| |
| |
|
Careers & Employment Information |
|
|
|
Seven Steps to Making a Successful Career Change
My first job was secretary to Moses. Having to transcribe and make 2,430 copies of the Ten Commandments convinced me I was on the wrong career path! OK, maybe I'm not quite THAT old. But I did start out as a secretary. While I didn't mind the work, eventually I decided it wasn't very satisfying. I often felt like a "tool" that helped others contribute to the organization's success. I wanted to make my own contributions, to find creative ways to make a difference. It took me about 12 year to come to that conclusion, decide to do something about it, and change my life. If you are not happy in your current job, perhaps it's time to think about making a change yourself. Here's what you should do: 1. Determine why you're not happy. Are you really unhappy with the work you do, or just upset with your salary, boss, coworkers, or the office environment? There's a difference between hating your job and hating your work, and realizing that will help you decide what course to take. 2. Find your passion. What do you love doing more than anything else? List your top three favorite activities. Try to be a bit realistic here and choose activites that you might be able to earn a living with. For instance, if your three favorite activities are sleeping, eating and watching TV, your career options are somewhat limited. But do include hobbies and activities one doesn't always associate with work. 3. Evaluate your strengths. What are you good at? Consider more than just your technical skills. For example, do your prefer leading or following; analyzing or simplifying; working alone or with a group? 4. Do research. What career fields would allow you to use your passions and strengths to earn a reasonable living? There are some great online resources (such as www.jvis.com) that offer tools to help you do a self-assessment and then find careers that match your interests and skills: 5. Consider alternatives to jobs. Some people go into business for themselves when they become fed up with their jobs. If you think simply switching careers isn't enough, look into that alternative and others, such as... marrying a millionaire, becoming a beach bum, winning the lottery, writing children's books, painting and selling pictures, doing consulting work... the sky's the limit! 6. Create a plan. Once you know where you want to go, figure out what steps you must take to get there. Determine exactly what you need to do, how much time it will take, and what it will cost. It's probably best not to leave your current job until you're ready and able to start earning money with your new job/venture. 7. Get help. You'll be amazed at how helpful people will be when you tell them your plans. Talk with family, friends, professional associates, club members; participate in topic-related online forums; NETWORK as much as possible! Achieving great goals is always easier when you have others cheering you on and helping you out.
Bonnie Lowe is author of the popular Job Interview Success System and free information-packed ezine, "Career-Life Times." Find those and other powerful career-building resources and tips at her website: http://www.best-interview-strategies.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
Careers-Employment - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Find Those People "The Emperor's New Clothes" was a favorite childhood story of mine. It made me laugh. 18 Career Enhancement Caveats Core value investing in your careerMany people walk through their lives never, ever being better at something than anyone else. What is it that you know or do better than almost anyone else in the world? What is it that you do uniquely well? Do your core values for yourself and your family fit with what you are doing, where you are putting your energy, what you are developing, and where you are focusing/immersing yourself?In your career, as well as in your life, to achieve full capacity and happiness, all of you must be going in the same direction. Is a Career Change on Your Horizon? Making a career change is nothing new in today's job market.I've heard it said that the average American changes careers at least once in his or her life. Students Discover Your Niche By Using Career Assessment In our ever changing world where job competition is rampant it can be difficult to understand one's strengths and what one wants to do in life.If you feel uncertain about your career path you're not alone. How To Pick The Best Career For You, Part 1 In Part One we'll look at how Positioning or "Coming to a Theater Near You" simplifies and expedites your employment hunt by reinforcing employer buy-in through justification of the sale.Rapidly gain employer agreement that you're the right person for the job by proving how their organizational needs are met through your specific abilities to solve their identified problems. Personal Grooming: 8 Top Reasons Why You Can't Take It For Granted In Your Career Most people when they landed "the dream job" after an interview or even got "the deal" of the lifetime in their businesses, sadly to say tend to slack on their grooming habits and it even goes to the point that they are wearing their pajamas going to the office. It seems that's very extreme but it happens. Is Your Career Your Calling or Just a 9 to 5? Do you remember your parents asking you what you want to be when you grow up? By the time I was in the 9th grade, my mother started asking me that same question until I graduated from high school. At that time I wasn't 100% sure what career path I would take, but I had several ideas. Could You Write Performance Reviews For Money? Writing performance reviews can be an excellent way to earn a living. Who wouldn't want to go from place to place watching actors, singers, and chefs perform at their best (and maybe their worst)? Getting paid to do something like this just seems like fun, doesn't it? But, in reality, these jobs are not easy to come by nor are they easy to do. Job Interview Mistakes To Avoid By avoiding these 8 simple mistakes, you can improve your chances of having a successful interview and landing the job of your dreams.1. Take the Personal Out of the Workplace: Leave Your Troubles at the Door! Bringing your emotional baggage into the work place is inappropriate for all the reasons you may imagine. Yet employees, managers and business owners do it all the time. Five Biggest Resume Mistakes You Can Fix Yourself A career consultant can diagnose and overhaul a troubled resume. But you can check off the basics yourself. Interview Quicksand How will you respond when you're asked the following two questions?1.What type of boss do you like to work for?2. Are Your References Ready? One of the most common forms of background check performed by companies hiring new employees is the reference check. They typically request that candidates provide them with three names of previous bosses. Dissatisfied With Work? Perhaps Its You Just about every month, there's a new research report detailing the seemingly higher and higher degree of worker dissatisfaction. Whether it's a Gallup poll or a Conference Board report, the results are strikingly similar -- workers are becoming more and more dissatisfied with their work. Creating a Winning Resume Preparing your resume can often seem like a daunting task. You've done your research, but there is so much information, and how do you pick from the countless formats?!Writing your resume doesn't have to be so scary, in fact, if you keep a few simple tips in mind, you'll keep yourself ahead of the competition. Rewriting Your Resume? 7 Easy Ways To Give Yourself An Upgrade In today's competitive job market, a first class resume is an essential tool for winning an interview. The way in which you present your skills, achievements and experience on paper will profoundly affect the way in which a hiring company considers your application. How to Overcome a Bad First Impression Have any of these situations happened to you? Forgetting your client's name, unintentionally insulting a co-worker, spilling coffee on your boss, not recognizing an old friend, drinking too much at the company party, sending a racy e-mail to the wrong person, or asking a woman's due date when she's not pregnant - ouch! You never have a second chance to make a first impression, so what happens when that first impression is a negative one?In a perfect world none of these things would occur, but the truth is, we all make mistakes. Effective communicators are not only aware of how their actions impact others; they also know how to respond in uncomfortable situations. How To Write A Resume Cover Letter That Will Get Your Resume Read A Resume Cover Letter has only one purpose - to stimulate the recipient of your resume to review your resume. This free resume cover letter tutorial assumes that you will be sending your resume and resume cover letter by email. Job Interview Preparation - What Employers Are Looking For When an employer decides to conduct an interview with you, there are certain things that they are looking for from you. Naturally, you are likely to focus on these things during an interview, but you should remember all of the tips in this manual because following those tips is what is going to make the employers see all of those things in you. How To Take The Pain Out Of Performance Reviews The Painful ApproachFor many years, "performance management" was of an annual event dreaded by both the management and the workforce. For a week or two every year the manager would virtually isolate himself and ponder the stack of review forms staring him in the face.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |