Nowadays, a career change is no longer a rarity. A recent StepStone Study showed, that only 40 percent of professionals work in the occupational field they originally specialized in.
This, however, does not make it any less scary. Making a big career change is not easy and most people rather shy away from uncertainty, even if this means that they have to stay in a job that does not make them happy.
We are here to tell you that a career change might not only be a possible option, it could also be the better choice for you. Keep on reading to find out more about why career changes are no longer to be feared.
Are you changing your career or your job
To clearly define a career changer is, however, easier said than done. While some cases are very clear in terms of changing careers, others might only be considered a job change within the same job group. To best distinguish between these two, it is important to look at the actual work that is performed. If your aim is to completely change the tasks you are responsible for, this makes you a career changer. Career changers are, in comparison to job changers, also required to learn entirely new skills and abilities which often requires them to go back to some form of an educational institution.
Soft skills rule
The main reason why people do not go through with a career change is, as so often in life, fear. Most people rather be unhappy than uncertain and if there is one thing a career change brings with it, it is uncertainty. Recruiting, however, has changed over the past years and where qualifications and theoretical knowledge was once the priority, soft skills are now on the rise. More and more recruiters are following the principle of hire character – train skills, giving career changers significantly higher chances on the job market. You no longer have to fulfill all technical requirements to have a legit chance as long as your character is convincing and you are motivated and determined.
When you are worried about changing your career, keep in mind the following:
Which jobs are most suitable for career changers
If you are determined to make a career in a certain field, you will be able to make it happen! There is nothing that can stop you and we surely will not tell you otherwise.
There are, however, some professional fields that offer more opportunities for career changers than others. StepStone took a closer look at the open positions for career changers published on their websites and came to the conclusion that especially Human Ressources, Sales and IT are comparably easy fields to enter.
The example of these three occupations shows that career changers are in demand – above all – in areas where soft skills are more important, whether this means internal in HR or external through sales, or in fields where, although they do require technical skills, the knowledge can be learned in practical form.
Fields that are harder to enter are the ones that require extensive theoretical knowledge which can not be "learned by doing" or compensated by any soft skills – A great example for this would be anything related to law. If you wish to make a career in a field with a more complex entry, you will have to go through extensive training in the form of re- and upskilling, however, with the right motivation and determination, this will not pose a problem!
How to change your career
A career change might be exciting and new and motivating, but if there is one thing it is for sure, it is scary. Leaving the comfort zone of your old job and taking a leap into something new is not easy and as so often in life, the hardest part is the beginning.
Update your CV
Although you will not be able to actually change your previous education and experience, you will definitely have something that is called transferable skills. These mainly include soft skills such as managing change, communication, leadership, team spirit – anything that you learned through the work you have already done. With some creativity, we are sure that a lot of the skills you already have can be tied to your new career.
Network
As most career changers have already worked for quite some time, there is a high chance that they can benefit from an already existing network.
Putting yourself out there will not only increase your chances of finding a job in your new career field, it will also help you learn more about current trends, companies and happenings that you can leverage on.
Focus your job search
When you move into a totally new professional field without any prior experience, the job search might come across as rather overwhelming. Before you start you want to be very clear on what you want, why you want this and what qualifies you to do it. You should also be honest with yourself on what you can do and what you still have to learn so that the goals for your career that are realistic.
Are you thinking about a career change?
Are you currently thinking about changing your career? MoBerries offers a great platform to connect you with your future dream job. We also work closely together with our partners to enable our candidates to keep on improving themselves – find out more about up- and reskilling options here.
Are you currently looking for a new job? MoBerries supports you in finding the perfect one! Simply upload your CV and get matched – Free and fast.
Are you a company and currently searching for employees? MoBerries matches actively looking candidates with companies! Use our full automated candidate sourcing channel and hire across all channels with just one solution for the best price on the market.
