Changing Career At Midlife Stage
When society tells us that we need to be ready to have a major picked out so we can start college at 18, it is understandable that so many people feel like they are stuck in a career that they have outgrown. With young entrepreneurs seemingly taking over the covers of business magazines, it can be hard to feel like you can make a change when you are 40 or older.
Making a midlife career change can feel intimidating and overwhelming, but you deserve to have a job that you truly enjoy until you retire. Midlife career changes are much easier and less intimidating than you’d think.
Change Your Mind
The mind is very powerful, and it can convince you that you shouldn’t change careers or do anything else you want to do. In order to battle these thoughts, you need to change your mindset. In order to make positive changes, you’ll have to take things one step at a time to combat these fears. Verbalize what it is that is holding you back and write it down. This is just fear talking, you CAN do this. Replace those thoughts with the truth: you are capable and deserving of this change. Repeat this as much as you need to until you really do believe it.
Decide on a Career
When you’re getting ready to make some moves, the last thing you want to do is make one that is going to put you in a career that you dislike in equal measure to your last, or worse, more. That means you will need to take a few precautions and perform some due diligence. You want to make sure that when you find something that sounds promising, you dig deep enough to learn the good and the bad about that industry, as well as what it will take to get there.
A reasonable goal will be to find a comfortable compromise between what you love to do, and what you’re good at. You are going to have to get introspective here, and you’re going to have to be honest about it, or you aren’t going to change much. Here are some questions that you should find some real, substantive answers to, before moving on:
- What are my natural talents?
- Of my talents, what brings me the joy and passion that I seek in my life?
- What problem can I solve for someone?
- What group of people would benefit most from my problem-solving?
- What is the solution that I can offer those people?
- Does this solution derive sufficient value for me to survive on?
Figure Out What Skills You Need to Learn & Learn It
Now some real work comes in. Once you know where you want to be, you need to put in the work to get there. This is going to be highly dependent on the industry or career field you choose. Will you need to go back to school for it?
Some fields, such as nursing, trades, and vocational skills, will need education, certification, or even licensing to be able to work safely and legally in that field. Sometimes, you just need to do some research on your own to get where you want to be. The work involved in this step can be highly variable.
Going back to school for a degree, or even a nursing certificate, for example, can require many more life changes than some people think about. Not only do you have the scheduling to contend with, but you’ll need to pay for that schooling as well. However, when you anticipate these hurdles before you encounter them, you can plan to overcome them.
Make a Budget
The thought of furthering your education or being out of work while learning the skills needed for your new career can be overwhelming, but don’t let it stop you. Student loans and grants can be a big help for education-related expenses. Setting yourself a budget can be beneficial and allow you to save up some money to cover expenses if you are not bringing in anything while training.
Get Into The Industry
Often during the educational phase, you will have the opportunity to network with other people or professionals already working in the industry you are entering. This can be an invaluable head start to finding a good position with an organization you enjoy working with. By networking as soon as possible, you can cut significant time out of the post-education job hunt, possibly avoiding it altogether.
Article originally posted at Midlife Coacher.
