Ready To Switch Career? Take This Quiz First
Switching
careers can be a very big step in your professional life. If you think you're
ready to make a career change, have you also thought about if you are really
prepared for such a big change? The reasons that induce most people to start
thinking about changing their careers are many. Take a look at these examples:
Tanya, one of my neighbors once said to me, “I had a few bad days at work which made me ready to throw in the towel.” Another common
reason for switching career is evident: You may have had several years' worth
of unhappiness at your job and this gave you the motivation to try something new. It is
important to note here that before you take this vital step, you should ask
yourself these questions: What are the personal and professional implications of making
a switch? How do you decide that anything is better than what you're currently doing?
By
taking the following quiz, you would be able to find out if you're really ready
to switch careers:
1. Why do you want to change careers?
A.
I've had a really stressful few weeks, and I can't take it anymore.
B. I don't get along with my team, and I don't fit in with the company culture.
C. This is my third job in the same field, and I still haven't found a role
that I find fulfilling.
2. About how long have you been working in the same
field?
A.
A few months
B. Two to three years
C. Five-plus years
3. What have you done to prepare for a career switch?
A.
Nothing yet, but it can't be that hard.
B. I've started thinking about what else I'd like to do and have looked into a
few opportunities.
C. I've created a plan, I've spent a lot of time researching the new industry,
and I've set up several lunch meetings with people in that industry.
4. Do you know what you want to do next?
A.
No, I haven't had time to think about it, because I've been so busy and
stressed.
B. I've thought about it, but I don't know what else I'd be good at besides
what I do now.
C. Yes, I've known what I want to do for some time now; I just haven't found
the right opportunity yet.
5. What are you willing to do to change careers?
A.
Spend a couple hours a week looking for a new job.
B. Meet with a career counselor to discuss my career options.
C. Take courses three days a week to acquire skills needed for the new career.
Results
Mostly A's: Not ready -- or not for the right reasons
While
I agree that it's tough thing to have a bad day at work, how you react to such a
bad day can make the difference between a quick recovery and lasting damage. The
bottom line here is that you need to be careful not to act too quickly before
you've truly given the job a chance. When things are stressful, don’t just throw in the towel. This is because if you
wait it out, you may realize that things aren't as bad as they may seem. It can
take some time to get into the groove of a particular position, and it's normal
to feel a little frustrated if it takes some time to catch on to everything.
But once you do, you may find that you actually like what you do and enjoy
working with those on your team(Auerbach, 2013).
Mostly B's: Ready to make a switch, but not to a
different career
Obviously,
it seems as though you've busy trying to survive at your job that you
have not been able to do much of anything else for some time. However,
it is important that you consider whether it's what you're doing or where you're
doing it before you make a career switch.
Use a pen and paper to make a list of what it is that you don't like. After
doing this, it may be worth looking for a new job instead of a new career if
you find that it's mostly things associated with the particular company at
which you're working, for instance, your colleagues or manager, the company's
culture or your clients. Chances are you enjoy the basic elements of the role,
but you just haven't found exactly the right fit yet. Now that you know what it
is you want in a job, you can be more focused about finding your next position(Auerbach,
2013).
Mostly C's: Ready to switch careers
If you answered mostly C's, you've likely kept your goals along the same career path for several years, held
multiple jobs within multiple organizations and have yet to find one that's fulfilling. Answering
mostly C’s also means that you have also
taken the right steps toward discovering what it is you want to do next. Given
that you know that switching careers is a big deal, so do some research to
get some skills that would help
you in your new field and make important connections with people in that field prior
to rushing into it. This will ensure that when you do make the leap, you're jumping
to a career that you're passionate about and could see yourself doing for a
number of years. While there's no guarantee you'll love your new career, making
all the necessary preparations should give you a good chance of happiness(Auerbach,
2013).
.
Source
Auerbach
D.(2013): Quiz – Are You Really Ready To Switch Careers? MSN Careers. Retrieved
March 4, 2013 from http://msn.careerbuilder.com/Article/MSN-3259-Career-Growth-and-Change-Quiz-Are-you-really-ready-to-switch-careers/?SiteId=cbmsn43259&sc_extcmp=JS_3259_advice
