Feeling bored or stressed by your usual workload? You might be just feeling some mid-year blues, or you may be in the perfect mental space to switch careers. Though it’s never easy to end one line of work and begin a new kind of job, there are times when a career change is the best option.
The Practicalities
You should consider the practicalities of changing to a new line of work. Will you need to complete additional training to compete in the next job? Will there be a cut in your pay? Make a financial plan with a few contingencies to map out a few scenarios if you leave your current job. Do some preliminary research to see what the job market is like in your new career line. If you are planning on going into freelancing or consulting, will you need to rent office space or create a home office? All of these are practical considerations that you should weigh before you make the decision to change your career.
You should talk to any family members who live with you to get their feedback. Starting a new career can be quite stressful, and it’s important to have support from your partner when you do so.
If you are thinking about not merely changing careers, but instead, starting your own business, be careful not ot overspend on a big office and a large staff. Start with you and a few other qualified people, some hard working newbies you can train on how you want things to work, and Central Comm as your receptionist.
Your Skills
The easiest career changes happen when you apply an already honed skill set from your current job to your new career. For example, building contractors who go into inspections or real estate, teachers who begin to design instructional materials, chefs who open a bed and breakfast. Before you leap into a new career path, ask yourself, what skills you have that will assist you in making a success out of your new vocation.
Alternatively, you may feel your skills are being wasted in your current job. Did you go to school to be a nurse, but ended up a loan officer at a bank? If you decide to change jobs mid-career, you’ll be in fine company. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show most Americans will hold nine jobs before they’re 35. In fact, some employers may be attracted to your multifaceted career — having someone on staff with a new perspective may give them an edge against their competitors.
Your Ideal Retirement Age
Another thing you should carefully consider when looking at a new career is the youngest age at which you hope to retire. Will changing your career push that date back? If so, how much does that matter to you? If you’re a Gen Xer or millennial, it may be harder to pin down, but if you are planning to move part time to a warmer climate in the next five years are so, then you need to be sure your career switch won’t interfere with those plans.
What if you are about to retire, but can’t see yourself embracing the laid-back life of a retiree? Perhaps switching into a career that is less demanding may be a way to stay occupied and bring in extra income. Plenty of Americans reach retirement age only to find out they’d actually like to keep working.
Your Hobbies
If you can comfortably live on your retirement savings or on investment income, then the time may be right for you to take one of your hobbies to a full-time career. Have you always wanted to write full time? Open a stable and give riding lessons? Go into nonprofit management for a cause you volunteer for?
If you’re seriously thinking of changing your career, then it makes sense to transition into a field you already feel passion for. While going from one kind of office job to the next might seem more comfortable, if you’re going to change your career, and you’ve worked out all the practicalities and have your family’s support behind you, why not take the leap and do something that you’ve always wanted to try? You may find that a big career change is what you needed to regain your lost joie de vivre.
No matter what path you choose, Central Comm wishes you the best. and should you choose to start a new business, we will be here to help.
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