Module 8: I’m Thinking of Changing Careers. Where Do I Begin?

Module 8: I’m Thinking of Changing Careers. Where Do I Begin? • Agenda: • Learn about career changers, the reasons they change careers, and suggestions for managing change. • Learn about the negative thoughts that can prompt a change and stymie success • Learn the steps to make a successful change.

Top 10 Reasons People Leave their Jobs • Your employer is experiencing a downward spiral • Your relationship with your manager is damaged beyond repair • Your life situation has changed • Your values are at odds with the corporate culture • You've stopped having fun and enjoying your job • Your company is ethically challenged • For whatever reason, you have behaved in ways that are considered improperat work • You've burned your bridges with your coworkers • Your stress level is so high at work that it is affecting your physical or mental health • You are unchallenged.

Do You Want to Change Your Job Because… • You Feel Stuck in Your Current Job • You Feel Unappreciated in Your Current Job • You Feel Overworked on Your Job • You Dislike Your Career Field and Job • You Dislike Your Employer, Coworkers or Customers • You Can't Stand Your Boss Here Are Some Suggestions…

If You Feel Stuck in Your Current Job • Talk to your boss to make sure you're right. Ask about opportunities for lateral moves and for more interesting, skill-stretching assignments. Most workplaces value initiative and people who want to continue to learn and grow. • Consider swapping assignments with a coworker who feels like you do about trying something new. (Ask for your manager's agreement, of course.)

If You Feel Unappreciated in Your Current Job • Tell your boss you would like her input about how she views your work. Tell the boss you'd like to sit down with him regularly to obtain feedback, both good and bad, so you can improve. • Offer to chair an employee recognition team that can develop a process for recognizing the hard work and efforts of all your coworkers. After all, if you're feeling unappreciated, you can bet others are, too. • Sometimes, feeling unappreciated has to do with money. Ask for a raise or ask when you can expect your compensation review. Follow up to make sure it happens.

You Feel Overworked • Talk with your employer, after collecting some good data and evidence, if you find that the job is indeed more work than one person can comfortably handle. Brainstorm options that include these: • --hire a new employee,--push for a part-time employee or intern to work with you,--identify tasks you can stop doing, and--determine the value-added tasks and eliminate non-critical job components. • Take time to flowchart your work processes and see where you have waste in the process. Are you doing work over? How does extra time or s make your work processes more difficult and time-consuming than they warrant?

You Dislike Your Career Field and Job • Spend a year exploring your career options and needs.--Meet with people already working in the fields you are exploring.--Determine education or credentials necessary to move on.--Read books by authors such as Barbara Sher. • Make a careful plan with a timeline, and move on!.

You Dislike Your Employer, Coworkers or Customers • Start out by exploring whether you have any control over any aspect of the situation that is bothering you. If you identify areas you control, try fixing them. Perhaps sitting in the break room listening to people complain is ruining your good spirits. Stay out of there for awhile to see if your outlook improves. • Consider transferring to a new work area or trading customers with a coworker.

You Can't Stand Your Boss • Talk to your manager about your concerns. Many people don't realize the affect their actions create. Others just don't care. • If you are planning to leave anyway, you don’t have a lot to lose. Talk with your manager's boss or your Human Resources department to see if they can remedy the situation. • Transfer to a different department. Try to remove yourself from the manager's influence.

6 Steps to Career Change • 1: Figure out what's wrong with your job. • 2: Know your strengths and weaknesses, recognize your negative thoughts and behaviors, then determine which of your skills are transferable. • 3: Research your options. • 4: Be realistic about opportunities in new fields. • 5: Secure some experience. • 6: Objectively evaluate whether you can you afford to make the change.

CTI Results • Decision-Making Confusion • Commitment Anxiety • External Conflict

Challenging and Altering Your Negative Career Thoughts and Taking Action • Some negative thinking is normal • Too much negative thinking • makes career changemore difficult • may cause you to avoid decisions that need to be made

Decision-Making Confusion Difficult to begin or continue with career change due to • negative feelings • confusion about change

Commitment Anxiety Difficult to commit to a specific plan, along with strong worries about change

External Conflict Difficult to balance the importance of your ideas with the importance of ideas of family members and friends, making a change more difficult

Improving Career Decision Making • Replacing negative career thoughts with more positive career thoughts leads to better choices

Improving Career Decision Making Four steps to improving your career thoughts: 1) Identify - Become aware of your negative career thoughts 2) Challenge - Consider if these thoughts make sense and help you in making change 3) Alter - If your thoughts are negative, then change these thoughts 4) Act - Take the action you need to make a positive change

“Red Flag” Words • When your career thoughts become more negative • Examples: no, all, can't, never, whenever, and always. • When your career thoughts are false • These "red flags“ signal that you are thinking negatively

REVIEW: Formula for Career Change • Ingredients • Knowledge about yourself • Knowing your options • Know how you make decisions • Thinking about your decision-making • Steps • Realize you need to make a change • Make sure you understand yourself and your options • Expand & narrow your options (as needed) • Choose an occupation or field of study • Implement your change Knowledge Domain Action Domain

Individual Career Action Plan Individual Career Action Plan BEST OCCUPATIONAL MATCHES After exploring several occupations, I've come to the conclusion that I'd like to pursue: SHORT TERM CAREER PLAN (one month to one year) OCCUPATIONAL GOALS: Within the next year this is what I'd like to accomplish as far as my career is concerned: EDUCATION/TRAINING GOALS: This is what I'd like to have completed as far as education and training is concerned, i.e. taking a six month course, applying LONG TERM CAREER PLAN (one year to five years) OCCUPATIONAL GOALS: Within the next five years this is what I'd like to accomplish as far as my career is concerned: EDUCATION/TRAINING GOALS: Within the next five years this is the education/training I want to have completed, i.e. complete college or graduate school; become certified in my chosen field BARRIERS The following barriers may make it difficult for me to reach my goals, i.e. young children, elderly parents, a disability: Here's how I'll deal with these barriers so I can reach my goals, i.e. childcare or eldercare: • Break big decisions into small concrete steps • Create plan with goals, objectives and steps

Module 8: I’m Thinking of Changing Careers. Where Do I Begin?