Career & Job Transitions

The average person will change careers 5 times in their life. It usually hits people for the first time around the age of 33. The feeling they have achieved most of what they wanted to in their career, and yet they feel depressed at the prospect of another 30 years doing the same job. So what should you do if you have decided it is time for a career change? It's very simple when you know what you want to do next, but for a lot of people it's not that clear. People know they are in the wrong job, but they don't know what they really want to do. An astonishing 80% of us end up in the wrong job. We finish school, and go through our twenties conforming to what other people want us to do. That's often a solid career with a professional qualification. But most people aren't maturing until their early twenties, and before that we tend to listen to other people's opinions of what we should do with our lives, rather than our own. Our idea is to go to college with the intention of getting a job in the end that we can make a lot of money at, and hopefully having some fun in the process. We’re not thinking about the importance of being fulfilled in an occupation where we will spend the majority of our time for the next 45 years. Instead people encourage us to be successful, to go for money, the status, the big car, the title, but when we get all that, we often find we’re not happy. At any point in our career we may decide that we want to find fulfillment instead. Sound like you? Then changing your career could be the best decision you ever make. For most people, a major career change is a very positive experience and nearly always a success story. If you can find a role that you love, the change will be totally invigorating. However, most people are scared to make the move because they are frightened of failure. People feel that they are 'giving everything up' if they leave a job they have worked at for years. On the contrary, those that make the change are astonished that the skills they have acquired move with them from job to job. But the unfortunate truth is that the current unemployment rate is 8.6%. The average time a person holds a job now is only 4.1 years. Consequently, The average person will change job 10 times in their lifetime. In fact, 25% of all employed people will change their jobs this year. Of the ones that don’t change this year, change is likely on the horizon, due to the turnover mentioned earlier and because 25% of all employed people are significantly dissatisfied with their job – the leading cause of poor performance and ultimate job loss. So the bottom line is that if you are not transitioning now, you likely will be soon – whether you plan to or not. What's important for you beforehand is to spend some time thinking about what you require from a job/career - in other words getting to know yourself better. Ask yourself questions like “if you were to be run over by a bus, what would you like to have done and to have left behind.” Talk to someone you trust about your plans and ask their advice. If possible, choose someone who has made a major career change – like myself. The typical life coach won't tell you what job you should be in or give you any answers. Instead, he will ask tough questions and challenge you about what you want out of life. At Truth@Life, I approach this a little differently. I’ll ask you the tough questions and challenge you about what you want out of life, but then use a proven process to guide you to specific answers. The process involves the use of 7 different assessment tools. I’ve used this process on myself, my own children, and dozens of other professionals. It works whether you are considering a possible transition, actively planning a transition, or currently in the middle of a transition (unemployed). Your satisfaction is guaranteed. I’d love to talk to you personally. For more on help I can provide and how you can reach me, check out… http://truthatlife.com/ or email me directly at curtis.songer@gmail.com