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Step One: Assessment
Figure out where you are now. Take a sheet of paper and start to identify what elements make you unhappy in your current environment or at your workplace (or that did in past work environments). Is it:
- The overall industry or your current role?
- The skills you are using or not using?
- The environment or corporate culture?
- The location and hours required?
- Your values? Do these values align with your planning?
Whether you took pen to paper or not, you should have a general sense of the thought process required to evaluate your reactions and identify what elements are most important to you. If you had or have trouble on your own-and many people do-a suggested methodology would be to take a validated self-assessment that measures your skills, values, and interests, which can then be interpreted by a career counselor (as an important footnote, be sure that your chosen career counselor is a professional, and has appropriate credentials and certification). This assessment phase will ensure and validate where you are now, while allowing the opportunity to explore various career opportunities that are of interest to you. Do not take this first step lightly as most people do. It involves knowing who you are in a way you may not have realized.
Step Two: Exploration
This step revolves around "finding your zone." What do you like? How do you like to work? Once people find or experience this "zone," they find the "fit." By exploring options that will help you to understand and identify those activities that give you a sense of "fit," you then reveal elements and skills that could also help lead to a satisfying career, in addition to a more enriched and fulfilled life. You may be able to find this "zone" on your own, or you may need to speak with someone who is experienced in this field to further assist you in this exploration process.
Step Three: Decision Making
At this stage of your career "journey," (always a marathon, never a sprint), you should now have a clearer picture of new career or work options. You will have renewed confidence to make more efficient decisions and to pursue your desired career. You now have the ability, wisdom, and motivation to make serious decisions and better market yourself to get there.
Be different, creative, and persistent. And remember: "If it was easy, everyone would do it." With this process, now, you can be smarter and conduct a more efficient search.
Step Four: Self-Marketing
Like most rewarding journeys, this entire process takes commitment, time, and focus. Be prepared to spend some time evaluating and repositioning yourself into an internal "happy" and external "wanted" person for your chosen field. It may sound a bit zen, but take a deep breathe, relax, and take a step back. If you've made it this far, you've discovered a new sense of who you are and the true importance of your choices. If you stay in control of the process, you will have a better chance of ending up where you want to be. You may even discover that you don't need a radical change after all, or that you can't afford to risk losing what you have. A career change is not necessarily the only answer. A lateral move could also be the first stop, or perhaps even all the change that is necessary to feel "happy" and "wanted."
Begin evaluating yourself today. Because it's not about a job or the job, its about YOU.
Whatever you decide, be confident and comfortable knowing that you've taken or need to take more steps in order to better understand yourself and your goals. Whatever path you choose, reaching clarity will get you moving toward discovering your true potential.
Good luck with the journey!
An additional and user-friendly resource that might help along the way is ReadyMinds, a personalized service that you can use without leaving your home or office.
Click here to learn more about the services ReadyMinds offers that can help jump-start your career!
The author of this article is Randy M. Miller, the Founder and CEO of ReadyMinds, the leader in distance career counseling.
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