Where do you start when you’re unhappy in your job?

If you're unhappy in your job, you might assume the obvious next step is to start looking for another one. In my experience, many people do exactly that – but not necessarily in the most useful way. What many unhappy employees do is scan through various job boards looking for a job description and a salary that appeals. This scattergun approach can be time-consuming, frustrating and reactive.

Effective job searching requires a proactive approach and begins with your answer to this simple question...

“Who am I?”

Sounds a bit deep and self-indulgent, I know, but until you can answer this question, it can be difficult to give your job search a clear sense of direction or purpose.

The answer to this question comes through gaining a good understanding of your values (i.e. what is really important to you about work), your interests, passions and the skills you enjoy using. Then it’s a case of matching these attributes that make you tick to fields that appeal to you. Once you can identify the type of role you would like to play in a particular field, then you can start your focused job hunt.

This approach can be more effective than trying to pinpoint a specific job title. There are three reasons for this:

It can make your job search too narrow. As humans, we’re much more flexible than being reduced to being good for only one role.
There are so many job titles out there that you won't necessarily know every job title that could match what you're looking for, and two jobs with the same title may require totally different tasks.

Your future role may not even have a title... yet!

Before you start searching, ask yourself:

• What matters most to me about my work?
• What subjects or industries genuinely interest me?
• Which skills do I most enjoy using?
• What kind of environment helps me work at my best?
• What do I want more of in my next role?
• What do I want less of?

Use your answers to search more broadly for roles and organisations that fit those criteria, rather than relying solely on a particular job title.

Identifying your work values, interests and the skills you most enjoy using isn't always straightforward. If you're finding it difficult to work this out on your own, career coaching is one option you could consider.

A career coach can help you to identify them. They can also help you explore whether there are barriers, beliefs or practical challenges making it harder to move forward and take action.

That said, a career coach cannot simply pick you up and place you in your ideal job. If that was possible, I’d be living on an island in the Caribbean drinking rum and Coke all day. You are responsible for taking the necessary positive action. Your coach is there to ask the right questions and support you along the journey. It could be the missing piece of your puzzle.