Are you one of the 80% of people who want to change jobs right now?Studies conducted in 2011 denote a whooping 84% of people wanting to change jobs at a given time! The numbers are not any different today. I have personally made and seen others make several mistakes while changing careers. Some have been costly mistakes while others have have been easy to recover from.
Here are 5 career changing mistakes to avoid:
- Don’t be Emotionally driven!
When changing careers, it is very easy to be blindsided by the various emotions that are sweeping us. The disappointed of not getting the much awaited promotion or raise, the bitterness of disagreements with colleagues, the inconvenience of long commutes to work, the politically charged environment, the boss that is never around and various other reasons – can make us have strong emotions. These strong emotions may blind us in our career change decision.
- Don’t jump from the frying pan to the fire!
When you are running from something, you are looking behind. When you are running towards something, you are looking forward. Most career change mistakes. A person driven by emotions as mentioned above, can only think of eliminating that negative emotion. For example, if you are disappointed about not getting a raise at your current job, you may want to find a job that pays more than what you currently make. But taking only that aspect into consideration could be a grave mistake!
- Don’t have a short term view!
- Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water!
During a recent client strategy(ask me what this is!) conversation, my client A was telling me all the different things she was trying to do to find a different job or possibly get another Master’s degree. Digging deeper revealed the true reason she was trying to switch was very different from the reason she was telling the outside world. She liked what she was doing and has potential to grow in the field. She did not like the micro managing culture she was in! Instead here she was considering quitting and getting a second Master’s degree. I urged her to think about what the Master’s was going to enable her to do and what was the real problem she was trying to solve. She finally realized that she did not have to get a second Master’s right away just because of the culture of the organization. She could find a similar role in a different organization with a more trusting culture!
- Don’t be the interviewee only, be the interviewer too!
The typical tendency for job hunters is to find a job online, apply, get a call, go for the interview and secure the job! A straight forward process. People make the mistake of not doing their due diligence of the role and the organization that they are applying to. Network and get to know people in the organization. Find out more about the culture and other factors that are important to you. Second layer of networking involves finding out more about the role..You can network with people in the same organization or with people in other organizations in similar roles. At the end of the interview, when you are given a chance to ask questions, fire away and ask relevant questions about the role and the organization. Sometimes, you may also be able to ask for contacts in the organization that you can meet for breakfast or lunch to ask further questions.
Avoid these 5 critical mistakes when switching jobs next time! Have you made any mistakes and learnt from it? Please share.
Leave a Reply