Changing careers
There are a lot of reasons why people consider changing careers, such as new goals and priorities, dissatisfaction with a career or the current job has changed. While some people know the direction they want to take, many do not. All they know is they want or need a change.
If you are thinking of changing careers, here are a few steps to help you:
Step one: Look at yourself
If you know you are ready for a change but are not sure what you want to do, the first step will be to look inward and undertake a self-assessment. It is important to figure out your skills (what you can do), your interests (what you like to do) and your motivation (what you are willing to do and what you are prepared to do to get there).
As part of your self-assessment, make a list of:
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Your qualifications: include formal and informal qualifications like courses and workshops.
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Your skills: this may include writing, negotiating, organisational and problem-solving skills.
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Your experience: include experience gained inside and outside of work, such as positions held in sporting or community organisations.
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Your knowledge: this may include content-specific knowledge about an area of work or a specific issue you have been working on, as well as knowledge about people, networks, and procedures and processes.
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Your values: list out what you value and look for in a job and company such as a good work ethic, self-management over being guided, and the geographic location of a job.
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Your attributes: examples of attributes are reliability, a sense of humour, honesty, integrity and adaptability.
You may want to undertake a task analysis of your current and previous jobs to help you work out what skills you have and which of these could be transferable to other jobs.
Step two: Identify new career options
As satisfaction in a career comes from doing something you want to be doing, the next step is to start exploring new career options that match this information about yourself.
There are some other good websites for career exploration and planning. Some of these sites are set up for people who are starting their careers but are equally useful for people who want to change careers and need a little assistance. Visit:
www.myfuture.edu.au
www.jobguide.thegoodguides.com.au
www.aacc.org.au
www.seek.com.au
For more websites and online articles about changing careers, go to a search engine like www.google.com.au and type in key words like 'career change'.
Professional help is available to manage career transitions. You will find career counsellors and life coaches listed in the Yellow Pages.
University and TAFE handbooks, career publications, job guides and newspaper career sections also offer a wealth of information. Most are available at Centrelink offices, and school or community libraries.
Talking with other people is also a good way to find out about specific jobs and industries. Attend career expos, open days and career nights to talk with experts. Contact organisations and ask if they have any information on the types of occupations and opportunities they have available. You may also find it worthwhile to discuss career opportunities with co-workers, family and friends.
Step three: Explore those career options
Once you have identified careers you are interested in, the next step is to find out more detail about those career areas. It is important that you get a complete, realistic picture of the occupation so you can make an informed decision about whether or not it is for you. You might do this by:
- searching the Internet. Visit the occupations and jobs by industry section of this site to find out more.
- talking with people who work in those occupations to find out what personal qualities are needed, as well as the good and bad points of the job
- contacting professional associations, employer organisations and unions to see if they produce career literature and/or offer assistance to people considering a career in their area
- trying out the job for yourself by volunteering your time and services
- talking with the human resources area of an organisation that you might want to work for to gain more information about the entry requirements, wages, working conditions and future opportunities of that particular occupation.
Step four: Make the career change happen
Following this research phase, draw up a plan of how you intend to make this career change happen. This plan should identify:
- the skills and experience gaps you will need to fill so that you can change to the career you are interested in;
- how you will fill these gaps, for example through on-the-job training, part-time study with a training provider, volunteer work or through a mentoring program;
- employers you would like to work for, including their contact details, and how you will approach them;
- how you will seek out job opportunities, for example through your networks and via career websites; and
- a timeline for making your career change.