Change your career path in 6 steps ↪️

As humans, it's normal to change throughout our lives and gain new interests. This also applies to our careers. In a survey by Indeed, 88% of people who've made a career change have reported being happier after switching careers.

Whether you feel burnt out, want to make more of an impact, or are simply no longer interested in your current role, you can learn the skills needed and steps to take to make a smooth transition into a new career.

Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash

Determine your motivations for why you want to change careers! Common reasons people choose to change careers are:

• Work-life balance: Have more time for family, friends, or hobbies

• Higher salary: Save money and achieve financial or personal goals

• Feeling unfulfilled: Purposefulworkcan improve happiness and motivation.

• Make more impact: Making a positive impact can improve your life and others.

• Burnout: Reduce your stress and increase your energy.

• Pursue a passion: Doing work that aligns with your passion can make work feel more meaningful.

Write down any reasons that resonate with you, or try the "7 stories" activity from the video below. It can helpful if you're not sure what career you want to switch to and want to do something you'll enjoy!

The average person changes careers 5-7 times throughout their life, so you don't have to feel alone.

You've invested time and money into learning the skills and education needed for your current career. It's normal to feel worried or guilty about wanting to change it, but remember:

• Your skills are transferable. Many of your current skills can be used in other areas.

• Your happiness matters. Switching careers can improve your overall happiness.

• Your health matters. Your sleep, mental health, and physical health can all be affected by your career

• Growth is important. Switching careers can broaden your knowledge and skill set!

Once you understand your motivations for why you want to change careers and overcome fear, you'll have a good foundation to begin researching new careers.

Once you've determined why you want a career change, begin to research careers that interest you.

CareerOneStop is a website where you can research careers and take assessments to find careers that match your interests and skills.

When researching careers, consider these questions, write down the answers, and reflect on them:

• Salary: Will you get paid fairly? Does it cover your cost of living while allowing you to save or have money left over for personal interests?

• Work-life balance: Does the schedule allow time for personal interests?

• Job outlook: Seeing how other people feel about the career might open your eyes to things you didn't realize about it.

• Daily tasks: Can you see yourself doing these tasks daily without burnout?

• Physical demand/health risks: If a job is too physically demanding, too sedentary, or exposes you to toxic chemicals or mental stress, it can affect your health long term.

• Education costs and requirements (if needed): Come up with a plan to meet the education costs and requirements. Then ask yourself: Will this career be a good return on investment?

One of the best ways to learn about a career is to shadow. Job shadowing means following or observing someone's day in a role that you're interested in.

Meet Susan

Susan is a junior architect who is unhappy because she works up to 60 hours a week and barely has time for hobbies and social time.

She has been thinking about switching to a career in real estate and wants to see what it's like.

Susan calls a local realtor to express her interest in the career and asks to shadow her for a day.

Susan gets permission and spends the day following around the realtor to showings and keeps notes of questions she has about salary, work-life balance, and pros and cons.

After a day of shadowing, Susan reflects on her day and has made the decision to become a realtor for a better work-life balance!

Photo by Kit (formerly ConvertKit) on Unsplash

Now it's time to gain the actual skills in the career of your interest!

You should first determine the education or certifications you might need, make a plan to pursue them:

1. Estimate costs, and look for financial resources or assistance.

2. Seek advice from an advisor if available.

3. Determine whether you'll pursue, part-time, full time, or self-paced education and training.

You can look at the skills you already have and highlight those on your resume to find jobs in the same industry of your interests.

You can gain experience by volunteering, internships, or doing freelance work.

Keep track of your progress by making a portfolio, blog, or website. Use this resource to understand what goes into a portfolio and how to create one: How to Create a Job Portfolio That Stands Out: A Complete Guide

Photo by Antenna on Unsplash

Networking is the process of building and maintaining professional relationships in your career field.

A network can consist of professors or instructors, current friends or family, mentors, peers from online networks, or recruiters. Anyone you meet in the industry of your choice can be included in your professional network.

Benefits of networking include:

• job opportunities

• exchange of ideas

• career advice

• building long-lasting relationships

You can start networking by talking to professors, mentors, or friends. You can also join online professional groups through LinkedIn or attend job fairs and seminars.

The video below helps you understand the importance of genuine professional connections and how to make them in the right way:

Remember, wanting to change careers is normal!

With proper reflection, research, and taking the time to learn new skills, you can make a smooth transition into your next career, leading you to more satisfaction in your work and personal life.