Do You Know the ABCs of Career Change?

Making a career change is one of the toughest job-search
challenges. For clarification, "career change" means much
more than "job change." A career change means choosing a
completely new profession or industry. A "job change" is
simply changing employers within the same industry and
profession.

Why do people change careers? The two main reasons are:

* The industry or occupation becomes obsolete (or is
outsourced overseas)
* Job dissatisfaction (If you dread going to work on Monday
morning, you're probably in this category.)

What makes a career change so difficult? After all, most
job seekers attempting a career change know exactly why
they would do well in a new profession or industry. The
problem comes down to communication. Most job seekers have
difficulty communicating in their resume their ability to
excel in a new career. Resumes, by definition, focus on
career experience (history), but career changers need
employers to see their expertise (current skills) in order
to be viewed as a viable candidate.

If you are attempting a career change, it becomes easier
when you understand the ABC's of career change:

A: Assess

B: Bridge

C: Communicate

Assess what you want changed.

Before you can make a successful change, you must decide
what needs changing. Is it the duties you perform? Your
overbearing boss? Your current geographic location? The
industry you work in? The size of company you work for?
The level of responsibility you hold? Once you pinpoint
your exact source of unhappiness, you're on your way to
making the correct choice for change.

Bridge the gap between what you've done and what you want
to do.

The key to selling yourself based on your expertise rather
than your experience is transferable skills. Transferable
skills work like bridges to help you cross over from one
industry to another or one occupation to another.
Transferable skills are those skills you now possess that
qualify you as a viable candidate for your career change.

Communicate your ability to excel in your new profession or
industry.

Your resume is your front-line communication tool to
prospective employers. No matter how well you interview,
if your resume doesn't sell you, there won't be an
opportunity to convince them in person. Use your
accomplishments to prove the strength of your transferable
skills, and you'll get interviews faster and with more
enthusiasm.

An experienced career coach can help you apply these ABCs
to your current resume and your interview skills. Once you
practice the ABCs of career change you'll be on your way to
changing your career and changing your life-for the better!

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Deborah Walker, Certified Career Management Coach is
uniquely qualified to help job seekers through career
change. Her background as former executive recruiter and
veteran career management professional provides an
insider's perspective on the challenges specific to career
transition. To find out how Career Coaching can help you
check out
http://www.AlphaAdvantage.com