Copyright 2006 Transition Dynamics Enterprises, Inc.
It's Tuesday morning after a long holiday weekend. How does it feel to be back at work?
Do you wish you had a more fulfilling job or career? If so, you are not alone. Over 60% of employees are dissatisfied or unengaged at work.
Most people in this situation long for a job/career that's satisfying, engaging, and meaningful. The problem is most people don't know how to go about finding such a career. Many of them spend years trying, but failing, to find the kind of career they want.
Do any of their strategies remind you of your own career change tactics?
1) You spend a lot of time wishing you had another job OR you spend a lot of time dreaming about a particular career. But for all your wishing and dreaming, you don't take action to implement your ideas.
2) You believe "The Answer" will appear one day--so you keep waiting. The truth is meaningful careers evolve as a result of exploring your interests and trying out new experiences.
3) You fall into jobs. When opportunities present themselves, you jump at the chance to leave the job that isn't working--without fully examining the realities of the new position.
4) You choose a career because the people around you think it's a good move. Whether the money and status are good or the job is consistent with your education, other people think the job is a good fit, so you take it.
5) You get caught up in the 'I Could Do That' Syndrome. You meet someone at a party who tells you about their career. You try it on, check it out, and run into a snag or meet someone else whose career seems more interesting. You are so busy trying on everyone else's careers; you don't know what really works for you.
6) You attempt to identify a new career based on one interest or skill. Perhaps you are good with people or you like to work with numbers. Unfortunately working with one clue doesn't give you enough to go on.
7) You jump headlong into the new career you've chosen without testing the waters. As a result you know nothing about the job and it's potential. In fact, you don't even know whether you'll enjoy it or not.
8) You target a career that looks great from a professional point of view. The problem is taking the job forces you to live a life you don't want. In the final analysis, how good is that job?
9) You talk yourself out of job/career ideas faster than you can research them. As a result you discount possible careers based on the unsubstantiated assumptions you have made inside your own mind.
10) You are afraid to commit to a career direction for fear you won't be able to enjoy any of your other interests ever again. Have you ever looked for ways to combine your interests to meet several needs at once?
11) You give up on your career idea as soon as you hit a bump in the road. Rather than look for creative alternatives, you tell yourself to give up your dream and just accept the job you have. As time progresses, however, you get so frustrated with your situation you realize you have to do something! You start the roller coaster ride one more time—until you hit the next bump.
12) You don't reach out for help--you are bound and determined to figure this out on your own. Unfortunately, if you have been wrestling with the riddle of your next career for some time, you may not be able to step beyond the scenario that runs through your mind like a continuous loop. Your best strategy is to look beyond yourself to see yourself, your interests, and your future direction from an entirely new perspective.
Do you see yourself in this list? Have you been hoping for a career change for longer than you'd like to admit?
Even if you see yourself in several of these strategies, there is hope. It's not too late to make a change. Now that you recognize that your strategies aren't getting you where you want to go, you have a choice.
1) You can continue being miserable, wishing and hoping your future will be different from your past.
OR
2) You can choose a new strategy--a strategy that supports you in proactively and consciously creating a fulfilling career that enables you to be yourself and live the life you want.
Are you ready to learn a new way to approach your career change? The key is to discover what works best for you. What’s your best work environment? What your best lifestyle? What are your favorite skills and interests? What’s your personal style? When you know all of this, find the commonalities and weave together the clues to create a career that allows you to express yourself, live the life you want, enjoy your workplace, and feel passionate about what you do.
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Carol McClelland, PhD, is the author of Your Dream Career For Dummies and the creator of the Career Clarity Program, an online program that helps you find your dream career and make it real. She’s helped thousands of people find a career that’s a great fit both personally and professionally. To receive a free copy of her Career Clarity Insight Workbook that shows you a career change strategy that works, visit: www.careerclarityprogram.com and click on the workbook icon in the left navigation bar.
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