[Continued from “How to Plan for a Successful Career Change – Part 1“]

What to Consider Before a Career Change

Okay, so you know your current role is lame and you could really rock the career ladder somewhere else. But how do you plan for making a serious career change? Let’s dive into the considerations before you dive into submitting your resume.

Impact on Your Resume – Short Employments

Watch out for the appearance of job-hopping on your resume. Short employment durations can look suspicious or flighty, but that doesn’t mean you can’t leave a bad job quickly! Longer durations in each role look good on your resume. So if you need to leave a bad job in a hurry, have a pleasant yet understandable explanation like “There was no opportunity for upward mobility” (instead of saying “My boss was a toxic psycho”).

Gaining Clarity on Your Path Forward

Reflect on yourself and your goals. You want to make sure this career pivot is both the right choice and a powerful first step in your new direction. Finding a good fit means having clarity on what you’re really looking for. Explore the career paths you do want to take, your preferences for work culture, and how you personally would like to avoid burnout in any new roles you take.

The Financial Impact of Making a Change

Assess your finances and be careful about the career change. Never leave yourself high and dry without an income if you can help it. Quietly wrap up your current role tasks and line up interviews before announcing your departure. When a new role has made an offer and you’ve accepted, then give your two-week notice so that you spend the least amount of time between incomes.

Timing and Employee Bonuses

You may want to consider special terms of your current employment. Many professionals try to use up their annual medical insurance allotment in a year and catch that last wave of employee-perk bonuses when planning their departure schedule.

Making the Change

Finally, you’re ready to make your big career change. Now that you’ve gone over the pre-considerations, be ready to dive into the job transition process and embrace the challenge of onboarding for a new role.

Search Your Next Job

Take that clarity you gained from self-reflection and apply it to your job search. Look for company culture, the tasks for each role, the employee development programs, the insurance and perks, and your opportunities for upward mobility in every role you research.

Find things that interest you and match your skills. Try a few jobs that you’ll need to learn skills for but have the right starting place. Define your new direction by how and where you apply.

Strategy on Your Career Upgrade

Build your career change strategy. It can help to write out your plan from beginning to end. Start with your goals in the job search and end with the quitting/onboarding process of making the transition. Make a plan for financial changes, tiding over the gap, and transferring your retirement funds to the new program. Be sure you’re ready before making this change in your life – and you’ll rock an otherwise uncertain process.

Mindset for Success

Get yourself into the right mindset to succeed. Try a new hairstyle to make your scalp and brain feel new and powerful in the morning. Practice new skills you want to apply to the new job. Conduct your phone calls with confidence and remember to get excited about all the great new aspects of the job you look forward to. This will help you enter your new role with the pizazz of someone who’s made a fantastic career change for a brighter future.

Let Us Help You With Your Career Change

As a professional, you may be looking at the idea of a career change very seriously. The potential for gains may be high but you are also weighing the risks of a new employer and even a new set of skills in the months to come. If you move carefully, establishing the next job before leaving your current role, then you can absolutely embrace a rewarding career change while maintaining your financial and time obligations to your family. Contact us to get started on your career change.