Are You Prepared for a Career Change?
You might want to switch your career, because you are bored with your current job, or your skills have become obsolete, or you have recently discovered your passion in a new area that you would like to develop a life-long career in. According to a survey conducted by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in April 2008, Americans average three to five career changes by the age of 38 and only 2% of people surveyed are working in the occupation they had planned when they were 18 years old. While 80% of people aged above 45 have considered changing careers, only 6% actually do. Clearly, career change is not an uncommon phenomenon, but not all people are successful in doing so. It is therefore important to be both psychologically and technically prepared when you look for a career change and this article intends to offer you some advice.Be prepared to start from a lower rank
If you have been working for a long number of years and are quite experienced in your current field, it is likely that you are already quite high up in the career ladder. In fact, an AARP survey reports that 6% of workers over 50 are in the process of reconsidering their careers. An accounting manager who is in charge of a team of twenty subordinates might find it hard to secure a job of a similar rank in the field of interior design, for example, as he/she is rather green in the new area and lacks the experience required for such a senior position. When you decide to change your career, it is essential for you to be psychologically prepared to start from the lower, or even the bottom, rank, in particularly if you are switching to a completely different field. You may find yourself under the supervision of someone five to ten years your junior – is it something you are comfortable with? Assess yourself truthfully and ask yourself honestly if you are ready to face such a scenario.
The money issue also comes into play here – are you happy to accept a lower salary? Though a career transition might not necessarily involve a salary reduction, some drop in salary usually occurs when you step out of your comfort zone and work in a completely new arena, because ‘you typically aren’t worth as much in your new career path as you were in your old career’ (qtd. in DeZube).
Show your commitment
You need to convince your potential employer that you are committed to a new career. It is natural and sensible that employers would query how dedicated you are for a change and why you take such a step. An answer such as ‘It’s because I always want to work in this field’ is definitely not enough and sounds pathetically weak. It is thus important that you show your commitment for the change, as this can greatly boost your chances of success in getting your first interview and ultimately landing on the job.
Doing the research. Make sure you spend some time to do sufficient research into the field you intend to switch to. This probably sounds obvious, as you should know something about it before deciding to move into it. However, knowing a little bit is not enough. You need to demonstrate a more thorough understanding of the field and be prepared to elaborate when being asked.
Taking qualifications. Needless to say, employers would be impressed if you are able to get a qualification that is relevant to the new job, as this is a clear indication of your commitment and readiness to move forward. So, if you have the budget and time to take out some relevant qualifications for your new job, do it now and think of it as an investment in your new career.
Prepare a Skills-Based CV
Your CV is always your key to secure a first interview. You might think you have to trash your old CV to the bin when you look for a career switch. In fact, there is no need to do it. What you have to do is to be selective and critical about your past achievements – select the parts that are relevant and delete others that will be of no interests to your new employer. Transferable skills, such as leadership, management, communications, IT and language, can easily find their place in your revised CV. Technical skills that are only relevant to your current industry are not essential and can be taken out. A more appropriate format for your CV should now be skills-based: instead of highlighting your work experience, you have to emphasise your transferable skills to demonstrate your flexibility and adaptability to the new field.
Stay patient!
It might take a while for you to land on a job out of your current industry, as it is understandable that some employers might be sceptical about your move and commitment. It is therefore very important that you remain patient and not to lose steam. At some point while you are searching for your new job, you might question yourself whether it is a sensible move to switch to a completely new field, or you would query your competence as a person as a whole. All these self-questionings and reflections are normal and you have to accept this as part of the career change process. Remember, perseverance is one of the keys to a successful career change.
