At the ECITB Project Management Conference, I was delighted to talk about Career Transitions through the Energy Transition.
Many people perceive a challenge in moving sectors, while my experience in Career Transition Coaching (Outplacement Coaching) highlights that proactive career searches create swift career moves. Since 2020 I have coaching over 150 clients through career transitions. Some clients have opted for voluntary redundancy, where the mindset and appetite for change may be higher. While the success rate for clients who have been faced with a career change involuntarily has equally proved a high success rate in sourcing a new role within 3 months.
What is the key?
Clarity – Gain total clarity on what you are seeking.
I suspect we have all been tempted by the pop up roles that appear on the social news feeds. I certainty have clicked, even when I don’t want a new role. If I do that half heartedly, how many others do too? The challenging in clicking roles with low effort is, many applicants or varying fit for the role, your application gets lost in the masses, use of a generic CV with no tailoring to the role or organisation. With this, the chances of hearing back is also low. From one perspective this does not matter, it was not a committed search anyway. On the other, the messages our brain hears is, ‘I have applied for a huge number of jobs and I hear nothing. It must be me. I’ll never get a job.’
Clarity means:
- Get clear on the roles you are suited to and seeking.
- Consider what is important to you? Salary, location, type of work, type of business, remote | office | hybrid
- Then scope out the companies you are interested in and go direct.
Commit – Stay focused of what you are seeking.
Once the clarity is there, focus on how to stay motivated. Being successful in a new role is a committed effort. High to low energy approach will have the same impact on your mindset as above.
Consider:
- What are you committing to? Time to search, make applications, prepare for interviews, attend interviews, seek feedback and apply this into the next process.
- How to make your CV sell your skills, while also talking the language of the sector you are seeking to move into.
- Capture the positives from any process. Use each step as learning, as the next process will be more skilfully executed from experience.
Connect – Meet people and talk about what you are seeking.
I recall being in a corporate role and operating undercover when I realised it was time to seek a new role. This is especially hard for people who value loyalty. ‘Imagine if anyone finds out!’ It is very challenging to find a new role alone. The whole process involves others! To be at your best in connecting with the aim of your career move, be sure to tackle the clarity and commitment stages first before moving onto Connect.
To connect:
- Re/Connect within the sector you aspire to join.
- Ask questions, people love to share their knowledge.
- Attend networking events specifically for the area of interest and actively engage with new connections.
When you are ready for your career move and want to explore more, please contact zia@ziasavel.com