“Hi Bernie. I really enjoy your blog posts and learn a lot from them, but I have run into a dilemma and I haven’t seen you blog about this yet. How do I shift my career? You see, I really would love to coach football but I am working as an accountant and I’m getting burned out doing it. What do you recommend I do?”
While this is a fictional scenario, this type of scenario is very real for many people. You obtained your degree in A, are working in B, but you really want to do C. So how, do you get from B to C? While each person’s circumstances are different, here are some steps you can take that may help you make the transition:
Review your finances. For many, in order to make the career shift to another direction, it will require them to take a pay cut because they have very little or no experience in this area. If you are considering this type of move, be sure your financial obligations can withstand the downsizing of your paycheck. If they can’t, create a plan to pay off bills and put money aside. This will help you greatly during the leaner days of your shift.
Work part-time. If you can’t afford to do a full transition to the new career, do you have enough evening and/or weekend time to do it part-time? This will allow you to gain valuable experience without having to “sacrifice the farm,” and you’ll make a few extra bucks.
Offer to volunteer. If you can’t do a full transition and there are no part-time opportunities available, another thing you can do is to seek out opportunities to volunteer. There are many organizations who would LOVE free help, it will still allow you to gain valuable experience and references, and it might open the doors of opportunity for you to network with the right people.
Brush up on education. If you have no experience in the area you want to pursue, another way you can begin to unlock the doors of opportunity for you is to gain additional education. Your education could come in the form of a formal degree, certification program, continuing education courses at your local community college, apprenticeship, etc. Whichever option you choose, having additional knowledge about your desired career path can only help you open the doors of opportunity.
Seek out help. It can be difficult planning and making a career shift on your own. If you find this to be the case for you, seek out wise counsel. This can come in the form of a career coach, friend, family member or professional acquaintance. Whichever you choose, remember two heads are always better than one.
If you want to make the career shift but don’t see how it would be possible, don’t give up. All you need to do is stay determined to fulfill your dreams, and use a little creativity and initiative to get you there.
Until next time….