Three action points to help you change career

The start of a new year is a great time for setting yourself new career goals, particularly if you no longer find fulfilment in your current job and are seeking a change of career. However, despite many of us starting the new year with exciting career plans, when the realisation sinks in that these plans are not going to be fulfilled overnight, they fade into the distance. We become stuck, often with no idea what to do or how to go about it, and before we know it 2019 is fast approaching and we are still in the same job!

Working out what you want to do when considering a career change can be challenging. I speak to many people each week who are feeling disillusioned by their current role and want to change direction.  However, they are struggling to identify a career that would best suit their skills, experiences and personality. They are spending hours searching the internet for jobs and examining job advertisements in the hope that their dream job will simply jump out at them

If you are finding your search for a new job or career difficult, use these three action points to help structure and enhance your search:

1. Understand: spend time developing your self-awareness to enable you to become really clear about the type of career that would best suit your personality. Focus on your skills, interests and personality. What really motivates you? What are you good at? What working environments would suit you?
2. Investigate: start exploring career options that match your discoveries from step 1. Identify realistic options and start using your contacts to explore these options and help work out whether they would be good for you.
3. Develop: assess the suitability of each option and decide on the ‘best fit’ career. You can then create a plan of action to develop your chosen career path.

Structuring your job search and dedicating time to pursue it is key to a successful career change. The more time you spend choosing, the better your choice is going to be.