What to do when career change feels too big

A career change can feel like one hell of a mountain to climb. So many people barely make the first foothills.

So what can you do if it feels too daunting a prospect?

  1. Get in training. Making a career change requires certain "muscles" that you might not have used before or that have gone into atrophy. Reaching out to people, trying new things, taking action in the face of uncertainty – these can feel really hard at first, but, like lifting weights in the gym, get so much easier with practice.

  2. Take it one step at a time. If you think too hard about the process and what it’s going to take from you, it can be overwhelming. If you just focus on what you can do TODAY to move you forward, it will feel way more manageable, and you can make the whole journey that way.

  3. Make a habit of it. Linked to the previous point, if you do one small thing a day, and build it into your routine (“habit stacking”), it will become a lot easier to stay in momentum. For example, every lunchtime you reach out to one new person, or each morning after brushing your teeth, you spend 20 minutes researching events you can attend, or doing a self-study course related to the area/s you’re exploring.

  4. Imagine the summit. If you’re embarking on something tough, it’s important to remember – and keep remembering – why you’re doing it. How do you want to be feeling about work a year from now?

  5. Get help. If you were setting out to climb Everest, you probably wouldn’t try and go it alone, right? So who can you get in your career change crew? Whether it’s a friend who can act as an accountability buddy, or a mentor or coach to support you, getting a team around you will accelerate your progress and make the whole thing less intimidating (and maybe even fun!)

Get in touch if you would like a friendly Sherpa to go up the career change mountain with you! 

** I offer a free 30min career change consultation, which you can book here: https://lnkd.in/e762vgjG