Are you stuck in a job that just doesn’t feel like it’s for you? You want a career change but have no idea where to look or how to start. There are several places you can start looking. You can find some career guidance in books, classes, coaching, and mentors.
It’s important to do some research and get career guidance from somewhere. You want to map out your best course of action. It’s where you spend most of your time, so make your career change matter.
Get Career Guidance From Those Around You
You may think you have to figure this out all by yourself. Finding a new career might seem like something only you would understand. But if you want good career guidance you’ll have to start surrounding yourself with other people who can help.
Maybe you feel stuck. You want to change but you don’t want to risk the security of the job you already have. You’ll make more progress when you deliberately put others around you.
There may be others in your company that are also looking for a career change. Together you can search for different ideas and help each other find direction. You’ll explore different ideas together and make great connections. It’s great to have some accountability too.
Maybe you’ll need to hire some coaches too. The more people you talk to the better.
Don’t Try To Figure Everything Out
When you try to figure everything out before you take any action, you end up in what is called “analysis paralysis.” This happens because you don’t want to make a mistake. If you do choose a certain career change, and it doesn’t work out, you can always start again. Not doing anything is much worse.
You can try different things or take different courses. You will soon find out what you like and what may not be a good fit for you. Also, you don’t even have to quit your job to do some job prospecting. If there is a job that sounds interesting find a way to try it out for a day or a couple of days and see if you like it or not. This way you’re crossing off possibilities instead of leaving those ideas open-ended forever.
Connect With Real People
One way to connect with people is at networking events. You’ll get more of a feel for the career and you’ll get lots of input from lots of people.
You can also talk on the phone, skype call, or email people who have an interesting career that you may like to try. Talk to people and find out everything you need to know to see if you want that type of career.
If you find a field you’re really interested in, you can continue to build relationships with people and maybe do some free work to really see if you love that career. Eventually, with all that career guidance you’ll find the one you love.
Related: 10 Ways to Find Small Business Networking Events
Get an Outside Perspective
People Who Get You
These are people who work with you. Sometimes your coworkers or clients know you better than you know yourself. People who know you and how you solve problems etc, help make the workflow go smoother.
But is there a drawback with people who know you giving you any career guidance?
Maybe! Because they know you so well, they aren’t able to see the same things you can’t see. The same mistakes are overlooked.
So what do you do? Get feedback from people who don’t know you? That can be risky too. They don’t know your history or all the difficult decisions you’ve had to make.
But there may be an opportunity there from people who don’t know you…yet.
People Who Don’t Get You….Yet
People who don’t know you can give you a different perspective for career guidance that you may not come up with yourself.
They may ask questions and give suggestions that bring a unique clarity to your search. People who don’t get you yet will give you support and encouragement. If you want them to evaluate any type of work you’ve done, they will see it with fresh eyes and tell you the truth. They may see things about you that nobody else could see because they’re not close enough to you to miss it.
Related: Road Tripping Through Your Career
Invest In Yourself
When you are seeking career guidance you may have to invest in yourself to try out different options until you find what you’re really happy doing.
Taking courses is one of the best ways to invest in yourself. It gives you the potential to increase your income and learn new skills that you may be interested in. If it turns out that’s not the direction you want to go in, you can always take a different course on a topic that interests you.
Here are 6 more ways you can invest in yourself:
- Take a class or workshop. Taking a class with other people can help you know whether it’s something you want to pursue as a career.
- Read, watch, and listen. Listen to what other people have to say about careers you’re interested in. They can fill you in on any overlooked details.
- Attend networking events. Find places to network with people who are interested in learning more about certain types of careers.
- Hire a business or career coach. A coach can really help you with career guidance.
- Start a side hustle. Starting an online business may be an option for you. There are so many side-hustles you can try and discover what you love to do.
Making a career change may not always be easy. But it is possible. With good career guidance, you can learn about new careers and take action on what really stands out for you. You want to feel good about the work you do every day. You want to make an impact on the world around you. Your career not only affects where you work but it affects your whole life. You don’t want to face each day going to work dragging your heels.
Take action and make your career change successful.
