Choosing a Career
Choosing a career can take a lot of soul-searching, training, and investment of time and resources. Fortunately for some people, doing this prep work leads them to a career they truly enjoy. However, it can be difficult to achieve forward movement in a career if the job you choose doesn’t match the lifestyle you want to live. Statistics show that:
The average person will change careers 5-7 times during their working life according to career change statistics. With an ever increasing number of different career choices on offer, approximately 30% of the total workforce will now change jobs every 12 months.
– Career Change Statistics
Identifying what you want from a career is a key factor in aligning with a career you love. For example, you may not be able to afford to take a lot of time off if you work a low-paying, stressful job where management encourages dedication at the cost of your personal and emotional health. If you’re a person who needs frequent travel to feed your soul, such an arrangement will leave you feeling burnt out in a hurry. The same is true if you wish to work in a simpler career with lower levels of stress yet you try to keep up with a large living space in a crowded city with a competitive job atmosphere.
Intention
You spend a large chunk of your day on the job so it’s important to aim for intentionality between your lifestyle and what you do for a living. Since this can be challenging to do, consider sitting down in a quiet space to reflect on your goals for career and life. Pay attention to when you feel a disconnect between where you currently are and where you wish to be.
Maybe you have already felt this sense of dissatisfaction but pushed it aside because you didn’t know what to do with it. If so, understand that it’s impossible to have forward movement in a career without serious self-reflection.
Ultimately, you want to use the areas of disconnect you uncovered during your reflection time to start making changes to your career and lifestyle. This doesn’t have to happen overnight. Start small and work your way up to the bigger tasks. Your happiness is at stake so prioritize what you need most and start working toward those new goals. So many clients of mine have shifted from careers that didn’t fulfill them into careers (or sometimes just different roles) that they loved.
Difficulty Getting Started?
This type of soul-searching reflection requires time, honesty, and a willingness to change what isn’t working for you. If you feel stuck even thinking about it or just don’t know where to start, consider working with a career coach to help you gain clarity.
