It's never too late to Careershift

ShiftDoctor answer

By Richard Butler on 19 May 2007 at 16:04

You are certainly not alone as anyone who is contemplating a major career change will at some point face the same concerns as you.

To help you move forward I'd like you to consider each of your issues separately. You mention that you have spent a huge amount of time considering what you may like to do, but you have become stuck and you also mention that immediate and longer term income is very important.

Regarding you career choice, I suggest that you begin by identifying precisely what is causing you to feel stuck - is it that you have explored all the options thoroughly and think that they are not feasible or do you have too many to chose from? One way to move forward with this is to find a person, a friend or relative whom you trust and whose advice you value, to act as a sounding-board. Test each of the ideas with them to see if they think that you have identified all the potential opportunities that suit you?

Take a close look at what you really enjoy doing, as that is what you would ideally like to do for the next few years. Make sure that these possibilities are grounded in reality, focus on those skills/experiences that really motivate you and discuss each possibility with the person you have chosen. When you have a definite list of possibilities agreed, meet with as many people as possible who do the jobs now. Ideally you want someone who has moved into that field from a different one and explore with them how they got there, what was easy or difficult and how they make the change. By learning from their experiences you will make the transition much easier.

With help from your friend or relative, rank each of the alternative careers and evaluate whether they will truly satisfy your needs and finally create a plan to move to that new career. Start this week by choosing someone to act as your sounding-board and contact them straight away to arrange when you will meet to discuss your options, set a time limit on each stage and agree to meet regularly to check progress.

As far as your earnings are concerned, this is a question you could raise with people you meet who are currently in the roles - will you be able to earn whilst you train? Consider whether it is possible to do your current job part-time/ contracting whilst training or getting experience in your new career, or saving in order to start your new career a little later.

The important thing is not to let your determination and resolve to change careers become diluted, explore as many alternatives as possible to help finance your transition, but keep the goal of your new career as a clear objective and set a timeline to make it happen.