Tips for Successful Career Change

Tips for Successful Career Change

 

If you are thinking it is time for a career change, this blog is for you!  As you face the doubts and uncertainty of a career change, as well as the fear of not knowing how to proceed, consider the following 10 tips to guide your thinking.

1.  Engage in Self-Reflection: Many people change careers because they dislike their current job, boss, or company. Before taking the plunge, you must examine why you are interested in a change. It is easy to focus on what we dislike, but consider what you have enjoyed about your work experience so far. What are tasks you enjoyed to do, and which tasks are those you would prefer to avoid in the future?
2.  Assess your Skills/Abilities, Interests, and Values: Seek out the services of a qualified career development professional to administer assessments and guide you to a greater understanding of your skills, interests, and values. Review your volunteer activities and ways you like to spend your free time. Survey past coworkers to gain insight into what you do well. Review past performance evaluations to uncover your unique skillset and the abilities that former supervisors valued most.
3.  Brainstorm Ideas for Career Alternatives:  Review your core values, interests, and skillset along with any career assessment results for potential career suggestions. Look at the lists of likes and dislikes you identified during self-reflection – are there underlying themes? Identify career fields that might be of interest to you.
4. Research New Careers and Fields of Interest: Visit your local library to access online career resources such as www.ONetOnline.org to secure information regarding pay, demand, and future outlook. Review standard qualifications and educational requirements for the desired occupation. Conduct informational interviews and/or job shadowing experiences with professionals in your field(s) of interest. Discover roles and responsibilities, educational background, and paths to success in the field. Utilize the information to explore if the occupation would be a good fit for you.
5. Identify Transferable Skills: Successful career changes are often built, in part, on your transferable skills. Review your skills and abilities – such as customer service, communication, and problem solving – that you would apply to your new career.
6. Develop a Career Plan: Develop your career goal and a plan with specific, measurable objectives to meet the goal. Implement the plan, making appropriate adjustments as new information becomes available.
7. Immerse yourself in the Field – and NETWORK: Become an expert in your new career field. Join professional organizations. Read journals or online articles related to your area of interest. Become familiar with rules and regulations governing the industry. Network every day with professionals in your new field and related fields. Use social media, along with face to face networking, to expand your circle of contacts.
8. Gain Experience through Volunteering: Identify volunteer opportunities that will allow you to gain experience in your field of interest. Also explore opportunities for part-time employment or temporary work as you pursue your new career. Explore every opportunity possible to add additional qualifications to your résumé.
9. Recognize Training and Educational Needs: Explore what additional education, training, and/or certifications are necessary to compete in the new field. Determine the best options to secure the necessary education, and enroll in a program or course of study that bests fit your needs.
10. Create a Successful Self-Marketing Package: Work with a career development professional to develop a résumé and cover letter that will help you stand out as a successful candidate in your new career. Meet with an interviewing expert to enhance your interview skills. Learn how to best present your work experience along with transferable skills and abilities to a potential employer. Discover how to overcome any concerns the interviewer might have regarding your career change.

 

New Directions Career Center offers a variety of programs and services to assist job seekers, career changers and individuals who wish to further develop their careers.  Contact us today to find out how we can meet your career needs:  614-849-0028.

Educate, Empower, Elevate

In 2010, the United Way of Central Ohio’s Women’s Leadership Council  (WLC) created  the E3 Initiative (Educate, Empower, Elevate) to help low- to moderate income women in the community reach a new level of financial stability for themselves and their families.  In 2013 a study was undertaken to examine the results to date, and to document what lessons have been learned from the program during its first three-years of operation.  A summary of these findings is the topic of this month’s blog, jointly written by myself and Julie Graber, CEO of The Institute on Women and the principal researcher for this study.

E3 relies on three strategies to help women succeed: 

1.     providing the education, tools and support needed to develop a career that pays a livable wage with benefits;

2.     linking women to resource and benefits that enhance financial stability; and

3.     helping participants develop financial literacy. 

Women entering the E3 program must have a high school diploma or GED, be working or have a means of support, but struggling to meet basic needs, and be willing to work hard to improve finances.

E3 begins with an intensive 16-week program designed to help women address barriers that have held them back in the past, and create a focused career plan for their future.  The comprehensive program equips women with the necessary tools to accelerate their educational and employment endeavors by

·       guiding them to establish a focused career goal and plan,

·       providing a review of good financial practices and budgeting,

·       delivering refresher courses in math and English; and

·       developing cutting-edge job search skills in areas such as resume writing, networking, interviewing, conducting on-line job searches and negotiating for salary and benefits.

In addition, all E3 participants are matched with a WLC member, who serves as their mentor for the first year of this three-year program.

Since its inception, 99 women have participated in the E3 Initiative’s programming.  Approximately 81% of the women are single, and more than 52% of those single women have one or more dependents.  More than 91% have an annual household income of $40,000 or less, and 62% have a household income below $20,000. Fifty-four percent of the participants identify themselves as African-American, 34% as Caucasian.

The current research project examined available objective outcome data plus insights from interviews with program participants, program staff and WLC members who have served as mentors.  Key metrics from gathered program statistics show:

·       Average participation was slightly below goal level of 15 participants per class for the first few cohorts, but has improved significantly.  In 2013 Cohort 7 began with 16 women (one more than capacity goal) with four women deferred to Cohort 8.  Cohort 8 began with a capacity goal of 15.

·       Over 75% of the participants have completed the 16-week program.

·       So far, 27 women (45%) from Cohorts 1-5 have begun further education.

·       Two women have completed their post-secondary education programs and have obtained employment at livable wage jobs.

Insights gleaned from participant interviews include:  Most participants got “off track” in high school due to lack of a support system; situations of bullying, divorce, and feelings of not “fitting in;” lack of direction; and not being prepared for college.  Although 80% have at least some college experience, only 25% have a post-secondary degree.  Participants identified a number of barriers which have interfered with their career plans, including: having children; lack of accessible/affordable child care; health issues; money management issues; juggling it all and pressure to do it all; and being discouraged by those around them (lack of a support system).  They also identified other challenges that got in the way of career success, including:  lack of confidence; feelings of low self-worth; being in abusive situations; and having limited education.

When asked to identify the benefits of the E3 program, participants most often mentioned:  the support they have received; the personal touch the program offers (several mentioned they had participated in several programs previously and always felt like a “number”); the cohort structure gives participants a common ground; refresher classes; and the mentoring component.

The findings of this study mirror other recent studies, which indicate that a system of support, encouragement, structure, incentives, and mentoring look promising as a means of empowering women to lift themselves and their families out of poverty to achieve financial self-sufficiency.

Hot (and not so hot) Jobs for the Next Decade

Choosing the right career can change your life in a positive way.  Choosing the wrong one can make it difficult to meet even life’s most basic needs.  Simply put, it is difficult for us to evolve to our highest self and achieve our goals, both personally and professionally, if we must constantly worry about earning enough money to secure food and shelter and pay routine bills. 

That’s why it is critical that women create stable, financially rewarding futures by researching occupational areas with job growth projected over the next decade or more, and that will pay a livable wage with benefits.  No one wants to waste time and money on education and training programs in declining or soon-to-be eliminated employment fields or in fields that will not pay a sustainable wage for full-time work!

  

Let’s examine some of the “hot job” areas, as well as those in current decline.  There are areas of projected growth for every education level – and a woman can increase her salary potential with a minimal investment in training.  For instance, the U.S. Department of Labor through its Career One Stop website predicts heavy job growth in the following areas through 2022 for those with high school educations:

• Physical therapist aides
  
• Occupational therapy aides
• Medical secretaries
• Ambulance drivers (not EMTs)
• Hearing aid specialists
• Community health workers
• Pharmacy technicians
• Billing and posting clerks
• Construction trades

Construction trades – as well as roles typically thought as, “blue collar,” such as plumbing, electrical, and mechanical work- are in particularly high demand since these jobs meet every day needs and cannot be outsourced to other countries.  There is a growing need for women in these positions, and the pay is usually good. 

Bloomberg Businessweek reports that the fastest growing jobs through 2020 will be for:

• Translators
• Bike mechanics
• Veterinary technicians
• Carpenters
• Event planners
• Dental hygienists
• Home health aides

The need for personal and home health aides alone is expected to grow by 69.4% -- but look carefully at these positions, as they do not always pay well.

For those seeking college educations, the hottest growth areas are predicted to be in nursing, finance, especially financial advisors, and communications. Other opportunities include, but are not limited to, veterinarians, environmental scientists, and teachers, particularly if the teacher has specialized skills in math, science, or special needs.

Despite strong forecasts in the areas noted above, I encourage female job seekers to carefully research occupations of interest.  Explore employment that feeds your individual passions.  Please note, however, that not all areas of growth fuel passion for every woman.   Women are in high demand, especially in non-traditional roles such as construction or engineering but it must pique the job seeker’s interest if the woman is to excel.  This truth applies to every position – whether it is deemed “traditional” or non-traditional.”   

It is also wise to research the demand for specific jobs in your desired area or place of residence, since demand and salary levels can vary greatly throughout the country.  For example, nurses may be in high demand in some cities or regions of the country, but in other areas there may be a glut that makes it difficult to find the position and receive the pay you are seeking. 

Research will also tell you what jobs are not so hot!  Kiplinger.com in March 2013 listed a number of jobs in decline. Top of the list was post office clerk with an expected 48% decline through 2023. Similarly, all postal jobs are expected to shrink by 26%. The need for sewing machine operators will drop by 26%, with a ray of hope in that custom sewers and tailors will still be in demand.  Other declines will occur for printing press technicians, desktop publishers, door-to-door sales, floral designers, journalists, fast food cooks, jewelers, and, perhaps, not surprisingly, office administrators.

Forbes.com reports that, “Office and administrative workers will be hit hard in the coming years. Technology advances have enabled modern professionals to take charge of their own typing, filing and phone calls. Thus, switchboard operators will decrease by 23%, data entry keyers by 7%, word processors and typists by 12%, and file clerks by 5%.”

If you are a woman in the midst of a professional transition, research the facts and gather the appropriate resources to build your career of choice.  You own the power today to build your future.