- Do some soul searching: Ask yourself why you are making this change. Is it just to make more money? There’s nothing wrong with that, but it only gets you so far. (Stay tuned for a complete article on that.) Make sure that this change is meaningful and accomplishes what you need it to accomplish, rather than just having the same problems follow you in your new career.
- Do some research: Find out the salary expectations, hiring forecast and so on for this new field by looking online, or even better, talking to someone who works in that field. As far as online resources go, www.bls.gov is a good source. Make sure that the new position will be worth the investment and time put in to achieve it.
- Get the training you need: Changing fields usually involves going back to school, but not always. This is the part that a lot of people have a hard time with. Not everyone is the “school type” and the thought of committing to two years or more of research papers is enough to keep a lot of people where they are at, even if they are unhappy. Consider online schools that are fully accredited, or short-term certification programs. I’ve done both of these myself and with great results. Visit this site for a good starting point: http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education.
- Manage your expectations: Managing your expectations doesn’t have to mean lowering them, which is what that phrase has come to imply. Stephen Covey, the author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People suggests that we should always begin with the end in mind. This just means that you shouldn’t make an important decision, like changing careers, without first having specific and realistic expectations about what you want to achieve by it.