Feeling the need for a career change is not a particularly uncommon problem. In fact, you might say that it’s the majority that, at some point, has some doubts about the trajectory that they’re following. However, while you might need a change, it doesn’t always have to be quite as drastic as changing the entire field of work that you’re in. Here are some ways to find change without needing to up-end your life.
Look for work in a different environment
If you don’t like your work environment, how little work-life balance you have, or even the people that you work with, then you should realize that all these things are likely to change if you simply get the same job in a different company. You might want to ensure that you avoid a work situation like yours and prevent it from happening ever again and the best way to do that is to keep in mind what you should be looking for from an employer when job searching. Get a better idea of the workplace culture that you want to join, as well as what benefits you might want when joining a new company. The more specialized the labor you provide, the higher your standards can typically be.
Choose a different specialization
One of the problems about changing careers when you’re in a somewhat specialized field is that you might not have a lot of easily transferable skills that you can bring to your next line of work. So, rather than moving out of that one specialized career route, how about you specialize it even further? There are many careers that offer the ability to niche down. If you’re an accountant, for instance, then you can look at qualifications like COPAS for oil & gas accounting CPE courses that allow you to switch industries while still doing the same kind of work. It will still take some training and time for education, but it might be a lot easier to make the transition than to try an entirely new discipline.
Break out on your own
One of the truths that are quickly becoming apparent to laborers of all stripes is that, in many cases, if an employer is willing to pay you to do it, they may also be able to outsource it. So, instead of moving from employer to employer, you could move from employee to freelancer. Back to the example of the accountant, rather than going to work for another company and handle their finances alone, you could instead become a freelance accountant, helping multiple clients as and when they need. Freelancing is running your own business, so you will find it still demands new skills from you, such as the ability to market yourself effectively, but it also allows you a much greater share of the returns.
Take a look at your career and what it is that you don’t like about it. It might not be the specifics of the work itself, but the location, the work-life balance, or even just the subject matter that you don’t like. When it comes to those problems, you do have options.
