Dr Elena?s Life By Design Life Coaching Services

Considering a Career Change? Read This

Many years ago when I was personal training at a gym, I found myself training a career coach. She told me that in her opinion, the average person goes through seven career changes during the course of their working lifetime. This sounded like a lot to me; it was possibly more career changes than anyone I personally knew had undertaken. However, her comment does highlight that career changes are a part of modern life for most people, and a common cause of much anxiety, stress and worry in many cases.

Some career changes are a natural evolution of an existing role, some are a complete change from the familiar and known, some are chosen and some are forced upon us.

My career change, or addition to as it presently is, is one of choice and lengthy contemplation of what I want out of life now compared to 5 to 10 years ago, and contemplation upon how I like life to look in the next 5, 10 or more years.

One may ask why I would look beyond such a blessed career such as being a veterinarian, and that is a good question. As much as being a veterinarian is one of my greatest blessings, achievements, and joys, there are some things I now seek in life that being a vet cannot offer me.

The ability to work autonomously from home is big motivation. And the ability to explore and share my life experience and all I have learned and continue to learn on my never-ending quest to improve and evolve. There are so many tools and strategies, and useful solutions to many of life’s challenges I have acquired that I desire to share with people. I want to be part of someone else’s growth and development. All this and more cannot be achieved by just practicing veterinary.    

If a career change is not a natural progression and evolution of one’s present occupation, chances are there is some considerable soul searching and decision making, maybe a fair bit of angst involved in a career change. Regardless of whether it is a chosen one or a change that feels forced on you for any reason.

Try this:

“If you are afraid to consider a career change, whether the change is one you choose or forced upon you, you may experience fear and anxiety of the unknown and reluctance to change.”

Some questions you would want to ask yourself are:

      • What do I actually want to do with my life?

      • Do I have the skills right now or do I need to upskill?

      • What is involved in upskilling?

      • Can I make the upskilling work both time-wise and financially in light of present commitments?

      • Do I have the enthusiasm, commitment, motivation and drive to do what has been identified by answering the above questions?

I will cover the rest of the questions above in my next blog but for now let’s examine the first most important question we need answer. Identifying what we actually truly want to do is often the most difficult part of all. It often involves looking through thoughts, ideas, belief systems and prejudices we have had instilled into us at such a young age.Often we are not even aware they exist. The whisper of our soul’s calling of often not heard over the noise of these ideas and beliefs.

Here is one way to start identifying the vocation that will be most true to and fulfilling for you. Think back to when you were a little child - preschooler or primary school age. What were your natural inclinations then? What did you naturally enjoy and find yourself drawn to before you bought the story that stopped your thoughts of developing in that direction.

You know, THAT story created by well-meaning loving adults telling you it isn’t masculine or feminine enough to do that job. It says you are not smart enough or that you need to get a ‘real’ job, something more ‘professional’ and esteemed? It tells you that what you want to do will never make you money, or that your family simply do or do not do a certain line of work.

Perhaps you were teased at some level about your natural interests and inclinations and so you dropped them. Perhaps you just didn't feel (or were told) you were not good enough in your area of interest as a child?

I remember teachers stopping me in the corridors of school during 6th form telling me to give up on choosing veterinary as a career as I just was not bright enough. The cheek of them!!

I was very blessed to have the unconditional support of my parents as a child when choosing veterinary as a career, even though I suspect they secretly doubted if I would get there!

Go ahead. Go to the dark recesses of your memory, to what you naturally loved and were drawn to as a child. Whatever is, however uncomfortable it may make you feel, and however much it may go against what you believe you ‘should or should not’ do for your vocation.

Write a list.

Now, choose 10 people you trust to be absolutely honest with you, who know you best, whom you trust have your best at heart. Ask them to email you a list of 3 vocations that they see would suit your innate nature, personality and strengths.

Compare their lists with your list. What is the common denominator or most commonly listed vocation? How does that sit with you?

Now list on paper your gut feelings and all the objections and arguments your rational mind throws up immediately? Remember this – your conscious mind likes security and stability and will object immediately to any suggestion of change. That is why writing things down is so important – so you can see through this trick of the mind and its objections.

If I can be of help with you working through this process give me a call or email. I have done and lived this! It is a process I use time and time again in my life.