Feeling stuck? Seven ways to generate new career ideas

It is often a lack of career change ideas that keeps many would-be career changers stuck. One of the things clients often say to me is:

"I know I want to change careers, to do something different, but I just don't know what I want to do instead."

The problem is that they are often caught in a pattern of thinking that prevents them from seeing the wealth of possibilities that are out there.

If you feel stuck in your career, here are some tips to help you move beyond that place and generate a range of new career ideas to explore.

1. Forget job titles

Job titles can really inhibit your thinking. If I asked you to list every job you could think of, you might come up with a couple of hundred before you run dry.

In reality, there are thousands of jobs out there that you would never identify on your own, so forget the job title and focus instead on the key themes that are important to you.

What would you like your ideal job to involve?

2. List what you don't want to do

This is often quite easy if you're in a job you dislike, and it can be a really useful exercise. It helps you identify the aspects of a role that frustrate you most, while also recognising the things that may annoy you in your current position but that you'd actually be happy to tolerate in a different environment.

When you identify something as a "no", ask yourself whether it would always be a no under every circumstance. This will help you avoid dismissing opportunities simply because they share some similarities with your current role.

3. List what you think you should want to do

What do you think your career should look like?

What pressure are you putting on yourself to conform to certain expectations? For example:

• I must earn a certain salary.
• I should be in a professional role.
• It must be something that other people will respect and admire me for.

Take a moment to ask yourself whose rules you are following. Who says your career has to look like this? Is it really what you want, or what other people think you should aspire to?

4. List what you would do if anything were possible

Yes, you're allowed to take the brakes off here and dream big.

Forget the constraints you've placed on yourself, wherever they've come from.

If your fairy godmother arrived to take you to the ball, what job or career would you ask her to line up for you as part of the deal?

Sometimes giving yourself permission to imagine the impossible is exactly what helps you discover what's genuinely important.

5. List what you would do if you gave yourself permission to want it

So often we limit the possibilities in our lives because we simply don't allow ourselves to want something.

Maybe you want to earn a lot of money but worry that it seems greedy. Maybe you want a quieter, less pressured role but think that sounds lazy. Maybe you'd love to start your own business but feel you have too many responsibilities to even consider it.

What do you need to give yourself permission to want?

6. Imagine starting again

If you could rewind the tape on your life and live it again, what would you do?

If you could let go of all the rules, expectations and history you've gathered on your journey so far, and travel a little lighter, where would your path take you?

What would this version of you look like, and what work would they be doing?

What does that tell you about what would truly inspire you?

7. Think big and think small

Your new career doesn't have to be something world-changing or grand.

If you want to change the world, wonderful. Build your career around that vision.

But if you feel drawn towards making a difference on a smaller or more local scale, that's just as valuable. Small changes can be just as transformative for your career and your life as big ones, so don't be fooled into thinking bigger is always better.

Career change is about finding what feels right for you.

So, take some time to think about your career change with these seven tips in mind. I mean days, weeks or even months if necessary.

Changing careers is a significant decision, so give yourself the time and space to think it through properly. The more clarity you gain now, the more confident you'll feel when it's time to take the next step.