Career Pivots – Making Pipe-dreams Possible

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.?And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.?As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”??Steve Jobs

Jobs makes it sound like a love affair, and a career is definitely like a marriage. You are required to put the hours in, you are expected to deliver to your contract terms, to adapt and continuously learn. You are also within your rights to get rewards that make you feel valued.?

If you feel that your dream job might lie elsewhere, it’s never too late to make the change. Whether you are looking to change industry or to make a change within the same sector, but to a different role within it, moving from what you know is a daunting prospect but will be so rewarding if you make it happen and secure your dream role.

A Career Transition Coach is invaluable for career movers. An experienced coach will help you with the process of self-analysis which you need to determine the right career for you. Looking at your experiences, skills, what you enjoy and are good at is a starting point. Most people will need help to be both thorough and strategic in this important stage of soul-searching. A coach will encourage you to take the time out and help you with the objectivity that you need to complete this process thoroughly so that pipe dreams can be turned into realistic plans.

Once you have established careers you would be suited to and good at, you need to consider what a new job and employer should look like. Are you suited better to self-employment where you need a high degree of motivation and discipline but can operate in the way you choose? Or are you suited to delivering on behalf of an employer who gives you structure and reward???A career coach will help you consider aspects that you might overlook on your own, such as thinking about the life values you have that are important also in your career and employer. What do your lifestyle aspirations require from any future employment?

Now that the must-have aspects of your next career and the nice-to-haves have been nailed down, the trickier part of how to get there comes into play. A part-time or voluntary role can be a sensible and practical solution. If worked alongside your existing role this can provide an easier transition. It keeps open the option to decline a career move that you realise isn’t for you after all.?Studying towards a career move can also be undertaken in your own time and will prove your dedication to making the change. You are likely to meet useful contacts during your studies.?

Which leads onto the importance of using your networks! You’ve taken years to build up a strong network of colleagues, peers, university or college alumni, friends – all of whom may know someone who could help you get into the industry and role you seek. LinkedIn is a key platform for this. Start to strengthen your profile in the direction of your chosen career move.

We frequently share LinkedIn tips on our business page and Instagram profile, or you can sign up for one of our free webinars here.