7 Steps to a New Career: Get the Job You Really Want

1. Introduction: If you've been considering changing jobs, working in a different field and going down an entirely new career path, or recently graduated and are unsure where to start, this course is for you. If you're mid-career, maybe you're not feeling challenged or are overworked, underappreciated, or underpaid, perhaps there's a calling to something totally different. I'm Christina and a serial career changer. I worked as a consumer products marketer for eight years, as a fitness trainer and wellness coach for four years and as a freelance copywriter for the last year and a half. This course is the culmination of my research into career changes, including exploration, self-reflection, planning, and execution, marketing oneself, and with a balanced approach, managing a transformative life change. It's the stuff that I wish someone told me. I've outlined what I feel to be the most valuable tips and resources. So this is your toolkit. And if you join us for the class project, you'll have a chance to submit your plan, what we'll call the Game Plan, for feedback, comments, and additional insight. If you've been wondering if now is the right time, I'm here to tell you there's no time like the present. With the level of disruption, diversification, digitization, and instability of the modern workplace, non-linear career paths are the new norm. With the average person changing jobs every four years, the better you become at managing this process, the more future-ready you'll be. More than ever before, we are responsible for the course of our careers, for our workplace and job to be a good fit, rewarding, challenging, a place to learn, with people we enjoy collaborating with, which provides an adequate income for our lives. This new working world requires us to be adaptable, taking more initiative, and vetting opportunities on our own. So as the CEO of your career, you're curating your set of skills, knowledge, and experiences. So let's get started. Here they are. Seven Steps to a New Career: Get the job you really want. 2. Step One: Immerse Yourself: The first step in the exploration process is to immerse yourself. In this step, you'll be conducting broad and deep research so that you have as much information as possible to equip you with decision-making. First, if you are currently working, I suggest that you be sure that you've ruled out mobility in your current job or field as a possible solution. Would negotiating in your current job or changing jobs within the industry potentially renew your interest? For example, you might be adjusting fairness in your pay, job title, recognition, promotions, or having skill-commensurate work. Are you receiving performance feedback, getting opportunities to develop your skills, and being considered for promotions for outstanding performance? Understanding the root of your dissatisfaction will help you make the right decision. So let's get started with our research. I suggest you read articles and blogs online, watch videos, listen to podcasts, check out job websites for job descriptions and openings, websites of school or government-funded career services, as well as education-related websites, especially if additional schooling is something that you might need. You could even do a news search in local or national media to see what's been going on in the industry. Visit the local library and read books. Inquire with recruiters in your intended field, join Facebook groups, find industry leaders and top talent. I would read their articles and check out their websites and social media, especially their LinkedIn profiles, to see what work they've been doing and what skills they gained over the years to get to where they are today. I would also join workshops or classes to learn more. You can meet like-minded students or people already working in your intended industry. If you're a member of an alumni association through your high school or college, it might be possible to search a directory for networking purposes or find an industry event. You can also search for trade or professional associations. They might have information for prospective members or have networking events as well, and they might have publications that are worth reading. You can also chat with people, chat with professors, teachers, colleagues, or anyone you consider a mentor to you. There are also life coaches and career coaches who specialize in this type of transition. And it might help you to consult one. I also highly recommend you try it out, whether it's through an internship, volunteering, or shadowing someone that you know. This is not only the best way to know if the work is a really good fit for you, but also an authoritative way to rebrand your resume. It gives you relevant experience. And being in this environment, you might even be the first to hear about new open positions. Now you might say, What if I don't know where to start? In that case, I suggest that you brainstorm around your interests. You might google career clusters or industries and choose a few that naturally grab your attention. In the resources section, check out the brainstorming worksheet, which you can use to get creative with some of the self-reflective prompts from this video. Here are a few of the questions. One, what experiences left a mark on me too? What have other people around me said that I'm good at? Three, who do I admire or envy and what is it about them that inspires me? What does the world need from me? Consider also your strengths, natural talents, abilities, and expertise. There are so many problems in the world today that need help solving. What do you want to help solve? You can also take a personality test to give you some inspiration. You might have heard of Myers-Briggs or MBTI, the Enneagram, Keirsey temperaments, the Jungian archetypes, Birkman assessment, MAPP career test, or Holland hexagon. Many of these come with career recommendations that can inspire your brainstorming. When you're doing your research, I would consider these eight areas. One, what are the industry qualifications? Will specialized training be required? This includes any self-study certifications. Licenses and any degrees. And how would I obtain the required qualifications? What's the required time, effort and financial investment? 2 - What are my transferable skills? Changing careers doesn't mean you have to reinvent yourself from scratch. There are many working skills that are transferable, including communication skills, computer skills, project management, team management, data interpretation, solving quantitative problems, establishing procedures or rules, recruiting skills, and so on. 3, What's the salary scale like? What would composition be like at entry level, middle manager level, director, or a VP level. And at the executive level? Would it benefit me to work part-time at all in the beginning, how will my current salary really be impacted? Four, geography, what workplaces would I consider working in, will I be considering relocation? What cities are some of the more well-known companies in this field located? Five - work hours and daily tasks. What are the working hours like? How many hours am I willing to work each week? Will there be more or less working hours compared to my current job? Would there be more or less responsibilities? What projects would it be working on each day? Six, what is the work environment like? Would it suit me and match my personality? Does it support the type of lifestyle that I want and the way that I like to work? Is it indoors, outdoors, office-oriented, workshop, medical facility, classroom? Will I be sitting at a desk a lot? How much travel will be required? Is there a lot of social interaction and collaboration? Is it more team-based, or more independent work? What are my coworkers like and what pace do I thrive in? Do I prefer routine or some unpredictability and new challenges each day? Do I want a lot of critical decision-making? How much structure and formality do I want and how much supervision or autonomy do I want? Is there remote working? Will I be an employee or self-employed? Seven - target companies. Are there notable companies or organizations that I would consider working for? Do I prefer for profit, non-profit, or a government agency? And is my target organization of Fortune 500, medium-sized business, startup, or is it just me? If I'm looking into a startup or the non-profit sector, how do these organizations get financed? What's their philosophy and style? Do social impact, philanthropy or politics matter to me? 8 - What are the industry trends? Is it growing, stagnant, or shrinking? Now you might be considering becoming self-employed as a freelancer or a contractor instead of becoming an employee, here are some of the differences between the two. In the case of self-employment, you have much more freedom in deciding your working hours and the clients you work with. There's relatively fast decision-making, unlimited income potential, and in some cases, the ability to be more creative. Now, you are wholly responsible for your earnings, however, and so you'll be responsible for running the business as well. This includes marketing and sales, operational management, including managing the finances, organizing taxes, handling back-office administration, and recordkeeping. You'll also be responsible for the production of a product or development of a service and HR or managing people if you hire, note that there are no benefits and no holiday or sick day pay and it can be difficult getting started. When you're an employee, there's more security in your income and more ease in figuring out taxes, and there's definitely a more predictable job path within the company. Your focus also is simplified to a job within the business. You are likely going to have benefits and holiday and sick day pay as well. However, there can be limited income potential - depends on the role - and more rigidity in working hours, who you work with, and the business procedures. In order to decide, it will help you to consider - one, what do you care most about, what's your purpose in life, your values, your mission statement, and how does your career support your values? And two, what is success for you, whether it's a title, status, salary, awards, fame, respect from others, instilling important values in others, maybe it's social impact. Note that our beliefs are sometimes culturally or socially conditioned. It will help you discern really what you want. Here also, you can refer to the brainstorming worksheet. I'd like to end with a final thought about honesty. Be really honest with yourself. Ask yourself the hard questions, and answer them truthfully no matter how unhappy it makes you feel. One - What's the true cost of staying where you are right now? If you picture yourself in a year or two doing what you're doing right now. What does it look like? Two - is the potential reward in this new career path worth giving up the security and comfort in your current job? Three, are you willing to put in the hard work that lies ahead? Are you willing to make the sacrifices that you'll need to? Are you willing to choose to do the right thing over what's easy and immediately gratifying in the short term? Moving on might feel harder than holding onto what you have right now. But if you face the truth of it not being right for you, it can allow you to have the freedom to be and to have what you want. Up next, we're going to make friends. 3. Step Two: Make Friends: Step 2 is to make friends, as in networking, it'll help to talk with as many people as possible. Networking allows you to get some firsthand stories from people who work in the job or the industry that you're considering. We all have blind spots. So getting varied perspectives helps us to see what we otherwise might not notice. You might learn what the day-to-day work is really like, what the good or bad aspects of the job are, just note the reasoning behind opinions, so you can take what information is really helpful for you. When you're reaching out, you might ask, do you have any advice on gaining employment in this field? What do you think of my plan for career change? And if you had the choice, would you do it all again? And it doesn't hurt to let people know in your current network as well that you're researching other roles. Linkedin is a great networking and research tool. You can also do an industry or company search and see who you're connected to. You might even come across others who've completed a similar career transition. You can also request an informational interview phone call and ask them some questions. I would try to strategically network to get connected with the people who are decision-makers and try to meet people who are willing to share advice. Whether it's for a sense of service or ego. there are lots of people who love to chat and tell you their stories. Networking is also great interview practice, by the way, since you're repeatedly talking about yourself and your career transition. In the next video, we're going to extrapolate everything that we've learned and create a game plan. See you there. 4. Step Three: Create a Game Plan: Step 3 is to create a game plan. This is where we create a timeline incorporating what we've learned, populating individual tasks or projects in order to see the bigger picture, including the overall timeline, financial investment and earning potential. When you complete this, you'll have a formal plan to refer to for next steps, progress tracking and a place to update any changes as you undergo your career transition. It'll also be a concrete document that serves as your compass in those moments where you wonder to yourself what the heck am I doing? Or, you know, any fear, doubt or frustrations set in. It's cheesy, but it's true. You're drafting up a commitment. In the resources section, there's a document called the game plan. We're going to write out each chronological task and assign a realistic timeframe in a waterfall format so we can see how one task affects the next. Some tasks might occur at the same time or overlap. This is totally fine. We can just choose whatever days are best for us. We'll include any vocational training, skills development, special events, exams, and smaller tasks like getting insurance or business cards. Based on this document, you can schedule what you need to do during your free time each week. You can also note any expenses or earnings tied to each item. When this is complete, you can get an idea of when you'd be earning a target income level. In the resources section, there's also a document called the budget. This can be used to plan for all the expenses related to your career transition. On the second tab, there's also a space for plotting your current monthly expenses. You can use this for your financial planning as well. You might also want to add another column that indicates your desired budget. So you can see a number that you would aspire to for the long-term. As you look at your current salary, savings, and expenses, you might consider a safety net if you're diving in and there's limited or no pay in the beginning, would your savings cover these costs? Is there a way to work part-time to alleviate the financial pressure? I would also consider cutting down on any luxury expenses, things you can easily live without, at least for the short term, you might be wondering how much savings you should have. The typical recommendation is six months to one year. But I would note what's realistic and possible and what you're comfortable with. At this time, I'd like to take a minute to address the fears that might have come up. Maybe not making enough money is one of them. Maybe you don't want to have to disappoint your family and colleagues. Maybe you fear you won't have the time or that you'll fail miserably. I would examine each fear and dig into the rationality of it. Is it a perceived or a real risk? Am I sure that I'm too busy and I'm not motivated enough? If I feel that I've invested too much time and effort into my current job, but it's not fulfilling me anymore. Does it really matter? Are the finances, even if there are risky, manageable? Would my family and colleagues, be supportive nonetheless? And can I hold myself accountable for planning my free time wisely to execute on my game plan. If I fail, do I have what it takes to learn from my mistakes and choose the right way forward, even if we were to veer off the path and end up elsewhere or do a 180, every path would provide an opportunity to learn and to do better. We just might not know for sure until we start. So what are the worst things that could possibly happen and how could they be managed? Is it going back to the old job? Is it downsizing the apartment, getting roommates, taking on a part-time job? Fear is there to protect us for survival, but we're not just trying to survive. We want to thrive. If you meet your fears with rational thought, you might find that they are surmountable. Even if the worst was to happen, Could it be managed and would it all still be worth it? The thing is, we humans, we like certainty, we like predictability, we like habit, we like our comfort zone and change is hard, but the potential reward in uncertainty might be much greater than the satisfaction we could get from staying where we are right now. Next up, we're going to get into the right mindset. 5. Step Four: Get Into the Right Mindset: Step 4 is to get in the right mindset. Here are six wisdom nuggets. I hope they help you along your way. One, embrace the chaos, be prepared for things not to go according to plan, even in spite of planning, let go of the urge to control and know that you'll give it your best effort and surrender to what will be. With that said. Be tenacious about putting in your effort consistently and don't be discouraged by setbacks or failures. The hard times will test your convictions, but analyze the obstacle and you might figure out the right way ahead. Two, be willing to fail. Mistakes are opportunities to learn and failure is a part of success. As Winston Churchill said, Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. Be willing to go outside your comfort zone. Sometimes trial and error are necessary as a part of growth. Problems and difficulties are opportunities to innovate with an open-mind. Understand the role of your ego and when you can consciously set it aside, your ego is concerned with surviving, being defensible, and staying safe. It doesn't want you to risk being wrong, hurt, or embarrassed. Mistakes can be painful, but shielding yourself from them is not productive. Learn so you don't make the same mistake twice. You might ask if I keep trying and it's not working, do I get out? Yes. Consider your options and maybe it's time to recalibrate. 3, one step at a time. You might know the story of Tommy Caldwell, who was the first person to free climb the infamous 3000 foot Dawn wall at El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. It's a vertical cliff. He did it in 19 pitches, or zones, and he did it one pitch at a time. And so we're also going to take it one step at a time. Through repetition, I suggest that you steadily build new habits that help you to be productive and reach your mileposts. Celebrate the small successes along the way. Four, surround yourself with positive people and positive vibes. Ignore the naysayers. The people who aren't as brave might disapprove or talk behind your back out of jealousy, it might make you feel unpopular. These are the types of people who accept the status quo. But do not lose focus. We aren't on this journey for comfort. Avoid the Comparison Trap, keep good company and express your gratitude for them. Their support will help you to stay motivated even when things aren't going according to plan. Do the things that help you stay positive and at your mental best, cultivate your confidence and truly believe that you make a difference. Five, seize the opportunities. I'd like to emphasize the importance of action in the moment. When you get an opportunity, don't leave time and act on it immediately. Whether it's for an interview, an introduction to a new connection, or e-mail follow-up with a colleague who had advice for you. Slow responses and slow reactions communicate disinterest. Six, ask for help when you need it. You don't have to go the road alone. There are likely many others who've been done a similar path. If you ask around, you can get golden advice that saves you time, effort and money. And conversely, give help to others if you're able to, helping others creates opportunities for stronger relationships. And it's a great way to encourage the spirit of giving as we all benefit from this. Up next, let's go over some tips to market yourself in your new field. See you there. 6. Step Five: Market Yourself: Step five is to market yourself. In this video, I'm going to cover a few tips on how to rebrand yourself in your new field with the revised resume and cover letter and updated bios on social. I'm also going to include a few tips for the job interview that are specific to us career changers. First, the resume, it's really important that you design your resume leading with content that frames you as a fitting candidate in your intended field, even if you have little, if any relevant work history. We want to highlight your transferable skills, any relevant coursework, maybe some nighttime classes you took or an accelerated program, and any relevant experience, even if it was just a unpaid community project or an internship. Consider a layout that puts these things first. A summary statement at the top can also be particularly helpful for you. These few sentences can touch on the relevant information as well as your goals or motivations, giving the recruiter a bit more perspective on what makes you an exceptional candidate. We're going to avoid including irrelevant achievements from the old job and instead focus on a new narrative. So what is it that they should know about you if they read nothing else on your resume but your summary statement? You can also include a section at the top for core competencies or key strengths, or move up the education section. Our goal is to modify the resume so it appears as though you already work in the industry. If your relevant work experience is very limited, I'd also consider using a functional resume instead of a chronological resume. A functional resume allows you to list relevant skills and projects in a more descriptive way with less attention given to where you worked, with what job title and when. So that the hiring manager doesn't just write you off right away for not having relevant job experience. See - the hurdle we have in front of us is the perception of risk. Hiring someone who has no relevant experience or education is extremely risky. There's a considerable chance it won't work out. So it's important to position yourself as someone who, even if you only have some relevant education or some relevant experience, brings these things, including useful transferable skills that help you to hit the ground running and is extremely motivated. I mean, you changed careers just to do this work, it's a really big deal to you. I would also consider this question, what should the recruiter know about you when they have resumes of five other candidates who have already worked in a similar job. I'd also like to make a note about SEO and keywords. Your reader, whether it's a human or HR software, it will be scanning for relevant keywords. With the recruiter. It's said that you have about seven seconds. So I would refer to the job description and whenever possible I would tailor the resume and the cover letters to have the most important words related to that role. Next, the cover letter, a cover letter for you, is going to be particularly helpful. Here you have a chance to convey your passion for the job since you might have limited work experience, of course, call out your relevant coursework and transferable skills here as well. But be sure tell them your why, it will require some effort writing a notable story about your unique career, your growth mindset. And your ambitions can be very compelling. Now let's touch on a few interview tips. When you interview, focus on relevant transferrable skills and be prepared to point out a few examples. For any skills or knowledge that you lack, be prepared to explain how you'll learn them. Show that you're highly motivated. Be prepared to explain your career change, including your rationale, career goals, and show that you have a willingness to be adaptable and proactively learn. Okay, let's update your social. As you depart your current role and head down your new career path, it's appropriate to rebrand yourself across the web. This can include your social media channels, your blog and personal websites, and any work related sites where you maintain a profile. Update your bio for each account, making sure that there's consistency throughout, and then go ahead and update them all. You can also use this opportunity to do a check on what's public on all of your social media. Remember a Google search on you as part of your candidacy. 70 percent of employers now are checking our social media before hiring us. They're making sure that our qualifications seem legitimate and that there's no questionable content that makes us an unfit hire. LinkedIn is an especially useful channel. I highly recommend keeping your profile up to date with a great story for your bio, descriptive job history, recommendations, any notable awards or press you received, and if appropriate, your website URLs, social media channels, and portfolio. It might surprise you to know that in a recent survey, 44 percent of employers reported that they had hired a candidate as a direct result of viewing their social media. If you plan on announcing your departure from your current role, I would be sure to manage exactly when it goes out. Here, it's going to be appropriate to express your gratitude towards your team and management. In a separate post, you might even consider announcing your embarking into a new career. As you might have someone in your network comment with some advice and introduction to new connection or job lead, you just never know. You can roll out these posts on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn depending on which networks are useful for you, and email specific family and friends, linking to the announcement. A few other tips as you plan your job search. One, think not only about who you want to work for, but also who would be best suited by hiring you. Two - go after every organization that interests you, even if they're not currently hiring. And three, I would set goals for outreach each week, whether it's with emails, phone calls, or other networking activities and use a tracking system so you don't forget who you've contacted. Up next, we're going to learn about staying balanced throughout the process. It can get stressful, it can feel slow, we can feel frustrated. So let's take a moment to address self-care. 7. Step Six: Stay Balanced: Step six is to stay balanced. Earlier, we took a few minutes to discuss getting into the right mindset. We talked about being committed, consistent with our efforts and leading with mental fortitude and determination. Of course, these are all important, but to have the best odds for success, we need to also be balanced mentally, physically, and emotionally. In this video, I'm going to address six areas of self-care and lifestyle. They are mind, body, nutrition, rest, environment, and your social life. Now we've all gone through our lives with certain habits and adaptations that support the way that we live. I'm here to give you a few pointers in each of these areas, please just use the bits that are helpful for you. First, mind - a few pointers on mental wellness. One, flow state. When it's time to get the deep work done and get into your flow state, set yourself up for success. Choose a productive time of day when you're the most sharp and energized and a quiet space without distractions. No social media, no email checking, no calendar notifications. Sip of coffee or a tea, if it helps you focus, listen to any motivating rhythmic music if you'd like, just nothing that competes for attention. I'd also consider making a Deep Work Session, a daily habit. Not only does achieving flow state help you to be productive, it's been shown to aid and learning and creativity. Two - meditation. If you're feeling overwhelmed by your day-to-day stress, generally anxious, or are struggling with intrusive thoughts or maintaining focus, it can be beneficial to practice mindfulness by spending a few minutes meditating each day. Meditation has been shown to increase cognitive abilities and creativity, boost memory and improved mood when you're meditating, you're practicing being in the present moment and observing your mind without judgment or craving and cultivating a sense of patience, acceptance, and trust in oneself. 3 - journaling. Whether you have a lot of worries, nervous thoughts, or difficult obstacles that require critical thinking, analysis and conclusive decision-making, you might benefit from writing out your thoughts. It's a way to let it out. And sometimes writing helps to give perspective to the challenge at hand. Four - nature. You might also benefit from spending time in nature, whether you're taking a walk, hiking, or spending a day at the beach. Nature or natural scenery has been shown to alter our emotional state to be more positive and lower stress levels. It also supports cognitive restoration, improved short-term memory and working memory, problem-solving and creativity. Next - body. Some tips on physical wellness. One - exercise. When you're running, hiking, or cycling, doing yoga, boxing, or swimming, maybe you're weightlifting, dancing, or playing team sports. Exercise promotes not only your physical health and decreases your risk of injury and disease, but it also promotes your mental and emotional health. In addition to stress and tension and release from the body, exercise also promotes hormonal balance and mood regulation, releasing endorphins and feel-good hormones. And it also improves cognitive function and neurogenesis in the hippocampus, the part of the brain that's associated with learning, memory, and emotion regulation. Two - stretch therapy. Stretching is a great way to release tension in your muscles. You can stretch on a yoga or floor mat, paying attention to specific tight areas. In yoga class, you may particularly benefit from heart openers and hip openers. I highly recommend restorative yoga for it's relaxing poses. And yin yoga for it's deep stretching. Three - massage therapy. Sometimes we develop knots in our muscles and massaging them directly with a foam roller, massage ball, or a Theracane can help. This is called self-myofascial release or SMR. Of course, you can also work with a massage therapist. There are many modalities of wellness therapy. I won't go through all of them here. They can include a salt bath, visiting a sauna, using flotation tanks, light therapy, and cryotherapy. You can look into which modalities help you decompress and feel rejuvenated. Next, fuel. All things nutrition. One - eat whole foods. That's real, whole, minimally processed foods. You might have heard this before, but if it's man-made, packaged, filled with trans fats, artificial sweeteners, and preservatives, steer clear of it. Two - stay hydrated. Your body is 60 percent water and it cannot adapt to dehydration. A fluid loss of just 2% impairs every physiological function in your body. So drink half your body weight in ounces of water daily with higher intake in hot climates and an extra 6 to 12 ounces for every 15 minutes of exercise. On the subject of liquids, I should say it's best to eliminate sodas, sweetened teas, and sports drinks as much as possible to avoid empty calories which can add up quickly and expose you to ingredients that cause inflammation in your body. Three - avoid foods or ingredients that can cause Inflammation. Common culprits are table sugar or fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, trans fats - which are sometimes labeled partially hydrogenated oils, vegetable and seed oils like corn, cotton seed, safflower, soybean, and sunflower oils, refined carbs, processed meats, excessive amounts of alcohol, gluten, which is found in wheat, barley, and rye, casein, which is found in dairy, and ingredients such as monosodium glutamate or MSG, aspartame, and carageenan. Four - avoid sugar unless it's coming naturally in the food that you're eating. Sugar causes unstable blood sugar levels, unnatural food cravings, and oftentimes an energy crash. It causes inflammation in the muscles and joints, decreases immunity from bacterial or yeast infections, and increases your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Five - use stimulants strategically. You might want that cup of coffee or tea. Caffeine up to 200 milligrams per day has been shown to improve short-term memory and longer intense focus, as well as improved athletic performance and fat loss. Just note though, that your body can build a tolerance to it, so I'd consider taking a day off each week. Next - rest. This includes sleep and rest periods throughout the day. First, sleep. We sleep for a third of our lives. There's no other activity that takes up this much time. And it turns out that sleep not only affects our brain, but also our body systems and emotional health, ensuring peak performance each day. For one, sleep is restorative. Toxins are cleared away in the brain, damaged DNA is repaired, and energy sources are replenished. Sleep also supports memory, learning, creativity, attention, and alertness. It also regulates hormone production and stabilizes your mood, aiding in emotional wellness. It even benefits your cardiovascular system, lowering your heart rate and blood pressure. That's not all. It also ensures resistance to infection, supporting the immune system, regulates your appetite, and mitigates the aging process. When we're talking about sleep, we're considering three things, One, duration, two, quality, and three, consistency in timing. So the recommendation here is to get adequate sleep that's uninterrupted and consistently at the same time each night, following the body's natural circadian rhythm. Second, take breaks and rest as needed. This includes taking short breaks here and there throughout the day, perhaps between tasks or meetings. You might take a walk, stretch, or even nap. And if you're sitting a lot, then movement breaks can mitigate some of the negative effects of sitting. Breaks help to boost productivity, creativity, and the ability to make decisions effectively. 30-minute naps have been shown to improve cognitive performance and alertness. Note also that not taking breaks can work against you because it can cause you to lose focus. So be sure to take breaks as you need them. Next, environment. Do you feel that your surroundings support you in the best way? Let's consider your workspace and all the tools that you have, as well as the people around you. First, the workspace. Is it conducive to productivity and focus? This includes one, having an inviting space with comfortable furniture and adequate equipment, software, and any productivity apps that help you to work effectively and efficiently, two, does it have adequate lighting with as much natural light as possible? Three, is it clear of clutter so that you can work freely without distractions? Four, are there notepads, whiteboards, or free form spaces for recording ideas? And five, consider adding in elements of nature or plants because it's been shown to help with productivity and stress reduction. Second, people. Remember we talked about keeping the company of folks with positive vibes. Jim Rohn famously said that we're the average of the five people we spend the most time with. And in the digital age, we now have the added ability to consume the personal content of so many people, whether it's through close relationships, your boss, your partner, your best friend, your colleagues, or people you don't even know, but who inspire you, through YouTube videos, IG posts, podcasts, books, or live events. I'd like to remind you to choose to engage with and consume the content of people who support your purpose with positivity, who motivate you to do what you do, and who are willing to really listen to you. Finally, your social life. Our new digital lives have certainly changed the way that we interact socially, but it hasn't affected or basic human need for connection. Strong supportive relationships, whether they're with friends, colleagues, peers, or family members, provide us with a sense of belonging, make us happier, and help us through difficult times, supporting our overall well-being. Adults with an enriched social life are less at risk for depression, high blood pressure, and a BMI that's unhealthy - and they live longer. So here's a reminder to foster your strongest relationships - with your spouse or partner, best friends, family members, and close colleagues. And consider opportunities to engage with your community by joining local meetup groups, attending events, or volunteering, where you can meet new people from different walks of life. We can learn something from every person we meet. And sometimes the engagement into new topics are fields of study could give us fresh perspectives and new ways of thinking. Next, let's track our progress and hit our milestones. 8. Step Seven: Milestones & Breakthrough: Step seven is hitting your milestones and achieving a breakthrough into your new industry. Here are a few tips on staying the course, holding yourself accountable, incorporating feedback, and reassessing goals as needed. One, I suggest that you create a weekly plan based on your game plan, calculating your free time, plotting out a realistic number of tasks that you'll work on and then get to executing them. Know what's at stake if you don't achieve your weekly goals. And remember, when you dig in, focus on one task at a time. A reward system can help as well. You can reward yourself when you've reached a milestone, such as completing your self-study, taking an exam, finishing your new resume, or attending a license. Two - hold yourself accountable. Regularly assess your completion of tasks, adjusting your weekly plan as needed. And on those tough days, commit to taking a step forward, even if it's the tiniest imaginable step. If you're wanting additional accountability, I'd involve another person. Keep your partner, best friend, or colleague informed of your plan so they can ask you about your progress and see to it that you do what you say you'll do. Three - recognize procrastination and face it. You might notice that there's been some inaction lately, some Netflix binge-ing, or excessive internet shopping. I'd evaluate if you are actually in need of rest from being stressed, overworked, or sleep-deprived, or if you are just filling in your free time with unimportant activities to avoid facing what you need to. The root cause of procrastination is fear. There's likely a fear of something that you're not facing. Get to the root of any fears and rationally decide if they're legitimate or not. Four, use a feedback loop, if you can, through a manager at an internship or a mentor in the industry, to see any ways in which you can improve your process and make sure that you accelerate development of any relevant skills. Five, reassess goals as needed. As you move forward, you might experience a sort of natural process whereby your goals change over time. And this is totally fine. Allowing yourself the flexibility of a changing plan that reflects what's best for you in the moment can help you to choose the right path forward. Also, sometimes we outgrow our goals and all we need to do is to shift our direction when we recognize this as well. I would say that if the work that you're putting in isn't paying off, then you can consider redirecting yourself. Update the game plan and the weekly plans as you need to. Next up, in the last video, I'm going to wrap up the class, insert a few last tips, and assign the class project. See you there. 9. Conclusion & Class Project: Congratulations, you've made it to the end of the course. I would like to commend you for prioritizing your professional growth and self-development, taking the time to explore the best career path for you right now and working towards that goal. It's courageous. The thing is, changing jobs and careers gives us a chance to re-imagine ourselves. To intentionally design this curriculum of skills that we want to be developing, and reestablish what we're worth. And the more that you step outside your comfort zone, your comfort zone is going to grow. The more places you work, the more people you'll know. The more you go through this process, the more you're going to develop a keen eye for evaluating companies to work for, people to work with, and how to position yourself for success. Choosing to be the person in the driver's seat of your career is no easy task. It's a skill, but it's also a gift. So stay curious, open-minded, and go after what you want. There's no one who's going to take care of your career better than you. All right, so let's talk about our class project. Here you have a chance to get some feedback and comments on your planned career transition. As we discussed earlier, we're going to populate the document called the game plan, which is in the resources section. So fill in your current job as well as your intended future job and write out each chronological task that's needed to get you there, assigning a realistic timeframe. Include any job training, volunteering, special events, exams or degrees, as well as tasks, such as getting insurance, revising your resume, or making business cards. When it's complete, you can upload this document. Finally, thank you for joining us. I hope this was helpful for you. Please feel free to rate and review this course if you have a minute, as I'm eager to get feedback, and if you have any questions, please post them in the class discussion. If you'd like to be notified of my upcoming classes, please follow me here on Skillshare by clicking next to my name at the top of the page. Good luck.