Tip No.
146
Q.
I'm considering taking a break from my career and just enjoying life for a while. How will recruiters view this in the future?
A.
You are not alone! Many people are changing careers these days as a result of their own choices or due to corporate downsizing. People today are now having as many as 5-7 different careers throughout their work life. This can be a great way to generate diversity in your talents and background and make yourself very marketable to future employers. Job descriptions are no longer linear and employers today want employees to be experts in their fields, while continuing to be a "Jack or Jill-of-all-trades." Also, as many companies try to do more work with less staff, having a diverse background is a plus.
You may want to do some soul searching to determine why the new career is not a "good fit" for you. Is it because you do not like the work? The environment? Not expert at it yet? The people who are happiest and most successful in their careers are those who follow their passion. If you are not enjoying the work you are doing, you are wise to explore other options. You may want to take some assessment instruments to determine where your interests and strengths lie and then look for some career options that will incorporate what you like and are good at doing. I would recommend the Self Directed Search by John Holland, who theorizes that people need to find work that matches their personality and their preferences for working with people, data or things and that the work environment must also match one's personality for career satisfaction. You will find this at self-directed-search.com. Another place to explore your preferences is assessment.com. You might also want to explore the Occupational Outlook Handbook which you can find in the library, or at bls.gov/oco/ for some ideas about careers that would interest you, once you know what you want in a career.
The average job search ususally takes about 3-6 months, so you may be cutting it a bit close with only 5 months worth of savings. You could do as you have planned and work part-time to explore areas of interest, but recruiters will most likely not be terribly interested in you if you are unemployed. For an in-depth analysis of how recruiters work (and think) you may want to pick up a copy of John Lucht's, "Rites of Passage". If you do decide to take some time off, I would spend some time networking with your contacts, educating them about your aspirations, asking them to make suggestions about where they see you fitting in the marketplace, and then following up on their suggestions during this period. A good book to consult about this kind of exploration is "What Color Is Your Parachute?" by Richard Nelson Bolles.
I hope you will find a rewarding and satisfying career as you pursue the options available to you.
Best of luck to you!
If you have a question for CMI, please
send email to jobbox@cmi-lmi.com
with "Question for CMI" in the subject line.
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Tip No. 146 |
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Q. I'm considering taking a break from my career and just enjoying life for a while. How will recruiters view this in the future? |
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A. You are not alone! Many people are changing careers these days as a result of their own choices or due to corporate downsizing. People today are now having as many as 5-7 different careers throughout their work life. This can be a great way to generate diversity in your talents and background and make yourself very marketable to future employers. Job descriptions are no longer linear and employers today want employees to be experts in their fields, while continuing to be a "Jack or Jill-of-all-trades." Also, as many companies try to do more work with less staff, having a diverse background is a plus. You may want to do some soul searching to determine why the new career is not a "good fit" for you. Is it because you do not like the work? The environment? Not expert at it yet? The people who are happiest and most successful in their careers are those who follow their passion. If you are not enjoying the work you are doing, you are wise to explore other options. You may want to take some assessment instruments to determine where your interests and strengths lie and then look for some career options that will incorporate what you like and are good at doing. I would recommend the Self Directed Search by John Holland, who theorizes that people need to find work that matches their personality and their preferences for working with people, data or things and that the work environment must also match one's personality for career satisfaction. You will find this at self-directed-search.com. Another place to explore your preferences is assessment.com. You might also want to explore the Occupational Outlook Handbook which you can find in the library, or at bls.gov/oco/ for some ideas about careers that would interest you, once you know what you want in a career. The average job search ususally takes about 3-6 months, so you may be cutting it a bit close with only 5 months worth of savings. You could do as you have planned and work part-time to explore areas of interest, but recruiters will most likely not be terribly interested in you if you are unemployed. For an in-depth analysis of how recruiters work (and think) you may want to pick up a copy of John Lucht's, "Rites of Passage". If you do decide to take some time off, I would spend some time networking with your contacts, educating them about your aspirations, asking them to make suggestions about where they see you fitting in the marketplace, and then following up on their suggestions during this period. A good book to consult about this kind of exploration is "What Color Is Your Parachute?" by Richard Nelson Bolles. I hope you will find a rewarding and satisfying career as you pursue the options available to you. |
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If you have a question for CMI, please send email to jobbox@cmi-lmi.com with "Question for CMI" in the subject line. |
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