Discovering a way to make a living and find personal meaning is a challenge. It isn’t always enough to work somewhere that pays the bills; your enjoyment and satisfaction not only improve your mental well-being but also make you more productive within society. This positive feedback loop of providing for yourself while adding value to your community is easiest found in career paths that appeal to your pre-existing skills and interests. If you’re considering a change of career, keep reading to discover some helpful tips to guide you on your way.
Decide Your Path
The first hurdle is often the most daunting; deciding upon a path and sticking to it can feel very final. While you might believe committing to a choice is the same as narrowing down your alternatives, it can be the most valuable part of a new career journey. Search for jobs, experience, courses, and networking opportunities based on your interests. Maybe you’ll discover a role that’s perfect for you, but you’d never heard of it before. It’s proven that people who are interested in their work perform better. Use your intuition, and if the path you’ve chosen starts to seem not quite right, it’s never too late to back away and change your mind. Eventually, you’ll find your niche; it just takes patience and dedication.
Gain the Relevant Qualifications
Once you’ve decided upon a new career path, it’s time to start researching the steps necessary to get an interview opportunity. What qualifications will you need in order to pass the recruitment stage? What are employers in your chosen sector looking for? If you want to become a counselor, you’ll need to gain a Masters in Clinical Counseling or an equivalent qualification. Knowing the steps ahead of time will make it easier to plan the route to starting your dream job.
Research Different Roles
Just because you’ve decided in which direction you want to take your career doesn’t mean there’s no work left to do. Within your chosen area, there are so many possible jobs and with such varying purposes that it’s important, you research them thoroughly. What subsections are you overlooking? Where might your perfect job be hiding? It might sound like a difficult task but trusting your interests to lead you in the right direction will usually result in success. Get specific and get curious.
Imagine Your Potential Lifestyle
Maybe the reason you’ve considered a particular career path is due to outside influence such as positive portrayals in media or notions of prestige that come along with certain jobs. Take a moment to consider whether these are enough to make a big career decision worthwhile. Imagine yourself in the new lifestyle this job might give you. What problems might arise? Where will you have to live? What will your social life look like? No matter how much you like the idea of a particular career, you must bear in mind the realities that will inevitably follow. It’s up to you to decide which problems you can live with and which you can’t.
