Career change is a real thing. Our interests enlarge, our needs modify. At one point in time making steady and good income was your main goal.
Now, as you age, you start having new priorities: your health, having time to exercise, to travel and even more, to enjoy the important people in your life.
Maybe because of the financial needs, you have settled for a job that paid the bills but has never really brought you inner satisfaction.
You might have found a niche where you are really good but where now you feel bored and unmotivated.
You might have been replaced in the job you love, for a younger, probably cheaper professional.
The company might be downsizing or even closing. The reality is that now there is a need to change.
- Do you dread going to work each morning?
- Did you “follow your passion” but now find yourself feeling unfulfilled and frustrated?
- Are you wondering if changing careers is the right move for you?
- Are you afraid that you might not be as successful as before?
- Were you laid off and now you find yourself wandering on which career path to take?
- Have you settled for a job to pay your bills and now you feel like you cannot stand it anymore?
Well, you are not alone! A lot of people are in the same situation at this same moment.
The United States Department of Labor estimates that Americans change careers from 3-7 times in their lifetimes! As time passes all of us change.
Going Through the Motions (and Emotions)
At this moment, you might be experiencing a lot of anxiety. How will you keep your lifestyle? You might be feeling like a failure like you “are not good enough.”
You might be fearing the reaction of your partner, your children, your family, and friends.
You might be feeling confused, disoriented, unsure of your next steps and at the same time, feeling pressured to solve this situation as soon as possible.
In order to experience a fully happy life, it’s important to have a career that you love. As Confucious said: “Choose a job that you love and will never have to work a day in your life.” But although a simple concept, it is not easily achievable.
A recent study concluded that over 50% of Americans are dissatisfied (if not downright unhappy) with their work.
Considering that we spend between on average, 44 to 50 hours every week at work, this dissatisfaction can easily spill over other areas of your life. It can lead to stress, anxiety and even depression.
This unhappiness can also bleed over into your personal life, negatively impacting the relationships you have with friends and loved ones.
Studies have proven that work dissatisfaction even affects a person’s health and well being. Because of all of it, this crisis should not be taken lightly.
Imagine getting up in the morning happy and energized to go to work. Picture yourself returning home feeling calm and accomplished.
Visualize having balance in your life and having time to exercise, to go on vacation, to spend time with the people you love and at the same time, feeling secure that your financial needs are taken care of.
Won’t it be wonderful to know that the job that you love is helping people as well? Life can be that good, I promise you.
How Therapy Can Help a Career Change
Career counseling can help you choose a new job or completely change your career at any stage in your life.
No matter if this decision comes from a concrete crisis such as being laid off or if it comes from an inner need to align your career to the person you have become, a therapist can help you sort through your feelings, demystify your fears, and help you to obtain tools to stay focused and calm through this challenging transition period.
Embarking on a new career, though exciting, can also be incredibly stressful, and most people find they could use some help navigating the journey.
Another important consideration is that in a moment of crisis, many people act impulsively and at times it might determine severe negative consequences.
What if you are feeling pressured to fix it as soon as possible and you decide to use the severance pay to open your own business?
It sounds like a great idea and it might be. But it is necessary to stop to analyze what kind of business could be good for you. A lot of people are preyed by promises that if you buy a franchise from a relevant, well-established chain store, you will be successful.
First, it is an enormous investment. Second, it might be lucrative but will it fit your needs, desires, and wants?
Frequently when in a crisis, people tend to make choices based on their comfort level. And one thing that is guaranteed is that if you stay within your comfort level you will be eliminating many possibilities and might find yourself stuck, and unsatisfied again.
The Chinese see crises as an opportunity; in our culture, a crisis is seen as a challenge that has to be conquered as fast as you can.
We are conditioned to enjoy comfort and stability, to avoid indecision and “wasting time.” That is a complete mistake. A crisis solved in a hurry usually leads to solutions that in the long run, bring more dissatisfaction and misfortune.
Using the example of the franchise situation. If you invest all of your money in there and later on find out that it is not as profitable as you thought, or that you do not have the skills or the motivation to run this kind of business, what now?
You go back to the same crisis and now with even more pressure as you do not have the money to rely on.
When you allow yourself time to explore, the likelihood is that you will find a path that is aligned with your skills, experiences, needs, and desires.
Does it mean you will be 100% successful, all at once? No. But I assure you you will have the tools and motivation to succeed.
Career counselors have been trained to provide concrete career information resources and discuss career development. In a career counseling session, you and I may discuss:
- Your particular skills or talents to determine which career may align best
- Your goals, needs, and desires currently and for the future
- We will explore potential barriers for growth such as a limiting mindset, insecurities, lack of discipline or organization, a poor communication style, difficulties asserting yourself, among others.
- We will investigate higher educational requirements and opportunities
- We will discuss the potential earnings of various careers
- We will explore opportunities for advancement
- We will also ponder on the possible effects of different choices on the various aspects of your life, including, but not limited to: espousal relationships, effects for your children, on your finances, your health, and, your personal satisfaction
Benefits of Career Counseling
In doing so, you will have a holistic view of the effects of each solution in your life and the lives of those you love.
Another benefit of coming to career counseling is that all of the tools which you learn in here, you carry with yourself so, if yet another crisis catches you off guard, you will have resources to face it.
You will suffer less, will be less confused and might be able to, on your own, apply the steps learned in therapy to fix it, taking less time and achieving more efficient results in the long run.
If a career change is a need or a desire at this moment in your life, do not be paralyzed or pushed into action by fear.
The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.
– Steve Jobs –
Call me now and we will work together, taking this opportunity to transform a painful reality into an opportunity.
Through commitment and soul-searching, we will determine your new career direction, using a well-thought process.
You will start writing the new chapter of your life confidently and in the direction of your dreams. Do not hesitate! Call me now; I am sure you will never regret it!
(561) 635-2431