before updating your resume.Employers and recruiters increasingly rely on electronic resumes, resume posting boards and job banks to find job candidates.
How to Become a Successful Freelance Translator
After completing their translation training programmes at higher professional education or university level, many students can't wait to set up as a freelance translator. However, gaining a foothold as a freelancer in a very competitive translation market may turn out to be a pretty complicated business.
How to Access Employers through Proposal Marketing
Use Proposal Marketing and you'll be your own hot spot, opening gateways previously inaccessible. Hook up with those who have the power to hire you.
What Me? Lie On My Resume? Who Will Know?
The temptation to lie on a resume is great! How can it hurt if I stretchthe truth a bit? Employers see lots of resumes. How are they going toknow who lies and who doesn't?Whoa! Let's stop a minute and reflect on what lies can REALLY doon a resume.
How To Power Negotiate Your Next Bonus
A raise in your base salary is a permanent source of increased income. However, to increase your take home pay, you can also negotiate performance bonuses on specific projects, activities, or time frames.
How to Manage Your Career Like a Business
Look upon yourself as a company with a product or service to sell. Understand your market and devise a dynamic marketing campaign, remembering that companies hire employees who offer them the best results and the best value for money.
How to Make Money as a Reflexologist
Being a reflexologist is one of the top five career choices in the field of holistic health. The trend shows that more and more people are turning toward holistic practices to enhance traditional medical therapies.
Avoid Potential Job Interview Disasters
There are definitely things that you can do to avoid minor mishaps which could ultimately blow an interview. Become familiar with these 7 potential interview disasters so you can prevent them from obstructing your path to that ideal job.
From The WorkWise Collection: Ten Ways to Win the Job Search Mind Game
Are you one of the thousands of job seekers who question their sanity, marketability, and capacity to make smart decisions-just because you've lost your job? Are you wondering how to overcome these psychological challenges, rebuild your self-confidence, increase your marketability, and regain your sense of sanity?In today's competitive job market you need more than a killer résumé and great interviewing skills to survive. Twenty-first-century job seekers must be able to deal with ambiguity, maintain a winner's mindset, demonstrate customer focus, and have a blow-your-socks-off résumé and excellent interviewing skills.
Nine Ways to Tell Youre Ready for a Promotion
So you noticed the new job board posting on your way back from lunch. They finally decided to fill the assistant manager spot in your department! Trouble is, you've only been in your current position for about eight months.
Keep Your Phone Costs Down!
When you're looking for work, some of your expenses will change. You may not commute daily since you won't need a monthly commuter ticket, but each time you travel to an interview by public transportation, it will cost more.
|