Jobs @ Career Consulting Limited

Return to career-consulting-limited.com
Managing
People
Managing Your Career
CV Examples
Coaching
Cover Letter Examples
Pre-Employment Tests


Seven Steps to Making a Successful Career Change


My first job was secretary to Moses. Having to transcribe and make 2,430 copies of the Ten Commandments convinced me I was on the wrong career path!  OK, maybe I'm not quite THAT old. But I did start out as a secretary.  While I didn't mind the work, eventually I decided it wasn't very satisfying. I often felt like a "tool" that helped others contribute to the organization's success. I wanted to make my own contributions, to find creative ways to make a difference. It took me about 12 year to come to that conclusion, decide to do something about it, and change my life.

If you are not happy in your current job, perhaps it's time to think about making a change yourself.  Here's what you should do:

1.  Determine why you're not happy.  Are you really unhappy with the work you do, or just upset with your salary, boss, coworkers, or the office environment? There's a difference between hating your job and hating your work, and realizing that will help you decide what course to take.

2.  Find your passion.   What do you love doing more than anything else? List your top three favorite activities. Try to be a bit realistic here and choose activites that you might be able to earn a living with.  For instance, if your three favorite activities are sleeping, eating and watching TV, your career options are somewhat limited. But do include hobbies and activities one doesn't always associate with work.

3.  Evaluate your strengths.  What are you good at?  Consider more than just your technical skills. For example, do your prefer leading or following; analyzing or simplifying; working alone or with a group? 

4.  Do research. What career fields would allow you to use your passions and strengths to earn a reasonable living? There are some great online resources (such as www.jvis.com) that offer tools to help you do a self-assessment and then find careers that match your interests and skills: 

5.  Consider alternatives to jobs.  Some people go into business for themselves when they become fed up with their jobs. If you think simply switching careers isn't enough, look into that alternative and others, such as... marrying a millionaire, becoming a beach bum, winning the lottery, writing children's books, painting and selling pictures, doing consulting work... the sky's the limit!

6.  Create a plan.  Once you know where you want to go, figure out what steps you must take to get there.  Determine exactly what you need to do, how much time it will take, and what it will cost.  It's probably best not to leave your current job until you're ready and able to start earning money with your new job/venture.

7.  Get help.  You'll be amazed at how helpful people will be when you tell them your plans. Talk with family, friends, professional associates, club members; participate in topic-related online forums; NETWORK as much as possible!  Achieving great goals is always easier when you have others cheering you on and helping you out.

 

Bonnie Lowe is author of the popular Job Interview Success System and free information-packed ezine, "Career-Life Times." Find those and other powerful career-building resources and tips at her website: http://www.best-interview-strategies.com.


MORE RESOURCES:


Careers | Career Opportunities  West Virginia University

Corporate  Lowe's





Jobs  City of Rochester (.gov)


Careers at TWU  Texas Woman's University

Work at Fairfield  Fairfield University



Careers at Willamette  my.willamette.edu




City of Tampa Careers  City of Tampa

Careers at VA  VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs

Job Seekers  University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign


Careers  BASF


Nursing jobs  VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs


Jobs at BCA  Minnesota Department of Public Safety



Careers  Washington State University

Employment Services  American Mathematical Society





Working for ICE  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Newsroom

Work at DHS: Career Opportunities  Wisconsin Department of Health Services


UF Health Careers  UF Health - University of Florida Health



Employment benefits  VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs


Careers at Prairie View A&M University  Prairie View A&M University

Job Search Results  UnitedHealth Group

UN COMMON CAREERS  VCU Health

Career Opportunities  Gilead Sciences



Careers  S&P Global

Careers  Medline





Job Opportunities  Bellevue School District

How to Apply  FEMA


Careers  Micron


Careers at Discovery Education  Discovery Education




Careers  KPMG

Join our team  FHI 360



Careers  The Guggenheim Museums and Foundation

Internship Opportunities | Careers  Boston Consulting Group



Careers in  A&O Shearman

Students and graduates  JPMorgan Chase

Work At Chess.com  Chess.com

Highest-Paying Engineering Careers in 2024  University of North Dakota







Mental health at work  World Health Organization




JobFeed  NSW Department of Education

Why Employees Quit  HBR.org Daily


Two unis walking the career path alongside graduates  The Australian Financial Review



Current opportunities  Turner & Townsend



Careers  City of Norfolk (.gov)



Jobs  Energy.gov

Careers at King County  King County

Need More Information?
Site Home | Site Map | Links | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
© Career Consulting Limited.com 2011

tumblr visit counter