So, you have been sitting in the same spot at the office for a few years and it seems that you are at a dead end. Staring at the same screen for nine hours every day, processing email after email, and scrambling to meet deadlines... all the while you have been wondering whether or not this job is rewarding enough for you. Perhaps the feeling that this is not where you are supposed to be has been burning away inside, and finally you begin to really care about the issues this may be causing on your mental and even physical health.
Related:3 Very Real Reasons You Should Make A Career Shift
It could be time for a change. If you are concerned that an office job is no longer for you and the health care risks of such a career as outlined in this WebMD article are not worth the hassle, then explore some potential career moves that could change your life. Here are a few:
1. Find A Job In Health, Social Care Or Nursing
This option is top of the list because of the reward factor involved with most social care jobs. This type of career may apply mainly to women as they are typically seen as the more caring gender, although there are lots of men taking jobs in the health and social care sector as explained by The Guardian.
The reason this could be a good career move is because of the amount of positive human interaction involved and the flexibility of the work. You will find yourself building new friendships with the kind of people you don’t normally meet, which is the rewarding aspect that many health and social care workers say is the main reason for pursuing such a career. In the UK, social care is a growing sector with many organizations such as KentSCP now working with the government and NHS to improve the standard of care for service users and training for candidates.
2. Start Your Own Business
Perhaps something that we have all considered at some point in our lives is self-employment. The idea of working on your own time and for your own personal profiteering mission rather than some faceless corporation, often remains simply as a dream for the majority of us. But, it is a career move that many feel is necessary in the current economic climate as it enables you to create a job for yourself.
Before slapping your resignation letter down on your bosses desk, make sure you get a business plan together, you can find some useful templates on the government website and also some sound advice. If you have an awesome idea for a creative business, then you may need funding. You can get really good financing and expert mentoring from government funded programs.
3. Pursue Your Creative Side
Each of us has the ability to turn our hand to something creative and this side of our being is not usually supported while in an office environment. There are hundreds of opportunities in the creative industries such as:
Photography
Fashion
Art
Film and media
Makeup
Writing
Some of those career options may seem unrealistic at first but the truth is you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it, especially given the amount of resources available online designed to assist in learning and career changes. You could, in fact, combine a more creative career with the previous option of starting your own business or being self-employed.
4. Shape Up A Career In The Fitness Industry
Moving into the fitness industry could be as simple as turning a hobby into a job for many people, especially if you enjoy going to the gym several times a week. You could become a personal trainer and get yourself a job as such at your local gym, or perhaps even start your own business as a fitness instructor to private clients.
It doesn’t take a genius to work out that your health care issues from years of office work would no longer be a factor if you manage to successfully switch to a career in fitness!
5. Become A Skydiving Instructor
Our final option in this career change list is quite extreme but does provide something for the potential adrenaline junkies out there. This job certainly isn’t for everybody but you can rest assured it is not as boring as sitting in the office!
To become qualified as a skydiving instructor you must be prepared to jump out of a plane on a regular basis. Before you are allowed to take anybody else’s life into your own hands, you must have been in the parachuting sport for a couple of years and completed more than 100 jumps.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.