CAREER CHANGE CHECKLIST
5 Proven Strategies for a Quick and Easy
Career Change
by Sherri Thomas
If coming into work on Mondays makes you
cringe, then it’s definitely time for a
career change. And if you’re ready
to make a career change into a new role,
company, or industry then this article
is for you. There are five
critical steps on the “Career Change
Checklist”, and when you complete all of
them, you’re much more likely to
experience a successful transition
quickly and easily…
1.
Define your career goals.
Is it fame? Money? Prestige? More free
time? More responsibility? Bigger
clients? Bigger title? Respect from Sr.
Managers or industry leaders? You need
to know what it is that will really make
you happy BEFORE you go searching for
another job. Otherwise, the grass
won’t be greener. It will just be
more grass.
Let’s say you know exactly what you want
that will give you a richer career life.
Now, I want you to think about the
“conditions” of the work that you need
to be satisfied. Do you need
flexible hours? A 20-minute or
less commute time? Stock? Bonuses? A
great health plan? More creative
projects? Highly valued projects? Highly
visible projects? More prestigious
clients? Bigger clients? Clients in a
different industry?
The more clearly you can articulate what
you ultimately want in your career, and
the conditions of a job you need for you
to be satisfied and more fulfilled, THE
MORE LIKELY YOU ARE TO ACHIEVE YOUR
DREAM JOB.
2.
Create an integrated job search
strategy.
Since applying on the Internet for job
openings is so easy, everyone does it.
Which means it’s very, very difficult
for you to stand out among hundreds of
other job applicants, or competitors,
with just a resume. So, you’ll
need to do a lot more than just post
your resume on Monster.com to get
noticed. You must have an
integrated ON-LINE and OFF-LINE job
search strategy to achieve your dream
job.
Yes, you should apply on job search
websites such as CareerBuilder.com,
Jobing.com, etc., but you should also
make a targeted list of companies and
check out their website job postings.
Also, research their blogs, Google them,
and talk to employees.
Find out as much as you can about the
positions they are hiring for and the
skills experience, and training required
for the position you want. Do you
meet all of the requirements?
If not, then develop a plan to
acquire it...
by taking on-line or college classes,
enrolling in training or certification
programs, reading books, or meeting with
professionals who can teach you
specialized knowledge.
Also, check out job postings in your
local newspaper, as well as business
journals, specialized trade
publications, and industry magazines and
websites. Not only could you find
jobs that interest you, but you can also
see patterns for what the “hot jobs” are
which industries and companies are
hiring.
One more thing...
make a plan to attend at least two
professional functions each week
...such as industry conferences, trade
shows, training seminars, association
meetings, or business networking events.
If networking makes you uncomfortable,
here are a few questions you could ask
someone to get the conversation rolling…
a.
What line of work are you in?
b.
Do you like your job?
c.
How did you get your job?
These are very easy and non-intrusive
questions that you can begin with, and
if you are really interested in the
person’s role or company, you could also
ask them if they know of any job
openings. In the FIRST
CONVERSATION, the goal is...
to establish if there’s a connection
...or a genuine interest in the person.
Perhaps you may not be interested in
trying to break into their line of work,
but they may have a desire to help
introduce you into their professional
network. Be natural and let the
conversation flow naturally.
Also,
be prepared to give your elevator pitch
which is a 30-45-second answer to the
question, “What do you do for a living?”
Make sure that you have a well prepared,
specific, and results oriented response.
For example, if you have a job at a
company but are looking for a position
with another company you could say, “I’m
a computer programmer with a specialty
in X, Y, and Z. Right now I work
for abc company, but I’m interested in
exploring other opportunities.” IF
YOU DON’T want anyone at your current
place of employment to know that you’re
job searching, you should FIRST ask the
other person first if he knows anyone at
your current company. If the
response is “no”, then you can continue
with your elevator pitch.
:)
3.
Network strategically.
Next,
you need a specific list of people,
clients, or companies that you want to
target. Many jobs are found through
people (versus classified ads or on-line
job postings) so it really comes down to
WHO YOU KNOW. If you know the
company or client you want to work for,
then try to work through your personal
network of business associates, past
employers, friends, etc. to find a
company contact. Try to get
introduced through your professional
connections, or try business networking
sites such as LinkedIn.com, and business
networking events.
If you know
the person you’d like to connect with,
do some investigating and find out what
he or she likes to do and community or
industry events they attend. Try
going to those same events or
conferences, and be prepared to make a
good first impression when you do meet.
Make sure you can talk about their
latest marketing campaign or product
launch. Also, try to get their
business card and then follow-up by
sending them a link to an article or
industry event you thought might
interest them. The goal is...
to
create a connection or establish a
relationship with them first, before you
start asking about any job
opportunities.
The next two items on the Career
Change Checklist are especially
critical. They are strategies to
develop a POWER RESUME to help you stand
out from the competition (your resume
only has 20-seconds to impress the
hiring manager!), and what you should
say to INTERVIEW SMART, survive the
“Interview Hot Seat” and get the job
offer…
4. Develop a “Power Resume”.
The
goal of the resume is get your foot in
the door by getting an interview.
So, if your phone isn’t ringing with
invitations to interview then...
you need a STRONGER RESUME!
Make sure you CUSTOMIZE YOUR RESUME
AND COVER LETTER for each position or
company you are applying. Ideally,
you want to match the job title with
your OBJECTIVE, necessary skills with a
KEY SKILLS section towards the top of
your resume, and the major
responsibilities listed in the job
description in the EXPERIENCE section of
your resume.
To help clarify,
your resume should have a section in the
top third of the page (this is what I
call the prime real estate of the
resume) that showcases your “STRENGTHS”
or “KEY SKILLS”. This section
should include 8-10 bullet points that
match the skills you have with the major
skills required for the job (which are
found in the job description).
Make sure you use skills and words that
exactly match those in the job
description, but list only those skills
that you possess.
You want to show that,
without a doubt, you have the necessary
skills, experience, and knowledge to
perform the job successfully.
5. Interview smart by researching the
company, being prepared, and asking
great questions.
Make sure that you prepare mentally and
physically for before every interview.
You should be mentally sharp, focused,
and confident. Think about what
information you want to share with the
interviewer. Remember that they
probably don’t know anything about your
experience, work ethics, or quality of
work. What are your career
highlights? Talk about your
strengths and accomplishments.
Pre-select career success stories and
highlight what the situation was, what
the expectations or goals were, and what
the result was. This shows that
you are accountable and
results-oriented, and that you take your
career very seriously.
Be sure to research the company
so that you are knowledgeable about
their history, company culture, products
and services, competition, and what’s
happening in their business.
Research their website, read their blog,
and Google them.
Make sure you talk about what
you’ve learned and ask questions!
A lot of times, you can impress a hiring
manager by just asking INSIGHTFUL
QUESTIONS. Inquire about what
kinds of projects are a high priority,
what the expectations would be for the
first 3 months (and the first year), and
what they see as the challenges that
come with the job. Try to gain a
clear understanding on whether the
position meets all of YOUR conditions
(that you listed in Step #1), and
whether it will take you closer to what
you REALLY WANT in your career (which
you also listed in Step #1).
There really isn’t a “right way” to
answer a question, as long as you are
truthful. The goal is to
understand what it takes to be
successful in that position, and whether
or not your meet the job requirements.
You should strive to make a connection
with the hiring manager and you can
usually do that by being genuine and
your true authentic self.
Finally, if you really do want
the job, then be passionate!
I’ve spoken with company Presidents and
hiring managers across the United States
and United Kingdom and I’ve asked them
the same question, “What can someone say
during an interview to make you really
want to hire them?” And they’ve
all said the same thing which is to be
passionate about the job and the
company.
Millions of people will be hired this
year SO WHY SHOULDN'T ONE OF THEM BE
YOU? Unless there is some kind of
major gap in your work ethic, you more
than likely have a very unique set of
skills, accomplishments, and personal
characteristics. The key is to
attract a client or employer who
appreciates and values you for what you
can provide.
So follow the Career Change Checklist,
stay focused, and have confidence in
yourself that your job is out there and
that YOU WILL FIND IT. Changing
careers is never easy, but trust me, the
reward of having a gratifying and
enriching career makes it all
worthwhile.
J
