The Truth About Making a Career Change

One of the hardest, but most rewarding changes I work on with my clients is making a career transition. Having gone through this process myself, I know how challenging it can be along the way. After one of my clients, Greg*, successfully landed a new role after months of hard work, I wanted to share learnings from his journey. My goal is to help you understand what it's like to make a career transition, how to make a successful transition, and how to overcome the challenges you may face along the way.

ASSESS YOUR SKILL GAPS

One of the most important steps you should take once you gain clarity around what you want to do in your career is to assess your skill gaps. I first started working with my client, Greg, in my group coaching program for career transitions. I then continued to support him over the next few months as he moved into the job search process. Greg wanted to make a career transition into working for a tech company as a Product Manager or Project Manager, and in a very specific industry. He had previously worked in a more customer facing role within that industry, but decided he wanted to move into a more technical role. He understood that this change would require more time and effort than a normal job search.

 In Greg’s case, he first needed to understand what skills he would need to develop in order to position himself as a viable candidate in this new field.  There are a variety of options for developing new skills and closing the skill gap when you want to make a transition.  In this case, Greg determined that a Masters program was best for him. Whenever you are considering an advanced degree, you need to determine if you want to (and can afford to) go back full-time as a student, or if you want to explore part-time programs. Greg decided to complete an online program so he could continue to work full-time. I had made a similar decision when I went back to get my Masters degree as well. However, there are many others who decide to go back full-time. The best decision is the one that works best for you.

 Aside from pursuing an advanced degree, you can also take classes, individual online course programs, certificate programs, and/or boot camps programs. After completion of his Masters, Greg also took some certificate courses and programs through Grow with Google to further his technical knowledge and prove his experience. I also suggest checking out platforms such as Coursera  for course options as well.

 To figure out the best option for you, start by identifying your goals. Why do you want to take this course or complete this program? Is it about learning, is about “checking the box”, or gaining access to job opportunities and placement resources? And then you need to consider your financial situation. Understand that it is an investment in yourself and you may be able to command a higher salary once the transition is complete. At the same time, you want to be fiscally responsible and not overload yourself with debt.

GAIN EXPERIENCE

 When making a career transition, it can help to have some applied experiences in your new field of choice. First, this can help you ensure that this is the right move for you. When I was making my career transition into Coaching and Consulting, I applied for a job as a full-time Facilitator/Trainer. While I was going through this process, I was also creating opportunities to do some training and facilitation at my current job. I ended up realizing that while I loved teaching in this way, I couldn’t see myself just doing training all-day, every day. I realized that the job I was applying for and super excited about, wasn’t actually a good fit for me after all. This saved me a lot of pain by realizing this before I accepted a new job.

 Another reason to try and gain experience is so that you can further position yourself more positively in the interview process. Companies want to take as little risk as possible when hiring a new employee, so the more you can close that “risk gap” by showcasing experience in a role, the easier it will be for the company to say yes to you. However, you don't have to prove you've done every part of the job responsibilities.

 My client, Greg, also used this strategy of gaining experience to further position himself as a qualified candidate.

He shared, “I connected and talked a lot with people who had jobs like the one I was looking for [in order] to learn more about the space and how I could position myself as a contributor. I also used freelance and contract work as opportunities to grow and stretch working as close to the space as I could get.”

In his case, talking to other people in the field also helped him validate what people look for in candidates so he could further prepare for his interviews. Finally, it allowed him to make contacts with people who could alert him when new roles were opening up. This helped ensure he could be one of the first to apply for new roles and with referrals. He landed a few interviews by leveraging this strategy.

PLAY THE LONG GAME

 A traditional job search process can take anywhere from 2-6 months. However, a career transition job search can take even longer and you need to mentally prepare for that. You may also have to determine if you can make the switch from where you are directly into where you want to be OR if you need to take an interim step that gets you closer to where you want to be. Either way, you are moving closer towards your target.

Here’s how my client Greg approached this process.

“The actual application and interview phase of my search took about 18 months…I was fortunate to have a job I liked so it wasn’t urgent that I find something new immediately. I had the privilege of something relatively dependable so I could pace myself and wait for the right job.”

If you add in the time before he started the job search process as he completed his Masters program, he was on this career transition journey for almost 3 years. This is similar to my own career transition, which started well before I actually started to apply for jobs.

 When I asked Greg for the best advice for someone concerned about how long it may take to make a successful career change, he shared the following.

“The time is going to pass anyway. Why not use at least some of it to get closer to something that will make you happier? And ask yourself how many years of the rest of your life do you intend to continue working. For me I figured it was at least another 30 years. If I spent 2 years or even 5 years working on making a change and then had the next 25 [years] in something that was going to excite me, it seemed like a worthwhile investment up front.”

This is exactly the type of long-term perspective that will support a career transition. There is no immediate gratification in this process.

 Lastly, when you take a longer term view, you have the ability to "plant seeds" and wait for the right role to come available. In the case of Greg, he actually connected with his new company over 6 months before he got his new role. Originally, he was contacted about a role related to his experience in his old career. He used that as an opportunity to get an interview. During that interview, he demonstrated his experience, made a great impression, and then asked about opportunities in his new area of interest, Product or Project Management. At the time, they didn’t have an opening. However, he followed up and when the company was ready to hire a new Product Manager, they reached back out to Greg. Playing the long game was instrumental to him landing his eventual job. I have also personally used this strategy on more than one occasion and it's been a great way to get my foot in the door.

UNDERSTAND THE OBSTACLES

 The biggest challenge that my career transition clients face is that they do not have experience doing the exact job they are applying for. As Greg put it, “Not having all the hard skills on every role’s list of requirements was an obstacle. Sometimes I let that stop me. Other times I gave it a shot anyways.” I absolutely recommend “giving it a shot anyways”. The vast majority of candidates applying for any job do not have experience doing that exact job. The exception would be if there was an internal candidate in the running who has been doing the job, but for some reason hadn’t been given the title or official role yet. But in most cases, the expectation is that candidates have relevant experience.

 The most important part of preparing for interviews as a career transition candidate is to make sure you mine your work history for relevant experiences and transferable skills. The goal is to lower the risk in the hiring manager’s mind of hiring you into this role. The more you can demonstrate how you have done similar things the easier it will be for people to take a chance on you.

 There is also a confidence in oneself that is needed. Many of my career transition clients start to doubt whether they can be successful in this new career if they haven’t done every aspect of it previously. We often forget that there is always something new and different to learn with each job.

As Greg shared with me, “I told myself, if I can learn the things I’m actively learning now, I can learn other things this role requires. Whether or not this company wants to invest in me and tap the value I can bring…is up to them. But not knowing how to do something yet isn’t a deficiency.”

This is exactly the right mindset. It's better to position yourself as someone who can learn quickly and demonstrate examples of you overcoming learning curves in prior projects and experiences.

SUPPORT YOURSELF

 As I’ve mentioned, there will be some bumps in the road as you navigate through a career transition. To help you tap into your resilience and have the stamina to see this through, it's important to find ways to support yourself. By support, I mean both the resources you need to be successful in the job search process and in your mental and emotional wellbeing throughout the journey.

 To prepare for the job search process, make sure you practice for your interviews. For many of my clients, they tend to feel more confident when they feel prepared. When you have any self-doubt, it can show up in the interview process. As a result, ensure you have your example projects and experiences at your fingertips to share. And also be prepared to address the elephant in the room: why you are interested in making this career transition and how your prior experiences are relevant.

 In terms of supporting your mental and emotional wellbeing, you want to extend self-compassion to yourself along the way. There will be rejection as that is a natural part of any job search process. What will you need to keep feeling positive and hopeful about the process? Maybe it's connecting with friends or family who support you. Maybe it's setting aside time to devote to your hobbies or even play. For Greg, it was taking time throughout the process to focus on other things. As he noted, “Taking days or even a week off from the search here and there was also deeply necessary and I’m grateful I had the privilege to be able to do that.”

SUMMARY

Making a career transition into a new field or job function is an investment in yourself and your future happiness. It is not an impossible feat by any stretch of the imagination. There are, however, certain challenges and expectations that may be different than your prior job searches. With the right mindset, setting the right expectations, and having the right resources, you too can successfully make a career transition. Good luck on your journey!

For additional support in preparing your resume for the application process, check out my “Build a Better Resume” Guide.

*Client’s name changed for privacy purposes