How to Make a Career Change
In this episode, our host Porschia gently explores the journey of making a career change—a step that can feel both exciting and overwhelming. If you’re feeling unfulfilled or curious about a new direction, this conversation offers encouragement and guidance to help you take that next step.
Porschia discusses how to recognize when it’s time for a change, navigate common challenges, and approach the transition with clarity and confidence.
Through practical insights on self-reflection, building connections, and creating a career path aligned with your goals, this episode provides the tools to help you embrace new possibilities.
Tune in for thoughtful advice and inspiration to help you move closer to a career that brings you purpose and joy!
What You’ll Learn:
- 5 common signs that it might be time for a career change.
- Practical steps to explore new career paths, from self-assessment to building transferable skills.
- The importance of leveraging support systems, including mentors, career coaches, and professional networks.
- 5 key challenges professionals face when considering a career transition and how to overcome them.
- Tips for how to make a career change and aligning your career change with your values, passions, and long-term goals.
- Strategies for maintaining confidence and navigating uncertainty during a career transition.
As a thank you for listening to this episode of the Career 101 Podcast, we are sharing our FREE master class – Career 911: Solving the Top 5 Challenges Executives and Professionals Have! It’s a training based on solving the common problems our clients have experienced to reach their goals. You can get access to the master class here!
Resources:
- Episode Transcript
Porschia: [00:00:00] Happy New Year. I love the beginning of the year because for many people it is filled with feelings and thoughts of creating something new, a renewed sense of energy, and just overall passion. Today we are diving into a topic that resonates with many of us at some point in our lives. Making a career change.
Whether you’re feeling stuck, uninspired, or simply curious [00:01:00] about what’s next, this episode has insights, strategies, and tools to help you make informed and confident decisions. The first thing I want to address is the question, what is a career change? A career change isn’t just switching jobs. It’s a deliberate decision to shift your professional focus to something else.
Industry or role. This could mean moving from finance to tech, transitioning from a corporate role to entrepreneurship, or even stepping into a completely new sector. It’s a significant move that often requires recalibrating and sharpening your skills, rethinking your goals, and re imagining your professional identity.
A career change is not just about what you do, but also about who you become in the process. We have some great episodes on career transitions that aired a while ago. [00:02:00] Be sure to check out episode 39 career transition 101 on how to make a career transition, which is a conversation I had with an amazing and multifaceted professional who transitioned from professional wrestling to the corporate world.
To law. And then finally academia as a professor. Another episode that might be interesting to you is episode 58 career transition 102, where I talk about an international job search with a professional career coach based in Australia. After coaching hundreds of clients, a question I’ve heard more times than I can count is How do you know it’s time for a career change?
Here are five common signs that it might be time to explore a new path. 1. Chronic dissatisfaction. [00:03:00] Do you find yourself dreading Mondays? I had a client in the past who called this the Sunday sads, a consistent lack of enthusiasm or engagement in your work is a strong indicator. Number two, value misalignment.
When your personal values no longer align with your organization’s culture or mission, it can create a persistent feeling of disconnect. Number three, stagnation. If your growth has plateaued, whether in skills, opportunities, or compensation, it might be time to consider greener pastures elsewhere. Number four, burnout or stress.
A demanding role can sometimes take a toll on your physical and mental health. If you think you’re experiencing burnout, I recommend that you check out episode [00:04:00] 48. I have a great conversation with a burnout expert on burnout in the workplace. And then in episode 84, where I talked to another highly accomplished career coach, and that is called Burnout 102 Burnout Stages.
Number five, a passion for something else. If you find yourself drawn to another field or endeavor, it’s worth exploring whether that spark could lead to something more fulfilling. So I know a lot of you might be listening and now you’re sure that, Hey, I know that I need to make a career change.
However, there are quite a few challenges I’ve seen professionals and executives struggle with when it comes to career changes. Let’s explore what makes career changes so difficult. Making a career change can be intimidating, [00:05:00] especially for professionals at the mid to senior level. So here are five reasons why I’ve seen people hesitate.
Number one is fear of the unknown. Walking away from stability for something uncertain is daunting. Most people are risk averse and their friends and their family members are too. Number two. Financial concerns transitioning might mean taking a pay cut or starting at a lower level in a new field. A common thing I hear people say is I want to make a career change, but I don’t want to start at the bottom.
And to a lot of people starting at the bottom is usually tied with a lower salary than they’d want. So this is something to think about. You don’t always have to start at the bottom and we help our clients to avoid that in many cases. Number three, skill gaps. You may worry about [00:06:00] whether your skills are transferable or whether you need additional training.
Number four, perception and judgment. So this involves concerns about how family members, peers, or employers will view your decision. And this can be a barrier for people when it comes to ever making a career change. And number five. Decision paralysis, a. k. [00:07:00] a. analysis paralysis. With so many options, choosing the right path can feel overwhelming.
This is perhaps one of the most difficult aspects of making a career change. If you don’t have a solid process for planning and managing your career, then making a career change could cause you to take several steps back from where you want to be. And that’s Part of the reason why I created our Brave Bird Career Alliance membership, because I saw all of the mistakes and things that people were struggling with.
And I also saw that there really needed to be a systematic and convenient way to access the right information and support when you need it in real time. And the final thing that I want to touch on in this episode is leveraging support systems. If you’ve been listening to this podcast for a while, that I talk a lot about [00:08:00] having a career support system, and that’s different than your personal support system.
If you want to dive deeper into my thoughts on this, check out episode 19 support system, one on one how to build a support system for your career and episode 20 community one on one three ways a community supports career success. Fortunately, you don’t have to navigate this journey alone. So let’s explore how some professional allies can help.
Number one, career coaches. So a professional career coach helps you assess your strengths, clarify your goals, and create an action plan. They’re especially helpful in overcoming self doubt and identifying transferable skills. We help our clients with all of that and more. Number two, mentors, a trusted mentor can provide industry specific advice, [00:09:00] share their own experiences and help you build confidence.
They’re invaluable for perspectives and support. And number three recruiters. So if you’re looking to transition within the same field or a closely related one, recruiters can be instrumental in connecting you with opportunities that align with your goals. With all that in mind, let’s talk about taking some action.
I’m going to review five actionable steps to start your career change today. So these are some steps to get you moving in the right direction. Number one, self assessment. Identify your skills, values, and passions. Use SWOT analysis or professional personality assessments to gain clarity. I think personality assessments are some of the best tools to help you with career development.
In episode [00:10:00] 90, I talk about personality 101, understanding your personality with the MBTI assessment. And in episode 91, I talked to a great career coach about strengths based assessments for your career. Number two is research. So dive into your target industry or role. What skills are on demand? Who are the key players?
Number three, networking. Reach out to connections who can provide insight into your desired field. Attend industry events or join relevant LinkedIn groups. I’ve interviewed some networking experts on the podcast. In episode 10, we talk about Networking 101, how to network and the top networking questions to ask.
And in episode 50 on Networking 102, networking for career success, We dive even deeper into the importance of networking and [00:11:00] how you can customize your approach. Number four is upskilling. So investing in courses, certifications, or workshops to bridge any skills gaps that you have. Number five. Build your brand.
So update your resume, your LinkedIn profile, and professional materials to reflect your new direction. As you can guess, we have some beneficial episodes on professional branding too. Check out episode six, personal branding 101. What is a personal brand? And episode 74, personal branding 102. Personal branding tips.
You’ll find a ton of information there. A career change can be one of the most transformative experiences of your professional life. While it’s challenging, it’s also an opportunity to realign your work with your purpose, passion, and potential. [00:12:00] If you’re contemplating a change, remember You’re not alone.
Lean on mentors, career coaches, and recruiters to take it one step at a time. The next chapter of your career is waiting, and it could be the most fulfilling one yet. [00:13:00]
