If you do not feel yourself growing in your work and
your life broadening and deepening,
if your task is not a perpetual tonic to you,
you have not found your place.
Bored, burned or is it something else?
The career path you choose is one of the most important decisions you make in life. After all, most of your waking hours each year are spent at work! Are you feeling a bit bored or burned out at work? Does it seem like the clock on the wall is barely moving, and you can’t wait to escape at the end of your work day? If you are struggling to find contentment and happiness in your current line of work, you may be experiencing a temporary slip in your motivation that will quickly fade away. Or it may be a signal that it is time, perhaps well past time, for you to think about making a change. Your career choice has to consist of more than being able to pay your bills and putting food on your table. You deserve to spend your days doing the work that you enjoy and your career should line up with your values and goals. You owe it to yourself to search within yourself to find the courage to change your career direction!
Take your time
A career change is an opportunity to think carefully about your values and determine what is most important to you. This takes some time; it is not a snap decision. Be patient with yourself, and give yourself permission to take the time you need to determine what is most important to you in terms of your career.
Ask a lot of questions
First, ask yourself some questions to explore your values and find out what really matters to you. Why did you choose your current career in the first place? What did you like about your present line of work? Have any of those elements of your job disappeared because of changes that have taken place? Or have you simply forgotten what drew you into this field in the first place?
What do you wish you were doing instead? Is there a job within your current company that you feel can make better use of your talents? Is it a more interesting position? Seek advice from your employer on opportunities that exist within your company to get a jump on learning new skills or finding ways to transfer to a more interesting position.
Baby steps
Take baby steps toward the life you crave. While at first blush it might seem like the right thing to do by running away from your current career with all due haste, a hurried (or reckless) approach can backfire. If you make and take the time to think through your decisions and make the best informed decision possible, you will experience greater joy and fulfillment in the long haul.
Chase your big dreams by breaking them down into small, do-able action steps. Seek out the advice of others who are already successful in the field you’re looking into. Structure your goals in a way that will allow you to get regular feedback on your progress, so that you will know when you are on-track and when you are beginning to veer off-course.
Respect your current employer
Whether you are an employed-preneur, running a business on the side, switching companies, or even moving up within the same organization, when it is time to leave, do so with grace. As you move closer and closer to the career change you seek, always be conscious of continuing to perform your current job to the best of your ability. There are at least two reasons why this is important. First, you may need a reference from your current employer. And, second, an attitude of service will increase your own self-confidence as you prepare for a dramatic change in your life.
Believe in you!!
Trust your instincts and your ability to succeed. You can achieve any goal that you set out to accomplish. With proper planning and a hunger to succeed, you will achieve the career success you crave. Keep your dreams in front of you, believe you can achieve them, and begin today to take the first steps toward the career you are destined to enjoy.
Photo Credit: One Way Stock via Compfight cc
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