With several recent studies having indicated that more than half of UK workers are dissatisfied in their jobs, it’s no great surprise that so many of us find ourselves contemplating a career change from time to time.
It may be an idle whim, a serious ambition… or something in-between. Regardless, what are the questions that you need to ask yourself if that hankering for a whole new career isn’t going away?
What do you actually wish to change?
By being as clear as possible about what is displeasing you about your present role, you can better ensure you do not simply leave one subpar professional situation and walk into another one.
Do you feel that you have spent too long in the job, and are becoming bored and stale? Perhaps your interests have drifted away from the subject of your role, or you aren’t making the progress that you had hoped to make in your career?
Other workers may find themselves disgruntled by reorganisation or restructuring having changed their role almost beyond recognition, or they may have even fallen out with their current boss and/or colleagues. This is a question that can be answered very differently by everyone.
Is it a career change that you really want?
Before taking steps to do anything as drastic as switching career, you should strive to be as specific as you can about what you like and dislike about your present job. It could be the role itself, your boss, the environment in which you are working, or something else.
In answering this question, you should take your time so that you don’t rush into any ill-advised decisions. There are immense differences between deciding that you would like to seek out another job in the same sector in which you work right now, changing sector altogether, and simply modifying your existing job.
Who could you ask for help?
If you really wish to make progress on the question of exactly what kind of career change you should make – if any at all – it really helps to seek out other people for advice, guidance and support. Such key figures in your life as relatives, friends, coaches, mentors and experts in the field to which you may be interested in moving, could all help you to clarify the way ahead.
On the subject of the latter, why not ask us about our own acclaimed career change programme? Known as Find Your New Direction: A Seven Session Programme for Career Changers, it could be instrumental in enabling you to establish precisely what you wish to do with your career, why you wish to do so, and how you will do it.