Career Inspiration: Finding the good stuff when change is thrust on you

Hey there,

Hope you’ve had a good week since I last posted, whether out in the glorious sunshine or battling back to Britain from the mainland. It’s good to have you here.

This week I’ve been thinking about forced change - that sometimes even if we want to make a change, we can procrastinate and it can take an externally-forced change to finally set us in motion. This doesn’t necessarily have to be redundancy or a change imposed on your job role by your boss. It could be something in your life more broadly that sets of a chain of events that could potentially create or contribute to your career change. It could be your kids leaving home, having to move house, your partner wanting to live and work abroad etc. It can be as if the universe says ‘ok, so you said you wanted change… if you can’t make it yourself, I’m gonna force change on you!’ Even if the new change appears bad, it’s often a blessing in disguise - a blessing we have to find and use. So if you find yourself in an unwanted time of change, maybe if you’re out of work or if money is hard right now, can you find any opportunities or lessons to help with your career change?

Careershifters team member Cath was on Working Lunch (BBC2) on April 14th, did anyone else catch the show? She was part of a career change segment, which featured a cinema manager - turned make-up artist, and Cath commented on key factors that facilitate a successful career change: to always make a plan, and to not underestimate the power of networking.

Inspirational online links for you to devour:

I stumbled on this, and it seemed quite a drastic career change: from molecular biology to creating a music-based team building business. He did it with no formal training, just guts and passion!

This is geared to women (but the advice is great for anyone) - Making the Most of Unemployment. Lots of positive ideas about voluntary work, reconnecting with health and fitness, and getting back to abandoned projects.

From the New York Magazine, three people who decided to set up their own independent specialist food shops Here’s What It Really Takes to Start Your own Bakery, Wine Store and Bistro

Following on from the success of my last collection (If You’re Stuck), I’ve written another ‘guide’, Earning Your Sovereignty , that you might enjoy. More philosophising on emotional processes in life change!

Until next time,

Sab