Tell me, how many articles on changing careers have you read so far?

That's what I thought.

By the end of this post, you will have a firm understanding of career changes and how they can fulfill your dreams.

Because “Career Change” is such a dense and complex topic, we will be spending a lot of time together.

As a career coach with over 20 years of experience helping folx figure out what they want to do, I have made it my mission to help people like you create careers that they actually enjoy.

Do you want to know more about how to change careers with the least amount of friction possible? Have a look over here for a free workshop to get you started.

Let's dive into everything you need to know about changing careers. You'll be a master of it in no time!

Psst…Want to download this guide so you can keep it handy? I created a downloadable PDF so you can do just that.

Download the Career Change Starter Kit now >>

Career Change Element #1: How to change your career when you have no idea?

Before we delve into exactly how to change careers, we need to look at how to change careers when you have no idea.

What many people get wrong about making a career change is thinking you can only have a successful career change by focusing on the skills you posses.

So what you need to understand to be successful is that you need to start not with your skills, but with your values.

For example, my client James ended up switching from the healthcare “industry” to working with his hands. He was burnt out on what the industry actually valued (hint, not people or health) and he wanted to do something where not only could he see the fruits of his labor but he actually helped people and made them happy. He’s gone on to be a successful contractor/builder/designer and is living his values.

Don't be scared to get personal with your professional. Knowing who you are will allow you to find work that actually works for you.

How to prepare for changing careers

Before you jump in and do the thing, there are some things you can do upfront to ensure it goes as smoothly as possible. It’s important to set some guidelines and goals so that you can create a clear roadmap for yourself.

You've got an internal compass that you use every day to direct and define your experience on this planet whether you realize it or not.

Your values and priorities, while they can change, are wired in deep at the core of who you are. They help you know what's important to you and help you create meaning in your life.

They're also the powerful foundations for any kind of meaningful goal. So let's get started with defining what they ARE, shall we?

Here are some other tips to ensure success:

Do your best to not compare your career journey and outcomes to others. Comparison really is the thief of joy.
Do set goals and milestones that truly resonate with you and your values and not what you believe is “supposed” to be the right path.
Do let yourself think past set expectations of what you believe to be possible. Your literally can’t know what’s doable until you give it a shot.

Career Change Element #2: Finding your unique career doesn't have to be rocket science

Figuring out your ideal job can be as straightforward or complicated as you make it.

I’m not saying it’s easy. This is a crucial step that many people struggle with, even after they have spent months or even years trying to find a unique job that pays well. It’s actually pretty common to shift gears once you’ve decided on a new career for a while and it’s time to tweak it to make it your ideal job.

But what’s important when you’re just starting out is to keep your momentum going. Too many people procrastinate making a decision with their career change and then they have a hard time moving forward because they are scared.

So if you’ve been struggling with the fear, this post will guide you through the process from start to finish.

Your ideal career is absolutely personal and only you can decide what it truly is. Some questions you can ask yourself to better define what work would actually make you happy are:

What are your top priorities in your life right now?
What activities make you feel inspired/purposeful/powerful? Why?
What do you want to accomplish through your work?
When you are at your absolute best, who are you being?
Imagine you just had an ideal week. What three things did you do/tasks did you complete?

Career Change Element #3: Yes, you have a career narrative

Did you shake your head and think, “My career doesn't have a story, I’m just bumbling along like everyone else”?

Let’s talk about that for a minute.

Every career has a narrative. Think about what makes you unique and your journey make sense. For me (before I put the pieces together) I couldn’t see that my two big career changes had any story other than “This lady has no idea what to do.” But going from teaching to staffing to coaching is the story of someone who absolutely loves helping people figure things out. Things like who they are and what they want to do and what makes them happy.

Things to think about when it comes to your career narrative:

What do your past experiences have in common? Look for the string that ties all your past work experiences together.
Where are you heading in my future? Suss out what all those experiences have meant in terms of where you’re headed now.
What is your greatest accomplishment? This can be from school, work, your life, anywhere. But think about why you consider it such an accomplishment.

Career Change Element #4: Find your ideal career.

When you think about your career, what do you consider to be your biggest hurdle when it comes to being happy in it? It’s time for a little professional growth, career planning, self-assessment.

Hear me out. You have to be specific, because you will gain more clarity on what you bring to the table as a candidate and why you should be a no brainer hire in your ideal career. Hey, dream big!

One of the best ways to get crystal clear on what your ideal career would look like is to take a personal deep dive. Start a journal, meditate, put sticky notes on the wall - whatever makes the most sense for you, but you want to get dep and honest about what your sticking points are and how (or if) you want to overcome them.

If you don’t drill down and get specific you’ll find yourself in the same place you are now, only doing it from the other side of a career change.

If you think you don’t have time for this, let me tell you that you’ll be wasting time if you skip it. You will spend months and months researching available careers and roles out there and talking to the wrong people and then not be able to change into a career that actually makes you happy.

Career Change Element #5: Align your work values with your values

Chances are when you imagine what your career should represent, you haven’t actually thought about it too deeply.

This isn't necessarily wrong but you really want to know your values and make sure your career and work are in alignment.

If you focus on what you actually value (not what you’ve been told to think of as important), your values will show through, attract the right employers and allow you to find some meaning in your work.

When Mel first came to me, she was struggling to get clear on her personal values. By the end of our time together, she became crystal clear on her values and how they informed her priorities. She then ended up changing careers from one that was “ok” to one that absolutely resonated with those same values, completely re energizing her work and her longtime goals.

Career Change Element #6: Find your work purpose

Whew! You're halfway through this guide on changing careers. How are you doing? Full speed ahead or flagging? Grab yourself a cup of whatever makes you happy to keep you going.

If you've been paying attention so far, you may be wondering, “How exactly do I find my “purpose”? Does my career even have to have a bigger purpose?”

The answer? No.

Surprised? I don’t believe that you need (or should) to dig that deep. Your work shouldn’t necessarily be your life’s purpose. Should it allow you the life you want to live and feel that you’re being true to yourself? Absolutely. Should it be your “dream” job and be the container for all your hopes and sense of purpose? Whoa. No.

This isn’t about “finding your purpose” or “finding your passion” this is about outlining what you want your career to do for you.

In a nutshell, here’s what it looks like find meaning in your work without worrying about finding your purpose:

Step #1: Clarify what you want your career to provide you
Step #2: Identify your values and priorities as you understand them to be today
Step #3: Determine what makes you feel empowered, inspired and/or purposeful
Step #4: Based on your parameters decided on in steps 1-3, research what roles and fields fall in line with them

These steps are just the tip of it. I have this in-depth blog post Navigating the Career Maze: The Ultimate Guide to Finding Your Perfect Fit

Career Change Element #7: Consider the career pivot

Have you heard of career pivot before? Don't worry, there is no shaming here if you haven't.

While career switch and career transition are more well-known in, going for a career pivot isn't discussed as often.

A career pivot is exactly what it sounds like. You’re not making a drastic change or transition but simply… pivoting. This might mean taking on a different role in your field or the same role in a different field, or changing industries but keeping the same title, role responsibilities and goals. For most people this means moving just a little. Either by taking on new responsibilities or expanding your purview.

I am no gatekeeper over here at EB Sanders Coaching! I love sharing all the ins and outs of all things career, and career pivot is one of those less obvious parts that many overlook and then they think they have to throw everything out and start from scratch with a complete career change as a result.

Career pivot is doing what you do in a slightly different way. That’s it.

In other words, let’s say you’re an office manager and you pivot to project management in the same field (maybe even same organization). The roles have lots of overlap but they are distinct and different enough to technically be a different career.

Here’s how you can add career pivot to your new career possibilities research:

Audit all the tasks, role responsibilities and skills you engage with in your current role.
List all the role responsibilities you’d like to take on.
Brainstorm multiple ways you could do that with as little friction as possible.

Career Change Element #8: Shout out your professional reinvention

Professional reinvention is where you take everything you've learned so far about your ideal career, your career narrative, and personal branding to create the perfect “recipe”- e.g., spot-on sales materials that resonate and pull people in.

Fact is, you can’t create the career of your dreams without having all your other marketing materials in place. Sorry, no shortcuts!

What am I even talking about? Your LinkedIn profile, a resume that resonates, and if it makes sense a portfolio or website to highlight your work.

To help you get started, here are some deep dives into each of these:

Career Change Element #9: Your action plan

Shout out to everyone who's still reading at this point. We’re just about there!

Now that you’ve thought deeply and made some decisions about your career change it’s time to make an action plan. You might be getting excited about future possibilities and just want to get going but unless you make a detailed action plan you will find yourself most likely overwhelmed.

When you're creating your career change action plan, here are some things you need to consider:

Thing #1. – What is your end goal? Unless you are very clear on exactly what it is you want to do, you will waste time and effort.
Thing #2. – Start with your end goal and reverse engineer all the milestones, action items, tasks and to do’s you’ll need to hit to make sure you reach your goal.
Thing #3. - Think about what you will need during this process to keep from being overwhelmed and to stay motivated. Make sure you set up the support system that will help you succeed.

For me, this was the most important thing I learned during my first career change. I didn’t have a plan and I just went into all a willy nilly. Not only did it take me years to change careers, I was overwhelmed, stressed out, confused and stressed. Did I mention stressed?

For my second career change I mapped out everything in detail (maybe a bit obsessively) but it served me well. I was able to make a complete change in a fraction of the time, with way less overwhelm and minimal stress.

If you’d like some help with all this, head here:

Career Change Element #10: Networking matters, a lot

Ding, ding, ding, here we are at your career change!

This is my favorite element of the whole process. I know I say that in every post, but this time it's because when people learn to enjoy networkings, it takes their career to a whole new level. Gone are the days of feeling like an imposter looking from the outside in.

Do you remember when I said you needed an optimized LinkedIn profile?

You might have read that and rolled your eyes, but now I hope you can see how setting yourself up for networking success is setting yourself up to actually enjoy your work.

If you approach it as meeting and hanging out with nice folx who share interests with you, it becomes a whole different ballgame.

Key Takeaways

I hope this mammoth post about changing careers has made the puzzle pieces of finding a unique job, creating meaningful work, and crafting your ideal life come together in your mind.

I have all the faith that you will not only figure out what your “dream” job is but create a plan that allows you to get that gig!

If you have any questions, reach out here or on Instagram. There are no wrong questions, and I am always happy to hear from you!

A final tip for you for reading through to the very end:

All of your hard work put into your career will pay off. Do not give up. Rock that career change. You're getting your happy future! I am so excited for you.

Don’t forget to download your Career Change Starter Kit below…