You can change your mind: career edition

Changing Careers

Welcome back to How To Twenty Something, today we’re going to discuss one of the most common fears a young professional has in regards to his or her career and that is changing your career mind

And this topic actually came from a request from one of you, but is also a very normal, yet conflicting experience so I decided to make an entire episode about it

I’ve slowly been receiving some good topics that you guys want me to talk about on here and coach around, so please continue to check out the show notes for links to either submit a topic or a question or to even come and be a guest on the show! I promise it’s not as scary as it may sound and I make sure you’re well prepared and comfortable

In the meantime, let’s go through what might be coming up for you when  you think about possibly shifting gears, why your fear is preventing you from doing so, and how you can begin to alter the voice in your head to encourage you to make this choice and thank you Paige Miller for the episode idea

Anytime I ask someone if they love their job and they say not really, I follow up with what is something you’d rather be doing?

They give their answer and usually follow it up with, but I’m scared to do that

And believe me, I get it

I was once in your shoes and made a leap that I will never ever regret doing

My main message for this episode is you can always go back, but you’re never going to regret taking that step forward – whether it worked out the way you anticipated or not

And I always feel like people need permission to make any decision in their life, I know I definitely feel that way, so I’m here to tell you It’s okay to keep changing your mind

You have forty working years, who’s to say you can’t keep changing what you want to do?

Is it the standard thing to do? No, not really

But fuck the standards

I know I can certainly speak for myself and majority of the young professionals listening that we grew up under the presumption that you graduate high school, choose a major, graduate with that degree and then work in that area for the rest of your life

Just about every single member in my family exemplifies this path to some extent, so it’s all I ever knew

In fact, I didn’t know it was even possible to switch your career up, which sounds silly in hindsight, but that was my belief subconsciously instilled in me for my entire life up until 2020

I wrote in one of my 2020 covid journal entries, that I wanted to change careers to the health and fitness industry, but was afraid I would be disowned by my family as it appeared to be really frowned upon to take a career risk and leave the job you went to school for, especially if that career is not a guarantee source of income, but something you have to work to build yourself

No one in my family ever said anything along those lines, but it was a story I created based on my upbringing and knowing that all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins had followed that specific path in life

And I want to say, screw that ideology

Like yes, you can most definitely choose that path in life where you pick a major in college and work in that field until the day you retire and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, but I am speaking to the people that have entered the adult world and realize that their 9-5 is not what they imagined it to be, but feel stuck in the choice their 18 year old self made

Because that’s what happened to me

The end of my first week of my first adult job out of college I vividly remember having the thought of “This is it? This is the next 40 years of my life? This is what I’ve been working towards? No, I can’t accept that.”

I do want to say to those of you listening, that it is possible that it’s your place of employment and not your career, so look into changing jobs, but if it’s the career, if you are looking around at your peers, your supervisor, and people who have been in this industry longer than you and you don’t like what you have to look forward to, then I’m giving you the permission to change your mind

Pull a 180 on your career, get the proper certifications or degree needed to make the switch, plan out the decision you’re wanting to make, and apply for the jobs that sound more appealing to you in a possibly different industry

As long as you show your willingness to learn, grow, and work hard, you become moldable to any career situation

Like I said, you’re never going to regret making the transition and know that you can always go back to where you came from as a fall back, but if you don’t, you risk living a life of what if’s

Even if it ended up being the worst decision of your life, at least you tried something new and learned what you don’t want from a job

A friend of mine exemplified this over the last year when he left the job he was hired out of college for, realized he absolutely hated his new job, and after several months of trying to stick it out, he went back to his old company only for a different position and sector in that company

He didn’t make a 180 move on his career but he did take a risk doing something else related to his field of work and realized it wasn’t what he wanted

So yes, you can literally leave and come right back and that’s okay! The grass isn’t always greener on the other side and sometimes you have to go to that other side just to see for yourself

I made a 180 in my career since I have a bachelor’s of design – I went to school for four years doing architecture and interior design work, never fully loving it and honestly stuck it out because I wanted to prove my best friend’s dad wrong that I could have a prosperous life in this field after he told me I wouldn’t

My decision to pick this major came from a 17 year old mind that new nothing of all the career types out there and when I redid my awkward shaped bedroom in 11th grade, it was my mom who told me this is a career path I would excel in, so I went with it

Afterall, my mom knew more about the working world than I did, so I trusted her input

And don’t get me wrong, I was good at it, I had a natural eye for space planning, but it wasn’t where my heart was

The caveat is, I didn’t know where my heart was until shit hit the fan and I accidentally found it

I mentioned part of my story as to how I stumbled into my career change during my time of unemployment in episode 7 and once I realized I needed to get out of the corporate world in pursuit of my own happiness, I started to research complementary careers for personal trainers, and my happiness came from the work I was doing, since I already uncovered an overwhelming sense of love and fulfillment from personal training

My interior design degree gave me zero pre-requisites for a masters in another field more related to nutrition or sports medicine, plus I wasn’t really in a place to go back to school, so some similar options appeared in the form of more certifications

I did a ton of research, talked to a lot of people who went through these types of programs and decided in April of 2021 that is was time to begin my coaching journey

For me, making a switch in my career was no longer scary

It was, in 2020, since even my own mom was not in support of me following my dreams and my heart

But by 2021, my mom realized how determined I was, my well thought out plan for the next year of my life, and my true passion that screamed out behind my voice whenever I would talk about it

For me, leaving my corporate job was a no brainer. My interior design job was in office full-time, which in May 2021 that was still pretty unheard of, I hardly ever went on site visits or to show rooms, had horrible benefits, was making less than a teacher’s salary, and any time there was a lull in my day I felt like I was wasting my time as I now knew how valuable my time was

The good thing about this job was that it didn’t stress me out, so I could devote more energy and mental capacity to growing my business

But in my mind, I really wasn’t risking much by leaving this job and venturing out on my own

I knew it was going to take a lot of work, but I saved up a lot of money and hired a business coach, who I still work with over a year later, to help me figure out how to create a feasible business for myself

For some of you listening, maybe your shift in careers is from the stability of the corporate world to the crazy self-employed world or it’s from one type of job to another

Regardless of what this shift is, unless it’s from one company to another in line with your experience, you can pretty much expect to go back to the beginning of the working world and work your way up

However, I do want to add that if you don’t want to be in the corporate world because you think it sucks, so you think the self-employed world is the easy way out, I’m here to tell you it is absolutely not the way to go

Don’t let the tiktok influencers let you think otherwise

Unless the business you are creating is your entire heart and soul, it is not worth the mental and financial stress only to be able to work on your own time

Which is why I’m telling you to find a career that doesn’t feel shitty and if you have a passion somewhere else, start it as a hobby or a side hustle and who knows, maybe it will eventually allow you to make the switch

But, and I cannot stress this enough, so I’m saying it again, it is not the easy way out of your 9 to 5, it is not for the faint of heart

I know it’s so enticing to want to be able to work for yourself, but it requires a shit ton of planning to do, it should not be a decision made based on you losing or hating the job you were at, but a decision you come to on your own and build up the resources to make that transition

It took me 11 months of planning and seriously saving so that I would be okay when first starting out, because it is rare for you to make a livings worth of money within the first year or two or five of being self-employed 

This was not some spur of the moment decision, and it wasn’t because I was sick of the corporate life, but due to the fact that I found the thing that lights me up in my life and in order to be able to do it, I needed to leave the thing that was consuming a majority of my time

When it comes to switching industries from one full-time job to another, know that it’s ok to have an entry level position again, go try a new career before calling a quits on the full time working world; see what else is out there

Sometimes you have to take 3 steps back in order to get ten steps ahead in a field you actually enjoy and at least partially care about

When Paige recommended I discuss this topic, she wanted me to mention that this is shard decision to make for yourself and that you are not alone in wanting to change careers to follow your passion, even if it means taking a step down 

Whether that means a step down with your salary or with your title to get into the field you want to be in

Know you’re playing the long game, you’re trying something new to bring more success and happiness later on, even if it means taking a pay cut right now

The money will return and you’ll need to adjust your finances accordingly until then, but a few years from now it could be the best decision you made for yourself

And it’s okay to keep changing your mind with what you want out of your job you have 40 good years after getting your bachelors to keep figuring things out

Again, it takes up so much of your life, so why put yourself through something that feels like it’s soul sucking

You can go back to school and get a new degree, you can start as an apprentice and gain the experience and knowledge for a decent job, and as I said before you can get more certifications to help build up your expertise in an area

I even had a client that worked with me in the fall of last year, right after he was laid off from his job go through many different possible scenarios of what his next step was going to be

He originally said in our very first session together that he was not looking to re-enter the corporate world and that a few months prior from being laid off he filed for an LLC and wanted to take the self-employed route

I’m not going to advise against a clients goals and aspirations but I did warn him of the mental toll it takes on you when you enter this form of the working world

If a client comes to me and is adamant about a direction in their life I am going to fully support them and help them make rational decisions that they are alignment with 

And help them course correct as they come to their own revelations – because again I help you own your life and get a grip on your reality

Together, we set goals in relation to his health and career and then worked on making all the pieces in his puzzle of life fit together

We implemented a routine for him to do every day which included working out, networking, and brainstorming the process of the self-employed world and getting him up on his feet

About halfway through our time together we were able to peel back his reason for being against going to another corporate job which was fully remote ones and the industry he was in, so he concluded that this is not the time to pursue his own business as there are other skills he wants to learn to help him for when he is ready to be his own boss

We shifted gears to look for a different career path where he could learn more about different sides of the business that would then further support is overarching goal of becoming self-employed

He knows that it’s going to happen eventually, it’s just not in his cards right now and in this season of his life

You see, your career doesn’t have to be your whole life, but you should gain clarity as to what you want out of it and how it fits into your life both right now and in the future

I know we would all much rather get paid to sip margaritas on a beach somewhere, but for 99% of us, that’s not going to happen

But what you can do, is keep trying new things and figuring out what you do want from your job and if there’s another area in your life you can find your fulfillment in so you don’t feel like you’re wasting your life

I know it’s a scary to think about making a career shift, and I’m about to delve into the fears that come with this version of change, but first you need to take a step back and see the trajectory your career is offering you and if it’s in alignment with the life you dream of for yourself

I’ve mentioned this in another episode, that change, in general is scary, your brain only wants you to do what’s familiar and comfortable because it knows you won’t die from it

And there’s a lot of uncertainty that is accompanied with changing directions in a field you’ve only ever known in your adult life, not to mention the ego hit that comes with having to take a step down from the position you’re currently in

Some of the hesitancies coming up probably derive from wondering if this is the right decision, or what if you hate it even more than your current job and regret the entire decision, or it doesn’t feel like the right time

Which, you’re going to need to trust me on this, it’s never going to feel like the right time, so you might as well put your own best interest at heart and do it sooner rather than later

So here you are, standing at this crossroads, one that keeps you on this current path and another that holds no guarantee of a better path to follow

I can tell you right now that your twenties are for this exploration of different possibilities your life could hold

I help young professionals get their shit together which means creating a solid foundation in their mental, physical, financial, and emotional health, so they can go out and try new things and see what else is out there and if you recall, this foundation is what I refer to as home base

You need to create the stability in key aspects of your life to allow the exploration part to be possible and not lead to mental breakdowns or reckless, spur of the moment decisions

Yes, you’re in your twenties and this time is supposed to be fun, but the reality of the situation is, you’re in your twenties it’s time to level up your responsibilities, take ownership of your actions, create well-thought out plans, and show up for yourself so your twenties can be fun, but also forward thinking and setting the foundation for what you want out of the rest of your working adult life and how your career fits in with that vision

You don’t need to stay in the norm and work your way up the corporate ladder or choose a job for it’s pay but you actually have no interest in it or fulfillment from it

And because your job consumes a majority of your time, you need to start thinking about how it supports the life you want to live outside of those 40 to 60 hours

It’s not to say you shouldn’t choose a career path for the money, but it is saying that there is more to life than a couple of extra zeros in your bank account

So keep trying different things, see what you want and what you don’t want from your career and then pick a path for right now

You can change your mind again in five or ten years and start this process all over again 

As you evolve, your thought processes and your outlook on your life will evolve too; and as a result your career changes to support your other evolutions 

So use your twenties, a time when you are not financially obligated towards anyone else and play around with how your career is showing up versus how you want it to show up 

I know I will never regret making my career shift because I know that my interior design degree still allows me to go back to the stability and security that comes with the corporate world

Will i be miserable and cry every day if I have to do that, ya probably, but if the alternative is wondering how I’m going to pay rent next month then that’s what I would have to do

I also know myself and my determination to succeed means that I’m going to work my damned hardest to never have to return to the 9-5 life

And to exemplify that it’s possible for you too, as long as you’re aware of the mental toughness, and extreme responsibility and self-discipline that comes with this type of career path and that it’s most definitely not the easy way out of working under someone else

Hannah Montana says it best, you can change your hair, you can change your clothes, you can change your mind, that’s just the way it goes; you can say goodbye, you can say hello, but you’ll always find your way back home

This is in regards to your career, but can apply to so many aspects of your life when you’re trying to figure out the best next step for you to take

And if you don’t like your current career situation, but have no idea what to do next, then please reach out to me

I figured it out for myself, I’ve helped clients develop a better understanding with what they want out of their career, and I can help you too

My information is always in the show notes for you to immediately see how you can hop on a road to success call with me

And every now and then I throw free 30 minute coaching sessions to my email list, so if you aren’t on there I highly recommend you sign up

But that concludes today’s episode of how to twenty something with me granting you the permission to change your mind: career edition

If you liked what you heard go ahead and rate, follow, subscribe, share it on socials or with a friend, but do something that helps me get my word out to the young professionals out there who might feel like they are running around with their head cut off

Also, if you have a story or a not so typical timeline you think other twenty somethings would benefit from, please inquire about being a guest in the show notes. You’ll even see additional links for submitting a question to be answered on here or a topic you want me to cover like this episode

But for now, I’ll let you get on with the rest of your day and I’ll be in your headphones again next week with a brand new episode