Quick Tip:
When looking for a new job, it’s a great idea to set regular goals for yourself! Plan to send out a certain number of resumes a day or by the end of the week. Spend an hour or two each day combing through listings in the paper or online. Remember, the more resumes you send out to companies and positions you’re interested in, the greater the chance you’ll get that all important first interview!
Good luck!
A career change can be a big step. A move can be an even bigger one. But sometimes those are the very kinds of changes that really pay off! If it’s at all possible when you’re doing a job search, try not to confine yourself to just your location – explore options in other cities and states! The Milken Institute Best Performing Cities Index can be a great indicator of job growth can and give you a clue of where to check.
Remember when searching in another city to pay attention to the cost of living – doing a salary and cost of living comparison is really important! The last thing you want to do is pack up and move to your great new job only to find out that it’s actually harder to make ends meet! But with some research, you could end up with not just a wonderful new career, but also a whole new life!
So far, I’ve asked you to take a look at yourself, your strengths and what you enjoy. For the third step, realistically consider your timeline. If you’re not doing right now what you want to do for the rest of your life, it’s time to consider a career change. But everybody has different time frames to make that happen.
If you’re feeling a lot of pressure to make a career change as soon as possible, you’re going to want to find something that plays to your existing strengths. That means concentrating on your current skills and experience. If there’s less pressure to make the change right away, you can concentrate more on deciding what you want in a career – and what it will take to get there!
Whether you have six days, six months or six years before you make a career change, it’s important to get the most out of your time, so you can really prepare yourself to get the job you want.
I’ll pick up on my ‘Choosing a Career’ series ASAP, but I wanted to take a quick break, because CNN Money did a special report that I think all of you might want to take a look at!
Money Magazine and Salary.com have compiled a report of top jobs. They rate careers based on salary and job prospects, taking into account stress levels, flexibility and how easy it is to enter and advance. Take a look – they have 166 different jobs listed, and you might see something that you’ve never even considered before!
Last week, I mentioned that one of the most important parts of choosing a career is deciding what’s most important to you in a job. Another important part of the self-evaluation process is determining what you’re good at! Remember, this isn’t always about what you already know – you can always look into furthering your education – but about where your skills lie!
Make a list of 10 of your strongest assets. Are you comfortable with numbers and spreadsheets? Do you like public speaking? Can you write clearly or draw or speak multiple languages? Do you keep your checkbook balanced? Are you good with tools? If you’re currently in a career, focus on the parts you enjoy most and are successful at. If you’re starting out, take a look at your strengths at home or in school.
Once you’ve made a list of some of your strengths, you can start to take a look and see if there’s a strong pattern. You may have a lot of items that involve you working with your hands, with data or numbers, with other people, or with creativity! Not only can this list help you determine your strengths and what kinds of careers to begin looking at, it can also be used as a great resume boosting exercise!
Two questions that come up time and time again: How do I pick a career? How do I know what’s right for me?
I wish there were one right answer, one way that worked for everybody and an easy way to determine exactly what would be the perfect fit, a test that would give you the exact outline for the path your career should take. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy!
But there’s a really great reason why it’s not that easy: you probably would do great in a number of careers! Remember, you’re not trapped into the first thing you try, and the ability to change and grow and take the knowledge you learned on one job and apply it to something completely different is always going to be there.
Of course, it’s great if you can find a career you love right away, and the best way to do that is to really evaluate yourself. Ask yourself what you’re looking for in a job and what it is that makes you happy. Do you prefer teamwork or are you happier working on projects alone? Do you prefer physical or mental work? Creative or analytical work? Money is always important – we all need to be able to pay our bills and eat – but is it the most important thing to you in a job, or do you have other needs – the need to be creative, the wish to help others, or a desire for a flexible schedule or lots of free time? If you can figure out what is important to you, it’ll be easier to find a job and a career that will make you happy!
A lot of people only begin to seriously think about a job or career change when they’re forced to by outside events – for example, being laid off or having to move. And yet that’s often the worst time to have to make such an important decision, a time when you’re already under a lot of stress and it’s often crucial to find a new job as quickly as possible.
So start thinking right now about what you really want and ask yourself the tough questions: Are you actually happy in your job? Do you like the work, your coworkers and your environment? Are you content where you are, or do you see actual opportunities for promotion – and are you able to talk with your superiors about them? Do you find your job challenging, and does it use all the skills that you possess?
If you answered no to even one of these questions, now is the time to start thinking about what you want to do with the rest of your life. Don’t wait until you have no choice. Most people spend a third of their life at their job, so make sure you’re doing something you can be proud of!
Wow, that’s a mouthful, isn’t it? The wonderful staff of Search 4 Career Colleges has asked me to work with them to provide information, suggestions and tips for navigating the tricky career world! We’ll be talking about career advancement, changing jobs, making the transition to a new field, deciding about going back to school and so much more!
I’ve been involved in the career counselor field for a couple of years and am excited about this opportunity to reach out to more people who are considering such momentous changes in their lives. I welcome your comments, questions or interactions – or any suggestions on any topics you’d like me to cover.
So welcome, and I hope that you find some of the information here helpful, useful and entertaining!
