How to Prepare for a Job Change
Most people change jobs at least once in their lives. Some change by choice and others are laid off. Losing a job, in particular, can be quite stressful. Take steps to prepare for a career or job change.
Why change?
If you are laid off from your job, this may be a great chance to enter a new or related field. If you are ready for something new, think about why you are ready for a change. Either way, these questions may help you figure out your next career move.
Think about working environment, physical requirements, necessary skills, wages, and working hours.
- What did you like about your past jobs?
- What did you dislike about your past jobs?
- What do you hope to find in a new job?
- Are there some qualities that are essential and some that would be nice?
What are your current skills?
Identify your transferable skills and find other fields that value them. Remember your experience can be a selling point for getting a new job or into a training or apprenticeship program.
If you are a veteran, you use the military skills translator to help you align your skills to civilian jobs.
- Use your MOC code to identify your military skills.
- Use the O*Net Military Crosswalk to search for titles and job descriptions from the Military Occupational Classification (MOC).
- Use the Military to Civilian Skills Worksheet to write down your military skills, knowledge and abilities.
Research!
Find out everything you can about the new field before jumping into it. Make sure it doesn't have the same problems as your old field, and that it is a good fit for you. Look at the career wages and trends information in Illinois workNet.
- Are there jobs available?
- What are typical hours and salaries?
- What are the working conditions?
- Will you need more education?
- Are you willing to make the commitment to get the training and credentials required for the job?
Connect.
- Talk to others in the industry.
- Network with others to share tips about transitioning to a new field.
- Follow industry new, blogs, forums, and social media to stay informed.
How to Prepare for a Job Change by Illinois workNet is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.