What to Expect & 4 Career-Change Tips

Hey there, I’m Aaron. I am the CEO and founder of Pedestal, and I want to introduce what you can expect on our blog while providing you with some value. At Pedestal, we want to make it easy for individuals to grow in their field or a new one. We’ll consistently post tips, guidance, opinion, and references that you can use to develop professionally. Over time, you’ll have access to our encyclopedia of professional development knowledge sourced from individuals who have practiced these techniques through well over 15 different industries.

In addition to much of the non-industry-specific content, there will be some specialized content depending on who the writer is. As such, the titles will be aptly named so you can find what you need with ease. Remember, you can quickly search and find answers to almost any problem that may come up in your life, but it is impossible to tell which ones are the right ones. Here at Pedestal, we’ll do our best to provide you with the right answers and justify them so you can feel confident when you make decisions. Your future is in your hands, and you should do your best to Craft your legacy and build your Pedestal.

Changing careers is something that should not be taken lightly. That being said, don’t stay in a role or field if it doesn’t feel right. You may have heard others state, “I don’t work anymore”, despite knowing they work a 9–5 job every day. It may be obvious why they say this, but it is important to state that if you find something you are passionate about or enjoy, you will no longer view it as work (as much). Let’s talk about different career-changing tips that may help you in your journey.

You may have heard many different tactics and methodologies to do so. Some work, some don’t. In my experience, as someone who has changed careers dozens of times, I’ve found that there are four things you should do if you want to change careers. These tips apply to any industry and focus on things you can control. Don’t get bogged down by those things that you can’t.

1. Find what you like

You may not know exactly what you want to do. That’s okay. What do you like? For example, do you like talking to others? Are you social? This tip applies even if you already know what you want to do. If you want to be a software engineer, great. What about being a software engineer do you like most? Or, what languages do you like to code in? Roles and careers are becoming more and more specialized, so it is easier to find something that matches exactly what you like.

If you’re struggling to identify your likes, think about what you do in your free time. If you had no responsibilities, what would you do? Would you paint? Go for a run? Go out with friends? Each of those activities can be translated into a professional role. If you like to go out with friends, think about some roles that enable you to chat with others and socialize. I like to list out my likes on flashcards or in a Word document. I then think about how these likes could be beneficial in different roles. This brings me to the next tip.

2. Research and save roles

If you’re beginning to understand your likes, you can identify your potential fits. Landing a role without experience is tough. The first step in getting experience is figuring out what experience organizations are looking for. This applies to freelance roles and for those of you that want to start a business. When you have your likes identified, search LinkedIn, Glassdoor, Indeed, etc. for roles that integrate your likes into them. You can then save those roles and work towards getting the other skills required to get into the role.

Be realistic here: don’t say you like being a boss with no experience at all. This is something you can work towards, sure, but find roles that you can see yourself in immediately or within the next few years. You want to have those immediate roles so you can work towards them and the stretch roles so you can continue to grow. Having goals is important and setting yourself up to work towards roles in the future is a great way to hold yourself accountable. Plus, you can check to see if you still like the growth path as you get into the industry.

The best way to do this is to copy some of your favorite job descriptions to a Word document. You can then remove the similarities and combine the descriptions until you have the perfect role for you. Then you can search for roles that have those skills needed. Most roles won’t be identical to the one you create, but it helps to keep you aligned to your preferences. The goal here is to find a role that you’d be happiest in and set yourself up to work towards it.

3. Acquire experience

This is the toughest one on the list. A question I am often asked is, “How am I supposed to gain experience if entry-level roles require 3–5 years experience?” It’s a fair question. Most roles require an absurd amount of experience despite not offering competitive salaries and expecting a lot in return. You don’t have to start there. Get creative. Companies like to see that you’re passionate. Take the time to acquire experience in as many different ways as possible.

Take some courses on Coursera, EDX, and Udemy. These can help you obtain knowledge, but you do need hands-on experience. Take the time to craft projects in your field. If you like finance, create theoretical financial models for companies like Google. If you like software engineering, build out a portfolio that showcases your strengths in applicable areas. Give yourself talking points in your field during interviews. Hiring managers want to see that you’ve been in different situations that you’re expected to be in if you were to be hired.

There are other ways to gain experience as well. Tap into your network (or build out your network). Despite being scary, this is one of the best ways to learn and gain experience. Thankfully, the next tip can help you gain experience and guide you in the right direction (or provide you the opportunity to guide someone else).

4. Find or become a mentor

There is no better way to complete all three of the above than to find or become a mentor. Let’s break down the benefits of both roles.

Becoming a mentee: You have some of the pieces you need to succeed but you’re missing that secret sauce. The secret sauce is someone there to guide you into the roles effectively. You have done some research and identified your likes, but everything else seems daunting. Don’t worry, it did for me as well until I found someone (multiple someones in my case!) who could help me put everything together.

A mentor is the best way to gain experience, talk through hurdles, and plan your growth. Aligning goals with proven steps will move you through your development plan quicker than imaginable. Just remember, it is up to you to take action. A mentor can help you succeed, but ultimately you are the only one who can make it happen.

Becoming a mentor: So you have done it. You have experience in a field. Ask yourself the following: Are you in a position, or have been in a position that others want to be in? Do you know what it takes to do something that you may have found difficult or others do? Have you accomplished a goal in a given industry or field?

If you can answer yes to any of those, then you can become a mentor. Guidance does not always need to come from someone who has been in the field for 20 years, has a net worth over $10M, and has won an Emmy. Being there as a line of support to others is incredibly helpful and fulfilling. Remember those tough questions you had to find answers to? Well, now you can help others find those answers in a matter of minutes vs. hours and days.

The best way to identify how you can mentor someone else is to do an inventory of all your skills. What have you accomplished? This is beneficial to you as well because it can help frame your CV better as well as provide talking points in interviews. Once you know, you can begin to look for mentees or ways to give back.

Where can I find or be a mentor?

Check out https://pedestalapp.com to find other like-minded individuals near the end of 2021. We are currently under development, and have a waitlist that you can sign up for that provides info through meaningful newsletters. I hope to see you over there!