St. Louis Business Journal
How to get beyond
gettling overwhelmed
about changing careers

By Anna Navarro

April 2000 - The thought of changing jobs or careers can be pretty overwhelming.

"Even if I knew how to do it, where would I find the time?" So goes the refrain of many an unhappy worker who feels stuck in what s/he is doing but doesn't know how to make changes.

If you are one of these folks, read on. This column's for you.

What I am about to suggest isn't rocket science, but it is effective. The secret is to break the task down into bite size pieces, and commit a small amount of time on a regular basis to chewing on it.

A commitment of two hours a week over a period of a year is enough for most people to make significant changes in their work lives.

But let's be clear about the nature of this time. It's not a fuzzy "Oh, yeah, I'll fit it in somewhere."

No. I have something quite different in mind.

I suggest that you:

Block out two specific hours a week on your calendar for this project just like you would for an appointment. Some blocks can be on weekends or evenings. Others will need to be times when people are available to meet with you.

Show up on time, alert and ready to work on the challenges at hand. Bring your best self to the meeting, whether it's a solo appointment or with others.

Treat this time as sacrosanct. No cancellations. No distractions. This means, for example, not answering the phone, or snacking. Instruct others in your environment to leave you alone so you can concentrate.

Exert self-discipline and focus entirely on the career change tasks before you during these hours. Bring your mind back quickly and gently each time it wanders. (Beating yourself up for straying is a distraction.)

If you are undertaking this project on your own, without outside help, you first need to create a work plan for yourself, identifying the steps you are going to undertake. If you engage the services of a career professional, it is reasonable to expect that s/he will create that structure for you.

Here is a brief outline of the major steps I help my clients walk through in making a career change:

á Analyze the characteristics you are looking for in an ideal work situation. Cover issues like skills, working conditions, money, location, etc., etc. Explore broadly first, then come back and develop a list of the highest priority items.

á Figure out what you have to offer in terms of skills, background, etc. Be careful to eliminate anything that makes you miserable.

á Brainstorm what kinds of careers (types of jobs or types of self-employment) might conceivably offer what you are seeking.

á Research those career ideas to find one that comes close to meeting your highest priority needs. A good rule of thumb is that a satisfying career will meet roughly 80% of your criteria. Don't expect perfection, but be reasonably sure a career will make you happy before you decide to pursue it.

á Go after your desired goal. This could involve many different things. For example, job hunting (writing resumes, networking, interviewing, etc.), starting a business (developing a business plan, raising capital), negotiating for different responsibilities in your current job, etc.

As you go through this process, expect to hit many, many places where you are stumped and don't know what to do next. When this happens, you need to use your 2-hour block to focus on the question "What should I do next?"

Sometimes you won't arrive at a definitive answer. That's OK. Make a "best guess" and take some action. Your success or failure will tell you if your guess is right or wrong.

If you were right, keep moving in that direction. If you were wrong, make another "best guess" and keep trying til you find something that works.

Though this process may sound inefficient, it will work eventually if you keep showing up without fail for your 2-hour appointment with yourself. You'll be amazed at your ability over the long run to sort out some very puzzling issues and make real progress.

Don't get me wrong. I don't see this as a piece of cake. Allocating two hours a week to a career or job change is a very significant investment of time and energy. But it's the difference between an overwhelming and impossible undertaking and one that is challenging but doable.

Anna Navarro is the founder of Work Transitions, a nationwide career consulting firm that trains independent career strategists and consults with individual clients.

This column was originally published by the St. Louis Business Journal. The actual title of the column and date in which it appeared in the Business Journal may be slightly different from what appears on WorkTransitions.com.