Everyone has that honeymoon period in their line of work, where they feel like what they’re doing with their life is all well and good. For the lucky ones, it’s something that will continue throughout their careers, but others aren’t so lucky; as such, many people not only find themselves disgruntled by their current role, but their choice of profession.
However, if you find yourself in this situation, it’s not worth getting angry or consigning yourself to a future of disappointment. There are plenty of other ways for you to shape a more positive working life, and sometimes it’s pretty simple. Hard work and dedication are obviously required to move in a different direction, but it can still be fun.
Using one career example for consistency – that of a journalist – follow the rules below to establish a new course to follow in your life, if you need one!
Is your job all that bad, or does it just need tweaking? Journalists, for example, may just find that the company they work for is the real drag. Making a move from a newspaper to a magazine, website, PR company, marketing organisation or even a charity could be all they need to find a new passion for what they do, ultimately averting a more costly commitment – in terms of both time and money.
Find out how your hobbies can help you in your quest. If you’re a trained writer but want to go into something more visual, then it’s worth looking at hobbies that could not only build a portfolio on the side, but naturally teach you skills. In this position, taking up photography’s a sure-fire hit. It gets you outdoors, learning how your mind and eye works, and it’s a complementary skill to writing. It’s also a chance to learn post-editing or creative techniques with established software or tools (in this case, Photoshop or Lightroom).
Find bridging jobs. If you’re a writer but want to move into, say, interior design, then it’s worth finding a job in a mutual industry. It may be as simple as getting a job at a décor-based magazine, but at the same time, a more corporate position as a press officer for a company that works on interiors may be better-suited to you, as you could become more hands-on in your role by shifting sideways within a company. Organisations such as Wren Kitchens have websites dedicated to jobs throughout their entire firm’s structure, so it’s easy to shift towards a more suitable job.
Retrain in the background. If you’ve decided you’ve had enough of writing words in any shape or form, then all is not lost – but think carefully about your choice. Don’t quit a job too soon – consider retraining in the background, or you may end up with no source of income for an extended time. It shows willingness and responsibility to potential employers, too; it also gives you time to see if there’s any way to get anything out of your current position, even if it’s negligible.
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