Is this the right time to change careers?

You may be wondering "is now is a good time to make a career change?". Many people will tell you that you are ready for a career change include your lifestyle has changed, the job outlook in your field is dim, you are experiencing job burnout, your job is too stressful, you find your job boring, you want to use a particular skill / talent that you have, or you need to make more money. Some people expereince multiple signs that they need a new career, and others might just have one thing that drives them to a new career.


I will tell you that ANY time can be a good time for a career change, as long as you go about the process in a systematic way. Before jumping into a new career take a moment to step back and reflect on why you want to change careers. Write down all the reasons you come up so you can reflect back on them throughout the process. This can be done by hand in a notebook or journal, or you can do it on a computer. Questions to ponder include:

• was there one moment when you decided that you needed a new career?


• how will your new career fit into your lifestyle?


• will changing careers have an impact on your personal and/or family time?


• what is it about a new career that intrigues you?


• what are you looking forward to most in a new career?


• what are you happiest about leaving behind in your old career?


• are you ready for a BIG change right now (entirely new career)? or a small change (a new place of employment within the same career)?


• or are you ready to begin a process that leads you down the path of a long-term career change?

For now, start by getting organized and set aside time each day or week (depending on how quickly you want to change careers) to work on your career change. Put that time in your datebook and make sure that you keep it as time for you.