Taking a leap of faith
Although it’s undeniably a difficult thing to do and one that not many people opt for, nevertheless it is possible to switch to a completely different career from the one you are currently in now. In fact, it is well worth the effort, especially when the objective is to pursue a career you are passionate about.
I am living proof of this fact. Here’s my story.
I originally graduated from university with qualifications in both Accounting and Information Technology (IT). I chose to pursue IT as my career. Thus, I took on the position as a Software Engineer for my first full time job.
Time went by, and although my confidence and abilities in handling IT related tasks grew, my passion for the field did not. Slightly over two years into my IT career, I had alrady worked in two different IT jobs and accomplished various challenging tasks, yet I found myself stuck, bored and wondering why.
It didn’t take me long before I realised that I was actually in a career that I didn’t like and this was stunting my enthusiasm and hence, the excellence of my work.
In the end, I decided to take the risk: I tendered my resignation and began the scary process of job hunting all over again. However, this time, I applied for a different range of jobs altogether. Ultimately, I hoped to end up as a Writer – something I had always aspired to do, but previously did not have the guts to pursue as a career.
Initially, my attempts to get a writing job were unfruitful. Even though I had previously published articles to show my potential employers (I had worked as a Freelance Writer for a season during my university days), it did not earn me any job offers as I had hoped it would.
However, I did not give up neither did I stay idle. I started taking up small freelance writing tasks based on job advertisements that were posted on an online website. I wrote emails to the people concerned and offered my writing services to them. To my surprise, it was really easy to get short term writing assignments and several people asked me to write articles for them. So, I worked on building up my writing skills in this way.
A few months later, I got an offer to work for three months as an Editorial Intern at a publishing house. Although it meant accepting a much lower pay than what I used to receive for my IT job, I took it just for the exposure. It turned out to be a very pleasant three months, and I learned a great deal from the Editor and other writers in the editorial department.
At the end of the three months, I was back to job applications again. I was now in need of a more permanent employment and sought out full time job advertisements in the newspapers and also online. This time around things were different. Not only did I have the internship experience to lend credibility to my resume, I also had a much more substantial volume of writing experience from my freelance assignments. All this contributed to me gaining the attention of several employers and I was called in for a few interviews and even offered a number of jobs.
It truly amazed me at how I was now being seriously considered for the very jobs I was vying for. In the end, all of this culminated in me finally having the Writer’s job I had always wanted.
It took me almost a year to get here – from the time I first took on freelance writing tasks up to the time when I had at last landed a full time Writer job. But it has definitely been an interesting and valuable journey. I absolutely don’t regret the career change at all.
I have derived some good principles out of what I had gone through, and I’d like to share them with you:
If you’d like some advice on making a decision about which career would suit you best, visit this link: http://jobscentral.com.my/resources/index/1 .
I am living proof of this fact. Here’s my story.
I originally graduated from university with qualifications in both Accounting and Information Technology (IT). I chose to pursue IT as my career. Thus, I took on the position as a Software Engineer for my first full time job.
Time went by, and although my confidence and abilities in handling IT related tasks grew, my passion for the field did not. Slightly over two years into my IT career, I had alrady worked in two different IT jobs and accomplished various challenging tasks, yet I found myself stuck, bored and wondering why.
It didn’t take me long before I realised that I was actually in a career that I didn’t like and this was stunting my enthusiasm and hence, the excellence of my work.
In the end, I decided to take the risk: I tendered my resignation and began the scary process of job hunting all over again. However, this time, I applied for a different range of jobs altogether. Ultimately, I hoped to end up as a Writer – something I had always aspired to do, but previously did not have the guts to pursue as a career.
Initially, my attempts to get a writing job were unfruitful. Even though I had previously published articles to show my potential employers (I had worked as a Freelance Writer for a season during my university days), it did not earn me any job offers as I had hoped it would.
However, I did not give up neither did I stay idle. I started taking up small freelance writing tasks based on job advertisements that were posted on an online website. I wrote emails to the people concerned and offered my writing services to them. To my surprise, it was really easy to get short term writing assignments and several people asked me to write articles for them. So, I worked on building up my writing skills in this way.
A few months later, I got an offer to work for three months as an Editorial Intern at a publishing house. Although it meant accepting a much lower pay than what I used to receive for my IT job, I took it just for the exposure. It turned out to be a very pleasant three months, and I learned a great deal from the Editor and other writers in the editorial department.
At the end of the three months, I was back to job applications again. I was now in need of a more permanent employment and sought out full time job advertisements in the newspapers and also online. This time around things were different. Not only did I have the internship experience to lend credibility to my resume, I also had a much more substantial volume of writing experience from my freelance assignments. All this contributed to me gaining the attention of several employers and I was called in for a few interviews and even offered a number of jobs.
It truly amazed me at how I was now being seriously considered for the very jobs I was vying for. In the end, all of this culminated in me finally having the Writer’s job I had always wanted.
It took me almost a year to get here – from the time I first took on freelance writing tasks up to the time when I had at last landed a full time Writer job. But it has definitely been an interesting and valuable journey. I absolutely don’t regret the career change at all.
I have derived some good principles out of what I had gone through, and I’d like to share them with you:
- It is possible to switch careers, but it isn’t always a smooth transition. You will need to do whatever it takes in order to convince employers that you have the ability to take on the job. Although you may not have much experience in the field, find other ways to showcase your skills. For me, this was done through taking up freelance assignments.
- The position you may initially get offered may not be exactly what you’re looking for, nevertheless you should consider taking it up if it helps you advance towards your preferred career path. For me, even though being an Editorial Intern meant a temporary reduction in salary, deciding to take up the position really helped me later on in getting a full time Writer position.
- Above all else, don’t give up. Your big break could be just around the corner. Furthermore, for every job you didn’t take up, you will at least gain confidence and invaluable experience through having undergone the entire candidate selection process (interviews, aptitude tests, etc.).
If you’d like some advice on making a decision about which career would suit you best, visit this link: http://jobscentral.com.my/resources/index/1 .
2 comments:
Career switch CAN happen, but may be a bumpy road ahead. I think for the most part of it, planning is really important. The person will need a game plan on how to go about with the switch, not just step in blindly.
And yes, not giving up. Always tell yourself - "always the darkest before the dawn."
Glad it worked out well for you, Susanna!
I understand how you feel at that time, Susanna because I am at a crossroad as well. Courage is all we need.
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