Whether you’re 22 or 57, you may be at a crossroads, trying to figure out your next career. The best-laid plans can go south when you discover that you don’t like what you were trained or started out to do. And then you’re faced with a question: “How do I figure out what I want to do next?” That degree, cadre of skills, and years of experience have to count for something, don’t they?
First, take a deep breath and remember that plenty of people make mid-career shifts, so you’re certainly not alone. And you don’t have to know right now what you want to do next. Take this time to explore options and start to build a roadmap to get you to that next role. Remember, though, that the further your next position is from where you are today means you’ll need to add more steps to your map. That doesn’t mean it’s not doable—it 100% is!—but be ready to take small steps if necessary.
Let’s get some ideas of where to start your journey and how to develop a path to get you to that next stop on your career!
Step 1: Reflect on Your Transferable Skills and Strengths
Regardless of your age or experience, you have a wealth of skills and strengths that you’ve accumulated. Now is the time to evaluate what you love and what you’re good at. No doubt you can sit down for a bit and make a list of the types of tasks you enjoy, but if you’re stuck, check out a career aptitude test, such as the one offered by 1-2-3 Test.
As you’re listing your talents, it’s important to remember that just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean you enjoy it. Someone could be really great at managing people but would prefer to work in a lab environment; there’s nothing wrong with that.
Some good questions to ask yourself to figure out your next career include:
- What do I love doing?
- What energizes me?
- What can I do that allows me to make a mark on the world?
- What can I see myself doing for the next 5–10 years that won’t make me dread going to work?
(That last question is important since you don’t want to get locked into something that stinks.)
Step 2: Do Your Research
Taking an aptitude test is just one way you can get a bit of outside support to help you reflect on in what direction you might want to angle your career. There are plenty more resources available to you!
Personality Tests
If you’ve never taken a personality test, they can provide excellent insight into what makes you tick. You may think that you’d be great at sales, but a personality test will show you if you’re more methodical, people-focused, or driven to just close the deal. None of those results tell you that you won’t be successful in a sales role, but they will help you determine how you might be able to transform a so-so sales career into becoming a top performer.
Take the DISC, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), or True Colors assessment as a start.
Prospective Job Options
Did you know that the government has free tools to help in your job search? Two excellent places to start are the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) and O*Net. The OOH allows you to research roles based on your interests as well as pay, education, and projected growth, while O*Net provides a wealth of information, including a My Next Move page that helps you determine the right career path for you.
Other resources to consider include Career One Stop’s self-assessments and Yale’s career-assessment tools. The more you know about yourself and the market, the easier it will be to figure out your next career.
Step 3: Build and Leverage Your Network
Now that you have some direction, it’s time to build your network. Of course, if you’ve already established a network, take some time to reengage! If, however, you’re new to the idea of networking, LinkedIn is the tool of choice. Connect with current and prior colleagues, supervisors, and peers. Join LinkedIn groups as well, since you’re bound to find some great connections there.
Another way to leverage your (new or old) network is to conduct some informational interviews. You may have heard of these for college students to learn more about a prospective career path—but they work just as well for the, ahem, “older” crowd. Informational interviews can provide you with behind-the-scenes information about your target position or company, giving you valuable insights before you invest any time actually looking for a job.
How to Conduct an Informational Interview:
Identify your target: Look for people in roles or industries that strike your fancy. LinkedIn and Google are perfect places to start since both are powerful search engines. On LinkedIn, if you have mutual connections, ask for a warm introduction.
Reach out: Send a friendly, concise message explaining why you’re reaching out and that you’re interested in learning more about their career journey, industry, or company. Most people love talking about themselves, so you’ll encounter more “yes” than “no” responses here.
As an example, try something like this:
“Hi [NAME], I’m exploring a career shift and am impressed by your experience in [INDUSTRY/ROLE]. I’d love to learn more about your career path and any insights you have and are willing to share. Would you be open to a 15-minute chat? I’d really appreciate it!”
Prepare your questions: Come to your interview ready with 3–5 great questions. Ask how they got into the industry, what a typical day looks like, and some key skills needed to be successful in their role.
Follow up: Always send a thank-you message after your meeting. It’s the right thing to do, and more importantly, it keeps the door open for future networking opportunities.
Step 4: Build a Roadmap (and Work Backward)
Prep work is one thing, but if you don’t follow through, it’s all for naught. Now, you need to develop a map. After all, without a direction, you’ll just be wondering aimlessly. While getting a firm handle on your future plans may not be possible, you should have some idea of which way to go. Do you know what industry you’d like to enter? Are you looking for a position in leadership? Want to do something hands on or more removed? With a general destination in mind, you can start to work backward.
Yes, working backward from where you want to be is how great strategists develop their plans. Talk to any event planner or project manager, and they’ll back me up on this.
Break your goal into smaller, more manageable steps. For instance, if you want to switch to a new industry, maybe your first step is getting a certification or taking a course. If leadership is your goal, maybe you’ll want to start by managing a small team or project in your current role.
Create steppingstones to your goal and tackle them one at a time. This way, even if you’re unsure of every detail, you’re still moving forward.
Step 5: Create the Right Resume to Get the Job
If you’re a career changer, your inclination might be to write a functional resume, the kind that focuses on transferable skills over experience. At one point, I would have been gung-ho with this idea; in fact, I used to write functional resumes pretty often because they were so effective.
And then employers started using applicant tracking software (ATS) systems. Sigh. These don’t work well (if at all) with functional resumes. For online applications, you must use a reverse-chronological resume format.
Don’t despair, though! You can have two resumes: one that’s ATS compatible and one that presents your skills and talents in a way that better markets you for your future goal (a functional resume). You’ll use the first format for applying to positions online and the second for networking.
Remember, Networking Is Crucial for Career Transitions
And that leads me back to networking, effectively coming full circle. Once you figure out your future career, you must lean heavily into building and leveraging your network. I cannot overstate the importance of people who already know, like, and trust you. These people are key to you finding your next position and will go to bat for you when the time comes.
If you remember, back in the day, we could apply to positions with something that vaguely resembled a resume, and since employers received so few resumes, they would call anyone who seemed to be a fit. If you could wow on the phone or in an interview, that opportunity would soon be yours. Alas, in today’s age of AI and remote work, you’re competing for a role against hundreds—if not thousands—of applicants. And that’s why relying on applying will leave you out in the cold, especially when angling for a new career direction. Today, you must go through your connections. There’s really no way around it.
Trust Your Career Advocate to Help You Figure Out Your Next Career
While I may have a master’s degree in career counseling, I’ll admit that I’m not much of a counselor. However, I am a great guide, and I’m practical with my advice. When we partner, I’ll provide you with honest feedback about where I see your strengths and how you may want to apply them moving forward in your career. And if you really want to talk with a career counselor, I have a great one who will give you assessments and help you talk through your next steps—before you come to me to build that roadmap for success. Either way, Your Career Advocate has you covered. Learn more here.