Picking a career isn’t easy, especially since most of us don’t get to experience the career of our choice first-hand before we’ve completed college and gotten our degree.
It can be hard to figure out if it’s worth your time, effort, and money to switch to a new career or if you should look for ways to make your current career work for you.
If you’re struggling with your job and aren’t sure if it’s the job itself or if it’s time for a career change, consider these five signs that you’re ready for a change.
1. You Have Been Injured on the Job
An injury while at work can really change things. In some cases, you may be injured enough that you can’t return to your job.
In this case, it may be obvious that it’s time to start considering another career that enables you to work with your injury or disability.
In other cases, it may not be so obvious. An injury has the potential to make you uncomfortable returning to work, even if you’re physically and mentally capable of doing so.
For example, nurses face many work related hazards, and there is often a strong mental and emotional component to nursing related injuries.
No matter what the injury, if you’re uncomfortable returning to work, you shouldn’t have to.
2. You Spend More Time Worrying About Work Than Going to Work
If you work full-time, you spend at least eight hours every day at work. With at least a third of your time spent working and a third of your time spent sleeping, that doesn’t leave a lot of extra time for yourself.
That’s why it’s a huge red flag if you spend your free time worrying about work.
It’s normal to worry a little bit, and there are plenty of things you can do to try and alleviate work-related anxiety, but if you’re spending more time worrying about work than actually going to work, it’s a sign that there’s a larger problem.
If you’re losing sleep, avoiding activities you used to enjoy, or developing physical symptoms of anxiety, it’s time to start considering another career.
3. It’s Affecting Your Personal Life
There’s nothing wrong with complaining a little bit. There are actually some benefits you can enjoy when you complain to your friends and family about your job, but only up to a point.
Complaining too much can make you an angry, pessimistic person, and you may find that friends and family members slowly start to pull away because they simply can’t bear to hear about it anymore.
There are other negative ways it can affect your personal life. For example:
- Your career takes you away from your family for long periods of time.
- It’s keeping you from meeting personal goals, like starting a family.
- You’re so exhausted at the end of the day that you don’t have time to do anything but sleep.
- It doesn’t pay you enough to meet your financial goals.
4. You Don’t Feel Confident When You’re at Work
It’s normal to feel unconfident when you start a new career or a new job. There are things you can do to be more confident at work, but if you’ve been working for a while and you still don’t feel confident, there’s likely a larger problem.
If a career isn’t a good fit for you, no amount of training or practice will make you feel completely comfortable at work.
Another sign is that you know you’re good at your job, and you feel confident, but it doesn’t make you feel good or accomplished.
True confidence comes with a sense of accomplishment. If this isn’t the case for you, your career could be the problem.
5. You Feel Like You’re Being Pulled in Another Direction
A lot of people spend a lot of time thinking about which careers are a good fit for their skill set. That can set you up for failure. Just because you choose a career that makes sense on paper doesn’t mean it’s the right choice.
Instead, you have to dig deep and think about what kind of career suits your personality.
If you sit at your desk and daydream about opening a bed and breakfast or you can’t wait to clock out to work on your latest art project, life is likely trying to pull you towards a different career.
Switching careers can be scary, but it might be the right decision for you. Just make sure you consider your decision very carefully so you can make sure your next choice is the right choice.
