How to make a successful career change, without sacrificing your financial security, reputation or feeling as though you are staring over from scratch

Feeling fulfilled in your job is your right, not a privilege.

I see so many people feeling stuck in the jobs they are in:

• Bored and unchallenged as there is no opportunity for growth and promotion
• Not using their full potential even though they are capable of so much more
• Stuck at the same salary band for years despite their valuable contributions and years of experience
• Stressed out, burnt out, and with almost non-existent work-life balance which impacts other areas of their lives

But doing nothing about it.

Based on years of experience of working with people who are stuck in their current jobs, I determined that there are 3 reasons why people choose to be stuck in their current role, instead of changing to something better.

1.    Lack of clarity about what is next for you

2.    Lack of Strategy on how to get your dream job with confidence and ease, without making mistakes and getting rejections letters

3.    Fear-driven Mindset

Thus, the only way to get unstuck is to deal with each of these points one by one.

But before we go there, let me tell you this.

Staying stuck is way riskier than changing to a job that gives you more money, more fulfilment and more joy.

Why is that?

With time your internal dissatisfaction with your current role will have a negative impact on your well-being, relationships and overall happiness. This is caused by the so-called “Crazy 8” pattern where you get stuck if you do not deal with the nagging feeling inside wanting you to do, have and be more. You can learn more about the “Crazy 8” pattern here.

The nagging feeling with time will start to shout, not to whisper and by then you lost all the time, all those years on wondering what if…

Another big reason to choose a different career path/job when you are not deeply satisfied with what you have now is so that you do not have regrets later in life.

Have you read the book by Bronnie Ware called The Top Five Regrets of the Dying? This is the book that transformed my life and career.

Bronnie Ware is an Australian nurse who spent several years working in palliative care, caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives. She recorded their dying epiphanies in her book and below are the regrets of the dying, as witnessed by Ware, that are such an important confirmation of the fact that you cannot be stuck in a career that does not fit in with who you are, your strengths, talents, and your desired lifestyle. Especially, given that it is possible to have a better fit career.

The biggest regrets were:

How often we choose to stay stuck in the current unsatisfying career because it is comfortable and safe (which is actually not true, safety is very relative in the corporate world)?

Fear of change makes you pretend to others, and to yourself, that you are content, when deep within, you long for something different, something more aligned with who you are, your strengths, talents, passions and desired lifestyle.

Thus, it is time to START LIVING. It is time!

Are you ready to change into something amazing?

A very important point here. I am not talking here about a change into yet another job.

 Seriously, there is no point in just changing for the sake of changing, as you just “postpone” your internal dissatisfaction for a few years. An unthoughtful / “runaway” career move will not solve a root cause of your nagging feeling that wants more from life and career. Thus, please do not do it. It is a WASTE OF TIME.

It’s not about getting any job and changing for the sake of changing. It’s about getting a job that:

•     Is in alignment with your calling and purpose
•     Excites and energises you
•     Leverages your gifts, talents and strengths
•     Doesn't work you to death but instead, you now have time for your family, hobbies, self-care
•     Where you feel valued, challenged, and heard
•     Where you can see opportunities for growth
•     The company has strong values similar to your own
•     You leave work feeling energized and not discouraged and/or drained
•     Leadership wants to see you succeed
•     Pays you a salary that excites and encourages you, in alignment with your experience and impact
•     Makes you feel healthy, sexy and alive
•     Improves relationships and intimacy

Success story: Look at Michael who almost divorced his wife due to lack of work/life balance and stress at work that made him irritable and negative. As a result of transitioning into a new career, he saved his marriage, got an incredible salary increase and now lives a happy, fulfilling and abundant life.

I hope by now I showed you that staying in an unfulfilling role is not an option for you and you are READY to make a wildly successful career change, without risking your financial security, reputation or starting over from scratch.

However, the worst thing that can happen when you decide to make a change is you doing it all wrong. If you don’t have a proven roadmap to make a successful career change, it’s easy to make critical mistakes that leave you stuck for years and no closer to the success you desire.

Without an effective strategy, tools and guidance, a career change is not only more difficult, it’s almost impossible.

That is where I come in and I am here to help you avoid all these “costly” mistakes and short-cut your success towards the perfect match career.

Let’s get started.

In this article, I've highlighted key actionable strategies and techniques to help you make a successful career change, regardless of whether you're at the beginning of your career journey or you have been in the corporate world for a while. 

Below strategies are all are tried and tested by myself and hundreds of my clients who implemented these strategies and now enjoy incredible careers and lifestyles.

1.    Get to know yourself and get crystal clear on what you really want in your career

I see so many people starting their new career search by updating their LinkedIn Profile and resumes.

This is so wrong.

I am not saying it is not important to have these up to date, but you do not start with it.

Self-reflection and becoming crystal clear about what exactly you want and why is crucial if you want to land your dream job with ease. The number one mistake I see many job seekers make is not doing enough self-reflection. They believe it is a waste of time and is not necessary in the job search process but that is why they struggle to get a job, receive multiple rejections, lose confidence and stay stuck in an unfulfilling job that sucks the soul out of them.

The more you understand yourself and what it is that you want, the easier it will be to go after what is that you want -securing a job that is a guaranteed perfect fit for you, fuels your calling, ignites your joy, gives you mind-blowing fulfilment and pays well.

What are the elements that need to be taken into consideration in order to understand what is next for you?

It took me a while to put together a framework to get clarity about your next career direction but this is how my “Golden Star” framework was born. 

As you see, your perfect match job lies at the intersection of your USP (Unique Selling Point -strengths, gifts, talents), passions, values and purpose, along with the right mindset (which we will discuss later).

You will see when using this framework, that there are lots of golden threads in your career and life which when looked at all together gives you valuable insights into who you really are, what you are good at, what you love doing and what you are always drawn to over and over again.

We are all unique and have a unique combination of strengths, talents, experiences and accomplishments. Only you have such a combination. We all have our unique Golden Stars.

And there are companies who are looking for exactly that combination. They are looking for what YOU have to offer. But they will not see it until you clearly show them what you are all about.

That is why it is so important to take the step and uncover your Golden Star.

So take time to look at the elements of your Golden Star to start pulling out some common threads and get you in the right framework in terms of what is next for you in your career.

Below are some initial questions to get you started.

• What are some things you do exceptionally well?
• What have others complimented you about?
• When faced with an overwhelming obstacle, what is your “go-to” skill to overcome it?
• What is important to you in your life/career?
• What qualities do you like in other people (these qualities are the indication of your values)
• In the most recent frustrating situation, what value has not been met?
• If you knew you could not fail and it would all work out beautifully, what would you try?
• Look carefully at what you’re drawn to in life. What do you read, watch, listen to, follow?
• What ideas and topics can you not stop thinking about /ideas that leave you energised and excited?

Answering these questions will give valuable insights into what you value, what you are good at, what you enjoy doing.

2.    Joyful Job search using the “Target Companies” approach

After you took some time to consider the elements of the Golden Star, the next step is to then start your joyful job search. Again, you are not yet applying anywhere, you are just browsing some initial ideas of what could be of interest to you (industries/roles/companies).

The job search process becomes joyful because you do it strategically.

When you know your Golden Star, you will seek out companies, organizations, and opportunities that value your strengths, where you can operate in your passions and have your desired lifestyle (i.e. the company’s culture is the match for you and what is important for you). This is when your work will feel authentic and fulfilling.

Golden Star operates like a North Star as you embark on your career journey. When you understand its key elements, you will understand where you belong and chose accordingly.

The key in this step is to not consider all the companies that are up there but only companies that match your requirements, your Golden Star profile -I call them Target Companies.

This is what I call being strategic in your job search.

Remember, looking for a job is always a two-way street. Companies look for “quality” candidates the same as you are looking for a “quality” employer.

Thus, by applying to whatever is available you give your power away to the Hiring Manager to choose you. It is a one-way street.

By considering companies that are on your “Target Companies” list you take control of your career and go for only the opportunities that are right for you.

You can watch the video I did on “Target Companies” approach to the job search below:

In my ACM Programme, I teach different ways of identifying the Target Companies but the main idea is to put on the list only companies that match your perfect match job profile.

A good place to start is to craft your perfect match job profile Statement, using the formula below:

I want to work for a company that values [add your 3 TOP values], offering the role that involves [add your passion], where I can [add your strengths]

Also, consider the below elements in order to decide what companies will make your top list:

Then, it is a matter to start browsing.

There are lots of ways to approach it but be creative and treat it as a fun exercise. Start from more general concepts.

You can search in Google:

• Top companies in London who value flexibility / Growth and Development/creativity (whatever is important to you)
• In what roles can I use XXX (your strengths)?
• What career path suits my passion?

It does take time but as I said it is fun to do it.

Also, it is very important to be open-minded when you do this, and let go of any ideas of how you think your career should be, which industries do you need to consider, etc.

I stopped counting how many clients I had who discovered a role/company that they would have never considered before and this would not have happened if they had a pre-determined idea of what is that they needed to look for.

Success Story: This is exactly what happened with Kate who ended up targeting a company in the Media sector which she has never imagined considering at all and now she is enjoying her job and lives a beautiful and fulfilling life.

3.    Build Irresistible Personal Branding and create powerful Story-Selling assets -LinkedIn profile and CV / Resume

Now that you identified your career direction, you need to get ready to go and get it.

The first step is to make sure that your online Personal Brand is in alignment with your story, your values, your USP and your calling.

We are living in a time, where increasingly we want and expect to hear from the individual -who is behind the title, job role or collection of accomplishments.

Due to the pandemic, we’ve been thrust full force into the digital age and even more people and organisations are using online media platforms, tools and resources to do business.

Developing your personal brand is investing in yourself to create meaning beyond what your job role or titles offer. Your personal brand is all about how people perceive you when they look at your LinkedIn Profile, at your resume, your online presence.

Behind a strong personal brand are these key components:

• Your brand core values (your values we’ve discussed above)
• Who you are and your brand voice (your story / your background /your uniqueness)
• What you bring to the table (your strengths /gifts/talents, your USP from the Golden Star)

To build an irresistible and authentic brand you need to know yourself well and that is why we have started with exactly that -getting clarity on who you are and what you represent. This will become the messaging architecture for your brand.

Knowing your Golden Star will help you to outline what makes you stand out by creating a strong narrative that tells the story behind the brand.

Your narrative should focus on what motivates you, what value you add and why people should choose you to connect with, follow, collaborate or work with.

Your messaging must be CONSISTENT across all platforms and your assets -LinkedIn Profile and CV. I call this process -Radical Alignment.

What you say in your LinkedIn Profile and your CV must match what you post online on your LinkedIn page (online presence), what you say at the Informational Interviews (we will talk about this in the next point) and how you present yourself in interviews.

Your branding is at the CORE of your job search process, it is the result of you knowing yourself and it is what will help you stand out from others and land your dream job with ease.

And what is even more important than being consistent in your brand’s message is to be AUTHENTIC, to be YOU.

I see so many job seekers trying to fit in, to be better than they are, to show their greatness in a totally inauthentic way and then wonder why they either did not get a job or got a job that somehow does not feel right.

The effectiveness of your personal branding is directly related to your authenticity.

There is a power in authenticity that will instantly create a trust (so useful in interviews!) and will build confidence in your abilities and what you have to offer.

Thus, spend time on building an irresistible personal brand. This is an investment for Life.

Consider how you can grow your brand so that it is powerfully aligned with your purpose, vision, goals and what you represent, to secure a lasting impact on your audience.

Ensure that your visibility strategy and online presence are evolving with your brand and are adopted to the digital age.

4. Authentic Networking using Informational Interviews

Now that you have identified your Target Companies and created an irresistible personal brand (updated all your story-selling assets) you may say that it is time to start applying to these companies.

Not really.

Again, this is the mistake I see so many people make.

Here is the fact: 80% of job opportunities are not advertised!

Yes, you’ve heard me right. You only see 20% of all the opportunities online, the rest are part of the so-called “Hidden Job Market”.

In my corporate job I was responsible for hiring people for the Sales team and 90% of the time we sourced people using our networks, we did not advertise it publicly as there was no need.

Thus, the only way to get access to the Hidden Job Market is for you to use the power of Authentic Networking via so-called Informational Interviews. This is when YOU interview a person from your “Target Company” list about their career path and their experience in that company. 

You want to do Informational Interviews for 3 main reasons:

1. To confirm your assumptions about the Company of your choice and the role you want to do there and see if it is indeed what you thought it is.

2. Strategically position yourself in front of a person who can then introduce you to the whole range of opportunities in their company.

3. Develop a powerful networking of incredible people that will help you get your dream job fast

90% of the clients I work with get interviews without “cold” applying to their Target Companies but rather by being referred by the people they had an Informational Interview with. You see how powerful this process is.

The strategy of “APPLY NOW” button is really outdated and if anything lead to you wasting a lot of time applying without much success. Thus, do not do it. Remember, being strategic in your job search is the fastest way to landing your dream job.

5.    Effectively market yourself in interviews to your dream employer so that they see you as an expert and not a newbie in your desired industry (even if you don’t have any direct experience in that filed).

I may surprise you (or maybe you already got the idea) that if you follow all the above steps well, nailing your interviews become the easiest part of the whole job search process. I am not joking.

By the time you come to an interview, you spent quality time on knowing yourself well, getting clarity about your career vision, uncovering your values and your “WHY”, taking stock of your accomplishments to date.

All in all, you come to an interview with unshakable confidence in yourself and your abilities, full of energy and positive vibes.

The way you talk and how you position yourself is different. You sound different from others. You seem calm, at peace with yourself and what you have to offer.

The questions you ask are different as you ask them from a genuine curiosity perspective with the aim to understand if the company is the right fit for you.

You can, of course, read online basic strategies about how to do interviews well, but I can guarantee you -it is nothing compared to you being REAL, AUTHENTIC, CONFIDENT, being YOU in all respects.

I worked with hundreds of people and all of them confirm that nailing interviews is the easiest step on the whole job search process, if you use the right system (all the steps above).

When you use this system well, you can get a job offer at the first interview, just like my client Jess.

5.    Empowering mindset

Here is the thing.

You may have all the clarity about what you need.

You may have a proven strategy for how to land your dream job.

But if you have a limiting mindset, it does not really matter how amazing you are, you will sabotage your chances for success.

No joke.

We all have a set of beliefs about life, others and ourselves.

However, depending, if these beliefs are empowering or limited will determine if you stay stuck where you are or you will go a get what you want.

When it comes to a career change or overall, the job search process, what thoughts come up?

“I can do it”

“I am amazing”

“There are incredible opportunities available for me”

“So many amazing companies are hiring now, it is the perfect time to change jobs”

Or:

“Nobody is hiring”

“I should just be grateful I even have a job

“I am not sure if the perfect fit job even exist”

“I don’t have the right type of experience to change job /industry /career”

“I am too old”

“I don’t have time to do it now, maybe later”

I think you got the idea, right?

If you are in the latter category, the chance is that you stay stuck where you are and will not even start your job search or you start it with this limiting mindset which will not get you the result you want.

It is a part of our brain that filters the billions of bits of data we're bombarded with every day.

If you believe let’s say that nobody is hiring, you will see more and more evidence to confirm this belief and guess what -you will not start searching as you are sure that there is no point.

Behind all these limiting thoughts are FEAR (fear of failure; fear of rejection, etc).

FEAR is based on two primary limiting beliefs:

• “I am not enough”
• “I don’t have enough” (time; experience, qualifications, etc)

Fear is always there as any change means you will have to get out of the comfort zone.

What many people do not understand is that fear is not a bad thing. Fear is your friend.

Fear’s main objective is to “protect” you (from failing, from being rejected, etc). But by “protecting” you from the perceived danger, it also “protects” you from having an incredible career that is in line with who you are and pays you what you deserve.

If you are interested to know a bit more about FEAR and how it can “paralyze” you from even considering the possibility of a career change, watch my video here:

All these limiting beliefs are not inherited, not relevant any longer and not true.

Do not let fear STOP you from having an incredible career.

Use it as fuel, a sign that you are on the right track, you are on the way to GROWTH, ABUNDANCE and SUCCESS.

It is totally worth it.

You can see how powerful mindset shifts are in this whole process, see what my happy clients say:

A final word

I hope you found this helpful and you're feeling inspired to take some action and land your dream job.

The key though is to MAKE A DECISION:

• to either stay where you are and make peace with it or
• to take action and transition into a job /career that will give you more money, more joy and more fulfilment

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity” —Amelia Earhart

Thus, decide right where you are with whatever you’ve got if you are ready to have an incredible career. And then just go for it. Don’t look back.

COMMIT to your decision.

BELIEVE in yourself and your abilities.

RESPECT your full potential.

HONOR it.

CLAIM it.

You DESERVE to have it all -an incredible career and a beautiful life.

Thank you for reading!

Irina x

If you're ready to fast-track your success to your aligned career then book a call with me today and let's discuss how I can help you make a successful career change with clarity and ease: 

Book A Career Strategy Call with Irina