Top tips for changing job or career
There are many reasons why people decide to change their job or career and one of the most important things to do is to reflect on why you are seeking a change. Knowing the answers to this will help steer you in the right direction and there are lots of things you can do to get to the right place:
- Think about your interests and what motivates you
- Think about your values and what's important to you e.g. financial, job satisfaction, location
- Think about what you are good at and identify your transferrable skills
- Think about what type of employer you would like to work for e.g. small business, public sector, charity or large corporate company
- Look at job sectors that are growing and where there are likely to be lots of job opportunities
- Find out as much as you can about different jobs and careers by doing online research, talking to people you know, networking via LinkedIn, attending job fairs
- Consider doing some work experience of job shadowing
- Identify if you need to do a course or gain more qualifications for a new job or career
- Take an online careers matching assessment such as Prospects Career Planner, Career Aptitude Test
- Contact the National Careers Service for careers advice
- Update your CV and if you are changing to a different type of job or career highlight your transferrable skills.
If you are 50+ you may want to have a look at Lifepilot's section on Retraining for people aged 50+