Nine essential quitting tips for career changers
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
Deciding when and how to quit your current job can be one of career change's biggest brain spinners.
Sometimes it's simple. You've just got to get out. Or maybe someone else made that decision for you. Other times it's prolonged agony, you're desperate to go, but you just can't leave YET. Often you can stage-manage your shift and make a gradual transition.
However, and whenever you do it, it’s always tricky to quit a career that's helped shape who you are and how you operate.
If you're keen for tips on beating brain spin and skilfully managing the anxious, uncertain business of making any decision, here's a guide I prepared earlier.
If you're up for 'nuts and bolts' quitting advice on timing, transitioning, and performing last rites in your old job, read on.
When to quit
How to keep cash flowing is bound to be a top priority. So, first up, make peace with the money monsters. Run the numbers to find out precisely how you'll fund your career change.
In abstract, budgeting and being real about separating 'needs and wants' can feel dull, difficult, and scary. In practice, it's a powerful way to take control of a big chunk of this unpredictable adventure.
You'll find out the size of the pay cut you could handle, how long you can lean on your savings if you take time off between roles, how much cash you'd need to start your own thing.
Start here. Four ways to figure out how you'll finance your career change.
A question of timing
Figuring out your finances helps you get a grip on how to make your move. Answering these 'what ifs…' will help you work out when to begin.
What if I have other big stuff happening?
Dedicating time to figuring out and making your career change is 'week in and week out' time and energy intensive. If your calendar and brain space are booked out for other big events, it may be best to finish those things first.
Wondering which life events should (and shouldn't) give you reason to pause your career change? Here they are.
What if the world is way wobblier than usual?
Many career changers asked me this during the height of the COVID pandemic. Then and now, here's what I think. Changing careers takes time, and while you're figuring out what to do next, our wobbly world will keep on creating opportunities to do purposeful, fulfilling work.
If you wait for a perfect moment to begin any life-changing project, you may never get started. So, if you're ready for career reinvention, the imperfect present moment is as good a time as any to get going.
Here are four future focused ways to change careers in the wake of the COVID crisis.
Ways to quit
Three of the biggest influences on the pace and shape of my clients' career changes are finances, frustration levels and flexibility in their current roles.
Seething frustration fuels their move. Sorting their finances reveals what's doable and kickstarts the exciting, optimistic, figuring out phase. They're still frustrated, but now they're unstuck and can choose a way forward.
Giant leap into the unknown vs gradual transition
Quitting there and then works for some intrepid humans with sufficient funds to sustain their search for what's next.
If this isn't your style or situation, try one or more of these alternatives.
Stay put for fewer or different hours
Ask to go part-time in your current role. Make space for exploring new careers, studying, or freelancing. If you decide to keep your current job and income intact while you kickstart your career change, you'll need to negotiate like a boss.
Do a little 'same, same but different'
Alternatively, look for a new role like your current one, but fewer hours and less stress. You'll have more time and energy for career change exploring. You'll be exposed to new people and skills. This short-term solution is popular with clients who need to make a move asap.
Step back and take a break
Whether you opt for a short circuit breaker or a long sabbatical, time out to recharge and explore new careers can work wonders. One of which is showing you whether it's your current job or your entire career that's stopped working for you. Gift yourself some 'unwind time,' then do these six things to build your career change momentum.
Set up a side hustle
Lead a double life for a while. Start learning about and launching your new career while you still have the safety net of your old one.
Do some volunteering on the side, offer to help a business with some work for free or do paid projects, so you get experience in a new area. These are great ways to sense check your ideas, gain knowledge and experience and meet great people in your new field.
Before you begin answering these four questions may help resolve any legal or ethical issues and keep your employer onside and take note of these five top tips for succeeding with a side hustle.
Wondering if a side hustle could work for you? Read 51 success stories.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
How to quit
Make a gracious exit.
If you seethed and struggled for months before pulling the pin, you may feel tempted to unleash that pent up anger and frustration. Maybe you're battling the urge to give ghastly bosses or colleagues the earful they richly deserve. Resist.
If you're flooded with relief and exhilaration, go you. Channel your delight into diligent last acts that smooth the way for your successor and protect your professional integrity. Five classy ways to quit your job without burning bridges
More on the science of quitting
There are loads of leaving gems in this thirty-seven minute podcast interview with Annie Duke, wildly successful poker player turned academic and author of Think in Bets and How to Decide.
I like this one,
'we're very tolerant of the unhappiness that occurs just staying the course. And we're very intolerant of the unhappiness that might occur if we switch.'
By Jo Green, Career Change Coach
I know that when you find what you love, heart and soul, your life changes. I work every day with people who are reshaping their current careers, starting new enterprises or searching for a new direction. Basically I help people who don’t like their job to figure out what to do instead!
As a Careershifters and Firework Advanced Certified Coach and experienced career changer myself, I can help you figure out what fulfilling work looks like for you.
Drop me a note to organise a free 20 minute consultation to chat about your career change and how coaching could help.
