Taking Action towards your Career Transition

The prospect of making a career change is very exciting and can represent a new chapter in your life and yet, for most, it proves to be daunting task. It can appear like an insurmountable mountain and the trek to the top appears formidable and intimidating. While planning and setting realistic goals are an important part of making your next career move, the mind’s tendency will often overthink a situation and trap you into a state of analysis-paralysis. In order to make a change, you need to take the initial small steps along that path to reach your goal. This can manifest in multiple ways.

  • Make Your Career Search a Priority

Commit to yourself by carving out the time necessary to explore your possibilities. Creating a structured approach to your career transition is a key success factor.

In one instance, I had a client who was very eager to make a professional move but when we looked into the way she spent her weekly time, it was never a priority in her calendar. She only began to see progress in her search once she started to dedicate one hour a day towards her goal. Organizing your time and sticking to a schedule will help you take the necessary steps forward.

  • Hold Yourself Accountable

Think of strategies to show up for yourself and be personally accountable for your career change. For example, many find it helpful to set micro goals and create tasks that involve making a commitment to others. By setting up small action items that require you to deliver, you set into motion the building blocks towards your greater goal.

  • Strive for Progress, Not Perfection

One client shared his long list of requisites for making a career move. I commented to him, “When I look at your list, I see this perfect job! They only thing is that I am not sure if it exists”. I have seen many situations in which looking for the “perfect” outcome prevented professionals from expanding their options and being open to new opportunities. Looking for perfection, coupled with the fear of failure, most often creates the perfect formula for staying stuck in a job that you’re not happy with. To move your career search forward, you need to get yourself moving.

  • Action Trumps Clarity

Take small risks and test reality to try out your possible selves. Seek out experiences like volunteering, taking on small projects, shadowing a friend or doing freelance work to better understand your likes and dislikes. Use this time of “dating” your next professional step for self-exploration and trying on different personas. I don’t know anyone who has ever “thought” him/herself into a new career… you just need to act!

  • Expand Your Network

If you are looking to make a career change, most likely you won’t find the answer within your existing network. Expand your relationships to include people in the potential positions or fields you’d like to see yourself in. Exchanging experiences with professionals in the areas of your interest can plant ideas that you hadn’t contemplated before and can catapult your next step in your career transition.

  • Don’t Go It Alone

Everyone I’ve seen go through a career move states that it was crucial to count with the support of others to accomplish their goal. Some found it to be extremely valuable to exchange ideas with people that were also on the same journey. Others had a professional coach or a trusted advisor to help with exploring possibilities and creating accountability. Many encountered opportunities by making the effort of expanding their network. In short, don’t go it alone, reach out and rely on the help of others – as with most things in life, you’ll find strength in numbers.

 

As one of my favorite quotes by Pablo Picasso states: “Action is the foundational key to all success”. By taking small steps and testing different possibilities, you will find yourself moving towards your new professional identity. Sure, there are some famed stories out there of successful people who have that “A-ha” moment, and their next career finds them rather than the other way around. But for most, it will require you to take the initiative. You’re not going to transition into a new career by just thinking or analyzing. You need to move by doing.