TEAMWORK.- Culture and People: A new career.

Ten steps to a successful career change.

Interested in a new career? If so, it is important to take the time to evaluate your present situation, to explore career options and to choose a career that will be satisfying for you.

1. Evaluate your current ______________. Keep a journal of your daily reactions to your job situation. Which aspects of your current job do you like/dislike? Are your dissatisfactions related to the content of your work your company culture or the people with whom you work?
2. Assess ______________, values and skills through self help resources. Review past successful roles, volunteer work, projects and jobs to identify preferred activities and skills.
3. ______________ ideas for career alternatives by discussing your core values/skills with friends, family, networking contacts and counselors.
4. Conduct a preliminary comparative ______________ of several fields to identify a few targets for in depth research.
5. Read ______________ about those fields and reach out to personal contacts in those arenas for informational interviews.
6. Shadow ______________ in fields of primary interest to observe work first hand. Spend anywhere from a few hours to a few days job shadowing people who have jobs that interest you.
7. Identify ______________ related to your target field to test your interest e.g. if you're interested in working with animals, volunteer at your local shelter.
8. Investigate ______________ that would bridge your background to your new field. Consider taking an evening course at a local college. Spend some time at one day or weekend seminars.
9. Look for ways ______________ new skills in your current job which would pave the way for a change e.g. offer to write a grant proposal if grant writing is valued in your new field. If your company offers in-house training, sign up for as many classes as you can.
10. Consider alternative ______________ within your current industry which would utilize the industry knowledge you already have e.g. if you are a programmer who doesn't want to program, consider technical sales or project management.

Adapted from: http://jobsearch.about.com/cs/careerresources/a/10steps.htm