It’s all too common for people to consider switching careers. There are more than a few reasons why they’d consider this, such as getting bored with their current role. That doesn’t mean it’s as simple as quitting and walking into another role, however.
Instead, there’ll be multiple factors to consider, as well as a few tips when you’re switching careers. These can make the process much easier while ensuring it is as easy as possible.
If you don’t know where to start with this, you wouldn’t be the first person to be in this position. Thankfully, more than a few tips and tricks have popped up in recent years, some of which are more effective than others.
Seven specific career change tips stand out with this. It’s worth diving into what they are.
Why Switching Careers?
There are more than a few reasons why you might consider switching careers. Boredom or stress related to your current role can be one of the more notable. On top of that are the multiple benefits switching careers can offer. More than a few of these can be appealing, with some of the most notable including:
1. Grow Your Skill Set:
When you’re switching careers, you’ll have to develop new skills to be eligible for certain roles. That isn’t a negative thing and can be a motivation to learn something you’ve always wanted to learn. The career itself could also let you develop more interesting skills in time, giving you more encouragement to succeed.
2. Earn More Money:
Perhaps the most obvious reason to switch careers is that you can earn more money elsewhere. If you’re financially driven, this can be the largest reason to change career paths. You’ll need to make sure you choose a career that pays more, however.
3. Better Mental health:
If you’re stressed and anxious about your current career, then there’s no reason to stay in it. It could be worth choosing a career that’s much less stressful, which ends up improving your mental health. With how much of an impact stress can have on mental health, this could be one of the more compelling reasons to make the switch.
With the benefits that switching careers can have, you’ll have more than a few reasons to consider it. Getting these might seem complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. Instead, you’ll need to use more than a few tips and tricks, seven of which come highly recommended.
They’ll not only help you switch careers but do so faster than you could’ve thought. You shouldn’t have a problem changing your career.
Tips When You’re Switching Careers: 7 Top Options
1. Know What Career You Want
Before you start applying for roles, you’ll need to know what career you want to start. For many people, that’s relatively easy, but you could simply be in a position where you want out of your current career. By doing this, you can figure out which positions you should apply for.
If you’re considering a role in finance, for example, you can then consider the top financial jobs to apply for. Figure out which career would actually make you happy and is worth your time, and then start focusing on open roles.
2. Round Out Your Skills
A new career inevitably means you’ll need to learn new skills. You should start learning these as early as possible, preferably before you start applying for any roles you’d like. The more you do this, the better you’ll stand out when applying for any positions.
Keep in mind you’ll be competing for roles against people who are already skilled in various ways. By developing these skills as much as you can, you won’t be at a disadvantage when you start applying for roles.
The more well-rounded you are with your skills, the more likely you’ll be to get called in for an interview. Once you’re there, you can wow them with your experience, even if it’s in a different field.
3. Build Out Your LinkedIn Profile
Recruiting has come a long way in the past few years. While C.V.s still play a large role in the application process, it’s far from the only thing you’ll need to consider. Instead, you’ll also have to look at online search results related to your name. LinkedIn will play a significant role in this, with three-quarters of recruiters using this in their decision-making.
You should put effort into making sure your LinkedIn profile works for you as effectively as possible. Make sure it sells how valuable you are as an employee and potential hire. Outline each of your achievements and skills to make sure potential employers know why they should hire you.
The more time and effort you put into this, the better you stand out against other candidates.
4. Negotiate Hard
If you’re considering a role in a completely new industry, it’s understandable to undersell yourself somewhat. You mightn’t be as confident in your abilities as you would be in the industry you’re currently in. You should break out of that thinking as much as possible.
While you wouldn’t have experience specific to a particular industry, you still have experience in various other ways. You still bring value to a role, and you should make sure you highlight that. Use it to negotiate with potential employers.
Though you could think this would work against you, it shouldn’t. Instead, it highlights that you know your worth and are determined to get it. Set defensible benchmarks for what you’re asking for and elaborate on why you deserve a certain pay package.
State your value clearly and make sure you can back it up with previous achievements.
5. Consider A Lateral Move
Not all changes in careers have to involve switching to a completely new company. If the business you’re working for is relatively large, it’ll have multiple departments focusing on different areas. You could work in finance, for example, but want a career in marketing.
Considering a move into your company’s marketing department could be more than enough for a career change. It could be much easier to take this approach instead of making your way to another company. People will already be familiar with you and your work ethic, making it more likely the move will be successful.
Recommendations from managers and other superiors could also carry more sway with this approach, letting you switch your career focus with much more ease. Your company could even have an internal job board with positions that aren’t publicly available yet, increasing your chances of getting interviewed and hired.
Consider speaking to the manager of the department you want to work in to improve your chances even more.
6. Ask For Feedback
When you’re switching careers, you could end up in a field you’re relatively unfamiliar with. Since you’re so new to it, it’s always worth getting feedback on what you could be doing better. A great place to ask for this is during or following an interview with a potential employer.
Even if they don’t end up hiring you, they could give you invaluable advice about what you can do to improve your prospects in the future. It’ll let you maximize your chances for employment in time.
Following up with a simple email right after your interview could be more than enough for this. It could even end up improving your chances of getting the job you just applied for, as it shows you’re willing to put the time and effort into communicating and getting better.
No matter what, you’ll end up improving your overall chances of getting employed in the field you’re considering.
7. Take Your Time
A switch in career is a large change in anyone’s life, and it’s not something that should be done rashly. You also shouldn’t be in a rush when you’re doing this. That could end up resulting in you choosing the wrong new career, something that could end up leading to you feeling worse in your job.
You’ll naturally want to avoid that. By taking your time, you can actually consider various careers and figure out which ones are right for you. When you’ve narrowed this down, you should also spend time debating which companies you should actually apply for.
Different companies have different work cultures, some of which you mightn’t find appealing. By actually taking your time, you can ensure you make the right choices for you. While that could mean spending more time in your current position, it’ll be worth it in the long term.
Tips When You’re Switching Careers: Wrapping Up
Using a few tips when you’re switching careers makes the process much easier than you’d expect. It doesn’t need to be as complicated or overwhelming as you could think. Instead, it could be relatively easy and straightforward.
By asking for feedback, knowing exactly which career you want, rounding out your skills, and using a few other career-related tips, you can make it relatively simple. With the multiple reasons why you could be considering a career switch, there’s no reason not to use them.
