I went to college thinking I didn’t really want to be there. I left with a really specific dream. After sitting through a ton of media classes, I was convinced that I wanted to work at an ad agency. I can write one hell of a jingle on the spot and I love a witty one-liner. You should hear the songs I make up about my dogs. Clearly agency life was for me.
That was until I went to do an internship at my first agency. Thank God for my degree program. We had the option to pick a research project or work. I picked work (because, money) and asked one of my mentors for a recommendation. She made a few calls and I was in. I got the agency job. I remember getting the call late one evening and stepping out of class to do a happy dance.
As much as I loved the owners, I realized quickly that agency life was not for me. It’s a lot of doing the same work over and over again. Changing one word until a lot of people are happy. Noticing a color spot on a tiny image. I don’t thrive in the details. By the time my internship was over and I was ready to graduate, I was more confused than ever about what my career would be.
Making A Career Change: All In The Details
I realized I needed a career change pretty early on in my journey, but people realize they want to make a change all the time. I think it’s pretty natural to get so far down a career path only to realize maybe it’s not for you. I had a similar realization when I became a chief marketing officer in my twenties. I like to do work. If you’re a chief anything, you don’t do work. You fix problems.
In recent years, there has been a surge in individuals expressing a keen interest in changing their career paths. Why? I’d give a lot of credit to the pandemic. When everything changed, people wanted to change their careers. Studies show most people were motivated to change by personal fulfillment. They wanted roles that aligned more closely with their passions and values.
Demographic studies show this trend isn’t confined to a specific age group or professional level. Contrary to the traditional notion that career changes are primarily initiated by mid-career professionals, a substantial number of millennials and early-career individuals are also exploring alternative career paths. The rise of remote work and the gig economy has contributed to this shift, providing people with greater flexibility to experiment with diverse roles and industries.
What Details To Include
For some, the opportunity for change comes gradually. They do all the research, get some clients and gently move into the new career. But from talking to people during LinkedIn rewrites, it’s usually far more abrupt than that. People are in a field and love it but realize that either these roles don’t come with a lot of security or they simply don’t like the day-to-day tasks. Either way, they have to make a change. So, how do you explain that on your LinkedIn profile?
“It depends,” is the answer for everything in recruiting, isn’t it?
If you want to make a career change and you have all the time in the world and you’re not scared about paying your next electric bill, I suggest being really specific. At the end of your LinkedIn profile, spell it out. Tell them what industry you want, tell them what kind of work you want to do, and at what level.
If you’re worried about how you will feed yourself, I think it’s more important to talk about the skills you have. Don’t be so prescriptive about the next job, but still be specific about the work you want to do. That matters.
Tailor your LinkedIn profile for the path you’re on. Here’s to hoping the next best thing finds you soon!
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