Blog Post 28: What type of career change do I want?
My clients come to me when they’re at a point in their life and career where they know they want to make a change, but are unsure of the type of change they want.
The truth is, there are many options on how to change it up in your career.
You can uplevel in your current career, you can make a career pivot or you can completely reinvent your career.
There is a difference between a career pivot and a career reinvention, and in today’s blog post I’m going to share with you the differences between the two and how you can best position yourself to make a career change.
A career reinvention is when you are changing both your job function and your industry.
A career pivot on the other hand is when you’re changing either your job function or your industry. For example, you move from a marketing role in FMCG (fast moving consumer goods - think supermarket goods) to a marketing role in the non-profit sector.
Many of my clients like the idea of doing a 2-step career change - they first make a career pivot out of either a job function or an industry and then do another pivot when they have more experience in that area.
When you are wanting to create a job search for a career pivot, it is important to reflect on your past experiences and what you want now. You need to ask yourself:
What did/didn’t you like in previous roles?
What are your motivational skills? These are the skills you’re good at AND enjoy doing
What are your burnout skills? These are the skills you’re good at but that you don’t enjoy doing. You ideally want as little of these as possible in your next role.
From this, it is important to assess what your ultimate goal is. Is it to make a career pivot or a career reinvention?
This is important because then you can map your career change from A (where you are now) to B (where you want to be).
If you are unsure of where you want to be yet, that’s OK, but it is important to start getting clarity on where you ultimately want to get to in your career.
There are MANY ways you can do this. Hiring a career coach can help you get crystal clear on a career goal, the roadmap to get there, who you should speak with and how to prepare for and land informational interviews (and the job ultimately), however if you want to try DIY first, ask yourself these important questions:
If I could choose to do anything right now, what would it be?
Who do I know that’s either in the industry or the job function I want to be in that I could talk to? And if you don’t think you know anyone, ask yourself, who are some people in your life that are ‘connectors’ that might know people in your desired job function or industry that you could ask for an intro?
If I was already in the career I want to be in, what associations would I be a part of? What newsletters would I be subscribed to? What networking events would I go to? This insight will help you feel like more of an insider in a new industry or job function. And then, when you do reach out to people in that area, you’ll be able to show your knowledge and that you’re truly interested and passionate about that area.
Changing careers does not have to be such a daunting task. It can be really exciting and eye-opening if you let it.
You can also take small steps towards a career change rather than a giant leap. The options are endless.
If you want to start exploring the possibility of a career change, book in your free Career Strategy Session here.
Looking forward to creating the career and life you love with you!
Love Loren x
