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new career

How to Handle a Career Change Late in Life

September 7, 2019 by BoomersNextStep Guest Author

How to Handle a Career Change Late in Life

How to Handle a Career Change Late in Life

Changing your career is a nerve-rattling experience no matter what age you are. But it is particularly difficult for individuals who are thinking of career change late in life. For people over 50, there are many factors that may pose an obstacle including age discrimination, lack of financial resources, and opportunity to further education among others. The opportunity cost of switching career is also usually higher.

The challenges ahead may be difficult but there are countless career shifters who had made the change successfully after 50. Some important factors that allowed them to do it include the following: [Read more…] about How to Handle a Career Change Late in Life

Filed Under: Career Change Tagged With: Age Bias, Ageism, career, career advice, career change, career change advice, career change at 40, career change at 50, career transition, Changing Careers, Employment, how to change careers, new career

Is Your Next Step A Career Shift?

September 6, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

Is Your Next Step A Career Shift?

Is your next step a career shift?

Over the last few years many people have been affected by severe career shifts caused by redundancy or problems within the company that employed them. And now, with Covid-19 impacting everything, the problem is much worse for older workers.

Dealing with redundancy

older couple looking worriedRedundancy brings with it many profound emotions.  There is the initial shock.  Few people presume that they will be the one to go even when there have been warnings. Individuals and their families are worrying about their future. This can be compounded by the grief of leaving friends and perceived security.  There may be a sense of anger at the company or at the individual who has made this decision.  Indignation and hurt are personalized:  ‘Why me? Why not someone else who didn’t work as hard?”

In contrast, there is often a sense of relief that the deed has finally been done.  You now know where you stand.  I’ve known situations where redundancy was a cause for celebration, a granting of freedom.

Of course there is no emotional value in redundancy.  It is how you react to it that counts!

Wanting a career shift

[Read more…] about Is Your Next Step A Career Shift?

Filed Under: Career Change, Your Employment Tagged With: career advice, career change, career change advice, career shift, career transition, midlife career change, new career, redundancy

Career Change Strategies Have Changed

September 2, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

Are you aware of the best current career change strategies?

Successful career change strategies have changed over the last twenty years. Anyone who is 40+ has seen business and employment practices revolutionized.  Of course there are advantages and disadvantages innate in every major change. People in their 50s and 60s have also witnessed the entire evolution of the information age. The integration of digital technology has infiltrated into every aspect of our lives.

Successful Career Change StrategiesThe world of work has changed

Some of the changes in the area of employment have been massive. Old jobs have disappeared and new jobs have appeared. Many trades and professions have morphed into something quite different. Of course this has been going on throughout history. [Read more…] about Career Change Strategies Have Changed

Filed Under: Career Change, Your Employment Tagged With: career advice, career change, career change advice, career change at 50, career change strategies, how to change careers, midlife career change, new career, new career at 50, over 50s career change

What Not To Do When Making A Career Change

June 4, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

What Not To Do When Making A Career Change

What Not To Do When Making A Career Change

Are you one of the 13% of people who consider that they are in the right job?  Or, more likely, are you one of the 87% who know that their work isn’t ideal for them but put up with it?  Sometimes people unhappily endure a career that isn’t right for them for the whole of their working life, and tolerate the consequences of unhappiness and frustration.

Others decide to make a career change which can be a difficult, stressful experience for anyone.

You need a clear career direction

Often the reason a person is unhappy because they are in the wrong career altogether.  Basically the job they are supposed to be doing isn’t the right sort of work for them. When this is the situation, no amount of changing jobs – doing the same work somewhere else – is going to make them happy. It’s a career change that is needed.

It’s a big mistake to try and make a career change without first determining what career direction is going to be right for you.  Consulting a professional career practitioner can be a great help to you at this time. Then, with the help of your career coach, you can strategise the best way to move towards the career change you want and take action.

Of course, many major career changes require further study or training before you can make it happen.  In this article we are talking about the sort of career change where you use your transferable skills to show that you have the skills and potential to follow the new career path you have chosen.

Your network

You can be very lucky and successfully make your career change with little effort, but that doesn’t happen for everyone. Successful people make their own opportunities. A related job hunting mistake is to rely on friends, family and other contacts to find you a job. While you absolutely should use your personal network of contacts in any job search, relying on someone else to do all of the work for you will lead you nowhere. Be proactive and do your own job hunting.

Just telling someone that you want to make a career change is not going to make it happen. Your resume needs to show why you could be successful in the career direction you have chosen. Consider all your transferable skills and ensure that they are highlighted and made relevant in the resume you tailor for each job application.

Be very clear about the career direction you want to take and why you are suitable for that type of work.  Understand how your demonstrated skills relate to the new work.  Be prepared to tell people in your network who are in any way related to the sort of work you want.  This is how people make career changes, despite not having had the exact experience in another position.

Applying for too few jobs.

Understand that most applications will not lead to an interview, and most interviews will not result in a successful hiring. As the old saying goes, do not put all of your eggs in one basket. People who apply for just a few jobs find themselves crushed when those few applications do not result in offers. Having plenty of possible opportunities increases the odds that one will work out and takes away much of the sting of rejection.

Using a scattergun approach.

Whilst you shouldn’t make the job search mistake of only applying for a few jobs, nor should you apply generally for everything that is vaguely related to work you could do.  Every job application should be tailored to that specific job, and you just can’t do that if you applying for many jobs every week.

Aiming too low or too high.

Many people approach career change with a pessimistic mindset. These people apply for jobs that are far below their abilities and qualifications, feeling that they need to gain experience in the new chosen career. On the other hand, some people approach job hunting with an overly optimistic outlook. These people apply for jobs that are out of reach, and wind up feeling the sting of rejection. Maintain a realistic outlook with regard to your needs and qualifications, particularly when you don’t yet have a lot of experience in that particular career.

Approaching interviews the wrong way.

Preparation and attitude are the keys to a successful interview. People who do not rehearse their answers to difficult questions lose out to people who do. In particular, most interviews include an open-ended question such as “tell me about yourself.” Not having a prepared answer for such a question dooms many interviewees. Likewise, many interviewees approach an interview with a negative attitude, especially if they are still angry at a former employer. No matter their qualifications, people with negative attitudes spend a long time looking for their next job.

Taking the first offer, no matter what.

A job is more than just a source of income; it is one of the focal points of a person’s life. Accepting an offer is a major decision and should not be taken lightly. Take some time to think about the offer and decide whether the job is really a good fit and whether it leads you closer to the career path you have chosen.

Job search mistakes are unnecessary.

There is so much information available online to help you engage in a successful job search that there really is no excuse to make the most common job hunting mistakes.  If you are not currently successful, evaluate your own job search tactics and learn what you can do to improve your situation.

Related articles:
  • The Job Search When You Are Over 50: Strategies for Overcoming the Stereotypes
  • Are You Using The Best Career Change Strategies?

Contact us today for holistic, supportive Career Counselling/Coaching or go to BoomersNextStep Job Search and dip into our huge library of articles to get immediate assistance.

Career Reno

Are you ready for a midlife career renovation? Get the job that you want! Reinvent yourself and your career. Contact me and let’s talk about your options. Career Reno can help you.

[Updated 11 April 2019]

 

Filed Under: Career Change Tagged With: career advice, career change, career transition, new career

Can You Really Reinvent Your Career?

April 3, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

Hoping to reinvent your career?

If you want to reinvent your career then you are not alone. Millions of people feel the need for a career change.  They crave a powerful life-changing reinvention of themselves and aspects of their everyday life. Like most of them, you are probably bored, frustrated, or feel trapped in your current job.

During the isolation of Covid19 many people found themselves considering a career change.  Many others have lost their jobs and need to change career direction because of this. There are opportunities for work, but no-one is denying that it may be a tough job market for a year or two.

Can You Really Reinvent Your Career?You can make a successful major change in your life but to do so you have to be prepared to courageously work through three factors

  1. Who you really are and what you really want and need in your life –your “why”, the life you want, your passions and purpose
  2. What you are capable of – your skills and experience, your innate special traits and strengths, your personal ‘magic’
  3. Under what conditions you work best, how long you want to work and the optimal most productive working environment for you now.

The best career changes happen when all of these issues are addressed, then the outcomes blended to create the unique mix that will be best for you.

Of course then reality rears its ugly head and it is essential to evaluate if what you want is possible.  If it is feasible then what strategies do you need to use to make it all happen?

Why do you want to change your career?

[Read more…] about Can You Really Reinvent Your Career?

Filed Under: Career Change, Your Employment Tagged With: career change, change your career, how to change careers, making a career change, new career, reinvent your career, switching careers

Are You Using The Best Career Change Strategies?

April 3, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

 

Do you have a career change strategy?

Implementing the best career change strategies can be your secret weapon for success when you need to make career decisions and commence your job search.

If you are reading this article, I presume that you have reached the point when you are clear that changing your career is a very likely option for you. Good – Realization is only a few steps away from making a decision, which is only a few steps away from taking an action, so you are definitely on the right track! You don’t need to tear your hair out about it!

To help you move from the “thinking stage” to the “action stage”, let me introduce the following strategies to you. I am sure they can make you better prepared for what lies ahead on this adventure called “career change”.

[Read more…] about Are You Using The Best Career Change Strategies?

Filed Under: Career Change, Your Employment Tagged With: career change, career change advice, career change at 40, career change at 50, career change strategies, Changing Careers, midlife career change, new career, switching careers

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