3 Signs It Might Be Time to Consider a Career Change

Changing careers is much more common than you may think. Oftentimes, people spend years in a specific career or industry before realizing that it isn’t a good fit for them or they are actually passionate about something else. Recognizing that it is time for a career shift can help you decide what your next steps should be, whether it is taking the time to further your education or even start your own business.

Listen to What Your Body is Telling You

Taking cues from how your body feels can help you realize that change is possible and needed at this time. Listen to your body and think about how you feel throughout your work day. You can even ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you wake up feeling agitated about the day or energized about the work that is to come?
• Do you feel supported by your manager and do you feel that they care about both your professional growth and personal development?
• Are your skills being recognized and developed at work?
• Do you feel drained of energy at the end of the work day, and are you experiencing a decrease in your wellbeing?

Answering these questions can help you recognize if you’re feeling burnt out, bored at work, jealous of other people’s jobs, or feel stuck and like you don’t have any room to grow. If you are feeling a lack of motivation and creativity, or are seeing a decrease in your mental health due to work stress, it might be time to consider a career change.

Recognize When You Are Being Undervalued

Signs that you are being undervalued at your current job can look like zero autonomy or lack of trust, lack of recognition, more responsibilities but no promotion or increase in pay, others with less experience being promoted, or your input and ideas being ignored. If some or all of these signs apply to you, it might be time to make a career change and find an employer that values you.

Do some research using tools like Glassdoor to see if you are being paid fairly by searching for salaries of those with the same job titles. Find companies with salary transparency and see if they have careers you are interested in. If you are finding that what you make does not match other salaries in the field, it may be time for a shift in career.

Pay Attention if You’re Losing Your Ambition

Recognizing when you are staying in your career with no ambition is often a sign that it may be time to move on. Take some time for introspection about your career thus far. Have you grown throughout your career or in your current role? If not, it might be best to move on from a company when there is no room for growth, skill development, or other training opportunities so you can find a new employer or industry that values you and promotes learning and development.

Change can also help you find the motivation and ambition to move forward and pursue learning opportunities that will help your career trajectory.

If some or all of these signs apply to you it may be time to consider a new career. A great first step is to talk to a SkillUp Career Coach during free group coaching sessions every Wednesday!

Learn more about SkillUp and our training catalog here.