Do You Want To Take Your Career In A Different Direction? Here’s What To Think About

This is a collabotive post

Have you been thinking about taking your career in a different direction? If so, then it’s not something that you are going to be able to do overnight. You are going to make some huge changes in order to do this, and it’s up to you to decide whether or not you are ready to make them. Some people are, and some people aren’t, and if you aren’t, then it’s not your time but maybe it will be in a couple of years from now. In this article, we are going to be taking a look at some of the things that you should think about if you want to take your career in a different direction. Keep reading down below if you would like to find out more.

Image Link – CC0 Licence

What Makes You Happy?

The first thing that you are going to have to ask yourself is what makes you happy? You spend so much of your life at work that it seems like a huge waste for you to be doing something that doesn’t give you that feeling of joy. We don’t want you to wake up every morning and wish that you didn’t have to go to work or that you were somewhere else. You deserve to be excited about going to work, looking forward to what the day is going to bring you. 

As such, we recommend that you take a moment to think about the things in your life that make you happy. You can then work out how to make a career out of one of these. It might mean retraining entirely, and it might mean that you are going to have to put a lot of effort in, but if it’s something that makes you happy, then it is going to be worth it, right?

What Are You Good At?

Credit Source – CC0 Licence

Next, we recommend that you think about what you are good at. We’re sure that you can come up with at least two things that you are good at, and this can be your basis for choosing a new career. For example, if you are good at helping people understand things such as the phonemic awareness concept and other key parts of the English language, then becoming a teacher might suit you. Has anyone ever told you that you are fantastic at explaining things and that when you tell them something, even if they had no idea what you were talking about before, that they understood? This is a great sign that you should pursue a career in this industry.

You do need to keep in mind though that if you are good at something but don’t like it, it’s not a reason to do it. You can’t just spend your whole life doing something because it is what you are good at, especially if there are other things that you would prefer to be doing.

What Are You Qualified For?

The next thing that you should consider is what you are already qualified for. If you don’t want to go back to education and you would rather use the skills that you already have, you need to work out what these are. Sit down and make a list of your qualifications, then think about the career that you are in now and what transferable skills you have to another industry. This should help you to come up with an idea of where your strengths are so that you can pitch them to the next person that interviews you.

It’s important that you look at job requirements before you apply for a position. If you don’t meet the criteria, your resume may end up in the trash the second they don’t see what they are looking for. If this is the case for you, then the thing we recommend is attaching a cover letter that goes on top of your resume. Tell them that you might not have the exact qualification but why you believe the one you do have makes you qualified for the position.

What Is Your End Goal?

CC0 Licence – Picture Location

Do you know where you want to end up in life? Is there something that you have always wanted? Perhaps this is to retire with a lot of money. Perhaps it is something else entirely, but whatever it is, your career needs to reflect this. For example, if you want a lot of money then you are going to need a high paying job, which means that you might have to think about completely changing what you do and starting from scratch.

The problem is that sometimes your end goal and the things that make you happy don’t go together. If teaching makes you happy, you are likely not going to have bags of money to retire with, meaning that you are going to have to sacrifice one for the other. It is all about what you want more, but ideally you will be able to get your end goal to match up with whatever it is that you decide to do in life. Don’t base your entire life on what you want to do later down the road, because there is no guarantee that you will get there.

Are You Committed To The Change?

You also need to ask yourself whether or not you are committed to this change. You are going to have to put in a lot of work in order to change your career no matter how long you have been doing what you do. It’s for this reason that you need to be completely committed to the transition which means putting out resumes wherever you feel you could get a job, even taking entry level jobs in companies where you feel like you should have a much higher position. You need to be prepared to start from the bottom and claw your way up, and if you aren’t ready to do this, then you’re not ready for a career change.

Will You Need More Education?

Source Picture – CC0 Licence

Finally, you want to consider if you are going to need more education. The reason for this is that you might not be completely qualified for what you want to do, and in some cases you are going to need the exact requirements to even be considered. You need to do your research and find out what is needed in order to get the job that you want, and then either go back to college to get the qualifications, or speak to a company. Some of them are willing to sponsor employees through their qualifications if they show potential. All you need to do then, is show them why you are worth taking a chance on. 

This way, you get to work and get the experience that you need, while still getting the qualification that you are required to have. You get the best of both worlds.

We hope that you have found this article helpful, and now see some of the things that you are going to need to think about if you want to take your career in a different direction. There are plenty of options out there for you to consider, it is simply a case of you finding the one that is right for you. If you take the advice that we have given you, then you will be able to take your career into a new direction, knowing that it is what you want. We wish you the very best of luck, and hope that you find happiness in your new career.