1 Find what you love

from http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Start_a_New_Career

Start a New Career

It's never too late to switch careers. Neil Armstrong decided to reach for the stars! Photo: NASA

The days of working 40 years with a single company -- taking the gold watch and cashing in -- are long gone. With the demise of that stability comes the burden of uncertainty, but it also brings the freedom to completely change careers whenever you feel like it.

In today's job market no one bats an eye at the "tech writer turned venture capitalist" or the "programmer turned legal aide." The only thing pigeonholing you into one career is you.

If you've been itching for a change of scene or routine, we've got what you need to get started picking a new career.

This article is part of a wiki anyone can edit. Got extra advice about safely switching horses mid-stream? Log in and contribute.

Contents [hide] 1 Find what you love 2 Find out what skills you need 3 Beef up your resume 4 Conclusion

Find what you love

The hardest part of choosing a new career is figuring out what you might want to do. Start with your current job -- Even if it's mind-numbingly dull, there are probably at least some aspects of it you like. For example, filing TPS reports might not be the highlight of your current day, but perhaps you enjoy working in an office environment, or you like having a boss who encourages new approaches to old methods. Make a list of what you like and keep it handy.

Now head to a job-search site like Monster.com or grab the classified ads if you're the pen-and-paper type. Start browsing to see what's out there. Don't limit yourself, look at everything, even if it isn't what you have in mind -- there's a good chance you'll find yourself looking at something you didn't even realize were jobs.

Now you can be a bit more realistic if you like. Check out industry hiring trends if you'd like a better idea of what you're up against in switching to your dream career. Job-listing sites often publish anonymized data showing which careers are growing, which job markets are the toughest, and what employers expect from their prospective hires.

Find out what skills you need

Found a job that catches your eye? Great. Now it's time to figure out if any of the skills you've already got will help you land a new career. Perhaps you'll need to take a few night classes or pass some exams first.

For example, a strong background in sales will translate well to a career in real estate. However, there are licensing requirements and other hurdles you'll need to overcome first.

One of the best ways to figure out what it takes to excel in your new career is to get in touch with someone who already does it. Sticking with the previous example, you might want to call up a few local realtors and see if they have the time to give you some advice.

Find one or two that seem the most helpful and ask if you can follow them around for a day to see what they do and whether or not the job is everything you think it is.

Beef up your resume

If you're changing careers, you won't have much relevant experience (if any). So how do you land a new career without experience? The answer is perseverance and perhaps a bit of luck.

You may need to land a lower-paying job than you're used to at first, something to get your foot in the door and help you meet people in the field. Consider volunteering your time if that's possible, or ask someone else already in the field to write a recommendation for you.

Conclusion

There's no doubt it's intimidating, but changing a career isn't is hard -- or as scary -- as you might think. Figure out what you really want to do and start working toward it today.

This page was last modified 21:27, 29 January 2010 by amyatwired. Based on work by howto_admin.

Are you Living Powerfully

When was the last time you explained your current job to anyone and you felt interested in what you are explaining? Recently?
Ever?
Sometimes we fall into our lives, the fit in some places and maybe not so well in others, but that is OK as we can always change it can't we?

Yes and No.

Have you chosen to change you life, take a risk, remembered that you are only alive once and taken the chance to use it to it's fullest?

hmmm.

Maybe, you could read and answer the questionnaire below and post your responses?

This blog will be a forum to help you review what you want to do with your career.

Questionnaire:

1. When was the last time you explained your current job to someone and you felt interested in explaining what you do?
2. Does what you do each day get you out of bed?
3. Do you just feel like you are surviving life and not living it to the full?
4. How did you unearth the passion for what you do now?
5. What was the trigger for making your big career change?
6. Have you always known what you were attempting was going to pay off?
7. How risky do you think your choices have been on a scale from 1 to 10?
8. What would you have fallen back on if you had not made a success of your choice?

If you haven't managed to unearth your passion yet, there is still time!