Top Tips for Making a Career Change in 2023

For many people, the start of a new year encourages them to finally make changes they’ve been thinking about for a while. This is often related to health and fitness, financial matters, relationship or travel topics, etc., but is also often revolving around career.

If you’re keen to make a big change in 2023 regarding what you do for work and where, follow the below tips to help you set yourself up for success.

Know What You Want to Achieve and Who You Are

Before attempting to change your career, stop and ask yourself if you’re clear about what you want to achieve. What are your goals for getting a new job? You’ll find it hard to find something that seems just right or enjoy a role you think seems excellent if you’re not first aware of why you want the change.

For example, perhaps you want to get a new position that will give you more time with your family or to pursue other interests or one where you see more ability to keep being challenged over time. You might want a career change because you’ve been putting off exploring a topic you get excited about for too many years or because you have set financial goals that are top of mind.

Do some inner reflection to clarify what you’re hoping the outcome of the career move will be, so you don’t get distracted by potential changes that won’t give you what you need. Think about your passions, interests, hobbies, personality type, communication style, and motivating factors. Consider your personal strengths, too, such as time management, problem-solving, creativity, organization, building relationships, etc.
Take your goals and understanding of who you are to help you research and land a job type that will suit all of these factors. This will help you make a move that’s more likely to last.

Get Your Finances Sorted

Many people don’t change careers because they don’t feel they can afford to. As such, get your finances sorted ASAP to give yourself more of a chance to obtain the life you’re after. If you’re not constantly stressing about how you might pay your bills if you have to start from the bottom and work your way up again, you’ll find it easier to commit to the career change and focus on the job you move to.

It often pays to develop a savings plan that will help you get enough money set aside to pay for any required retraining and to cover a period when you’re unemployed but looking for a job, as well as when you’re earning less than is ideal. For many people, this means saving up enough funds to cover yourself for a couple of years, but everyone’s needs differ. Consider if you can get access to any scholarships, financial aid, or even retraining from your current employer, or downsize your home, live with parents or others, and look for other ways to cut your costs, too.

Obtain Suitable Qualifications

To give yourself the best chance of success in your new career, you’ll likely have to earn some more suitable qualifications. You may need to obtain a degree or certification to go after your desired job. For instance, you might need to study a pharmacy technician course or earn a degree as a pharmacist if you like the idea of working in healthcare but don’t want to deal with blood. Or, perhaps you must go back to school to get qualified as a teacher and pursue a career that involves working with children.

Keep in mind that these days there are plenty of online learning options that are flexible in when and how you study and how long you can take to get your qualifications. This means you might want to fit your learning in around your current job so there’s less financial pressure on you and your family. Alternatively, if you want to fast-track your training, see if you can get credits for prior learning or experience, if applicable, or take more subjects each semester to get through the course sooner.

Some other top tips for making a career change happen this year are to work on boosting your self-confidence so you take the leap (you may want to see a therapist to help with confidence or hire a stylist or practice your public speaking skills), and get some experience in the new field as soon as you can. Internships, mentoring, and the like can be game-changing.

A career move can be a big thing to tackle, so make life easier for yourself and those around you by following the steps above. The sooner you plan for success, the sooner you can achieve your dreams.