Making the Transition: Your Guide to Changing Careers

Stuck in a Rut

There are many reasons why people contemplate changing careers. Perhaps they are unhappy with their current job, because opportunities have been exhausted or they don’t feel appreciated by the higher-ups. Other factors such as stress, low salaries or lacking unfulfillment could also play a role in this decision to switch up their professional lives.

Whatever the case may be, it is completely valid to want to transition into another career, be it in the same industry or in an entirely different field. However, the move won’t be seamless: you will be required to take stock of your current role, your skill set and interests, your personal branding (ie. online portfolios and profiles on job sites), and your connections with persons both within and outside your job bubble.

Once you have done this, you will be able to take the appropriate steps on your path towards changing your career.

Shifting Gears

Here is a helpful guide to help you start shifting gears in your professional journey:

1. Conduct a Self-Review

When it comes to conducting a self-review, you will need to ask yourself questions, some of which sound brutal on the surface yet require you to dig deep within your core to find the answers.

Below are just some of the questions you can ask yourself:

• What is it about your current role that makes you happy or unhappy?
• Do you feel appreciated or respected by your colleagues?
• Are you utilising your strengths to their full potential?
• Does the office environment/culture make you feel comfortable or uncomfortable?
• What opportunities are available to you for learning new skills or getting promoted?
• Are you growing at the professional pace you aspire to?

Be honest with yourself as you answer these questions. If your responses are largely negative, then maybe it is time to make the necessary changes in your professional life.

2. Review Your Skills and Interests

When considering other careers, you might be looking for jobs that align with your current skillset or interests; alternately, you may be looking at positions that are completely different from what you are used to yet hold undeniable appeal, providing a fresh new challenge.

As such, you may feel discouraged when browsing job listings that outline skills, interests and/or experiences far different from yours. For example, if you are working as a graphic designer, jobs that ask you to have video-editing skills could make you feel out of your depth. Similarly, you may feel dejected when applying for jobs in the marketing industry, as you might not possess the required credentials.

Don’t give up: instead, take this as an opportunity to develop yourself further. Try out different hobbies to discover new interests, which in turn can increase creativity, improve problem-solving skills and bolster your logical thinking. To build more experience, consider freelancing or volunteer work, where you can hone your soft and hard skills, enhance your CV, and expose yourself to different career fields and networking opportunities (more on networking later!) – plus, it can help boost your self-confidence, allowing you to grow personally and professionally.

Another avenue worth exploring is pursuing further education. There are various courses available online and offline (usually provided by tertiary institutions or adult education centres) in which you can learn various skills ranging from basic to advanced level.

By following these steps, you can greatly expand both your knowledge and career options, making the transition to another role within or outside your current industry much easier.

3. Revamp Your Personal Branding

Do your CV, job site profiles or online portfolios need some sprucing up? Are you struggling to make yourself known to other professionals? If you are thinking of shifting to another career, you would do well to enhance – if not completely overhaul – your personal rebranding.

Why? You want to define your identity and articulate it in the best way possible; present a polished, professional image; show off your strengths, skills and personality; and network with like-minded people or those from another industry.

Again, even if your existing skills and experience don’t align with the positions you are applying for, don’t fret. You can still draw upon these to create a powerful personal statement to explain why you are the best fit for those roles – you can then incorporate this statement into your CV, profiles and portfolios, thus helping you stand out from other potential candidates.

As you develop new skills and explore new interests, you can then start adding these to your branding vehicles. You can even make and promote new accounts dedicated to your progress. For example, if you are learning video-editing, you can either post your video projects to your existing online portfolio, or create a separate social media account dedicated to these projects. You can also make posts about this new passion, be it comparing your first and latest videos, or talking about the pros and cons of various editing software.

The more you create and upload content that align with your brand, the more you boost your presence further and reach a wider audience.

4. Get to Networking

The phrase “It’s not what you know, but who you know” sounds quite discouraging, especially when looking at changing your career. However, it does ring true, in the sense that networking is crucial for opening new doors in your professional life.

Whether it is attending career fairs or seminars, working alongside individuals in freelancing or volunteering projects, or joining online groups and commenting on pages that share your interests, networking is key to meeting other professionals who work in the same industry or in another field.

For example, if you volunteer at a local soup kitchen, you might encounter professionals from various sectors including social work, public health or community organising. They could provide valuable insights into potential career paths, industry trends or job openings that you might not have come across otherwise.

Additionally, you will be able to ascertain whether or not a certain career works for you. For example, if you are looking at switching from marketing to teaching, you can conduct informal interviews with teachers, principals and circuit managers from various schools and education departments. You can ask them about the certifications needed to become a teacher, what their daily duties consist of, and – if possible – whether you can shadow them for a couple of hours during the week.

Be sure to also reach out to family and friends, as they can offer valuable advice, as well as emotional support. You would also do well to contact a recruitment agent or career coach for additional information on other industries.

A New Destination Awaits

Changing careers is a stressful endeavour. However, it can be incredibly rewarding and revitalising once it is achieved. By following the above guide, you can break out of your rut and transition into another career more easily. Remember to stay positive, be patient, adapt where you can and remain focused in every step you take on your new journey. Good luck!