8 Tips To Ace A Career Change At 30
It comes as no surprise that lots of people switch careers in their lives, as let’s face it, picking your degree and career trajectory as a young adult can lead to some questionable decisions!
Whilst many people do go on to find a career that is linked or related to their degree, many do not. For a lot of us, our teenage career aspirations do not always align with what it’s like to work in the real world. In addition to this, our interests and goals simply change with time. Factoring all this in, it’s no wonder some people go on to dislike their choice of career path and want to change lanes completely.
Thankfully, you don’t have to suffer if your career is no longer suited to you in your 30s. There are plenty of ways you can take back control, in particular, we’re here to help you understand how you can discover a new area that could perfectly suit your needs as an established professional.
If you’re feeling downtrodden with your career trajectory, you have plenty of time to start afresh. Your 30s are a perfect time to explore alternative options to lead a more fulfilling professional life.
Are you ready to discover how to successfully change careers in your 30s? Read on…
How to change careers in your 30s
Evaluate your skillset
Start by taking it back to basics and evaluating the skills and strengths you’ve developed to date.
An evaluation of your skillset can go a long way to helping you formulate a new career plan, making the process of changing careers a lot smoother. You’ll likely find that you’ve developed lots of skills in your current career, as well as lots of life experience that can be applied to a new role.
This is an excellent place to start, as having strong self-awareness can aid you in discovering your next move, as you’ll better be able to mirror your attributes with that of a new potential role.
Do lots of research
If you have an idea of the sector you’re interested in, undertake lots of research in the area to ensure your perception is accurate. Sometimes an understanding of an industry can be wishful thinking, so make sure your viewpoint is an accurate reflection so you’re not caught off guard!
In doing this, you may find out that you already have lots of suitable transferable skills for the role. You’ll also get a better understanding of the long-term prospects for this career pathway so that you can go into the process fully aware of what you are getting yourself into (rather than falling out of favour with your new career a few years down the line).
Push to develop further
When it comes to a complete career change, you need to demonstrate you’re willing to go above and beyond. You can do this by working on your soft and hard skills, so that you have lots of varied capabilities.
You may wish to do this via online courses, which have the added benefit of being flexible enough to be completed in your own time. Having lots of strings to your bow can be an excellent selling point, as well as a great talking point during the interview process.
Get additional experience
To stand out from the crowd in a new area, you may even need to undertake some work experience that relates to your desired career path. Job searching can be tricky at the best of times, so to give yourself the best chance of competing with others who may already have expertise in the area, your best bet is to gain some additional experience.
Your new professional career may differ from the experience slightly, but if you can find similarities between the two, this can be an excellent focal point on your CV. Either way, your ambition and eagerness to learn will be obvious!
Seek to grow your network
Your professional network can prove to be a vital tool when looking for a new career. Having a large and diverse network can be especially useful for breaking into new career industries. It’s likely that some people in your circle can link you up with suitable people that can help enhance your career search.
Seek to open up your network by attending events and actively engaging with others on LinkedIn. In doing this, you could find new doors are opened up to you.
Be prepared to take a pay cut
Although side-stepping into a new career at the same salary level would be ideal, the likelihood of a career change in your 30s is that you’ll have to take a step back in some way, whilst you cultivate new skills.
Try to envision this as a stepping stone towards your ultimate career goal; a sacrifice that will be well worth it once you’ve gained more experience. Once your skills have been developed, you can start to work your way back up the career ladder in your new area.
Create a new CV
If you’ve been working in one area for so long, your CV will be heavily tailored to this industry, however it is easy to rejig your description of your day-to-day activities in a way that suits the new career choice.
Try to rewrite your CV in a way that compliments your desired career niche - there will likely be some crossover which can be highlighted. Additionally, try to mirror the skills and requirements listed on job applications in your dream career, so that your CV stands out as a great match.
Work with a career change coach
If your late teenage years are all about picking a path for your future self, then your twenties are all about working hard to flourish as a young professional; next is your 30s, which is a time to step outside of the box if things no longer feel inspiring. If you’re wanting to ace the career change process, your best bet is to work with a career coach who has the expertise to guide you.
Having helped many people in your situation previously, a career change coach will be well versed in guiding you through the steps needed to secure your career dreams. A career coach will work with you step-by-step through the process, from goal visualisation, CV support, interview prepping and so much more.
There really is nothing stopping you from achieving your dream career, so don’t let being in your 30s put you off. With a large percentage of the UK workforce having attended university and then going on to do something completely different, switching careers is more common than you think. Make the process even smoother with the support of an expert.
Get started by finding the perfect match using our Expert Matcher tool here, or alternatively browse all experts here. A career change at 30 in the UK & afar doesn’t have to be hard!
About Wiseup
Catering to a wide range of individuals, our community has been built on the foundation that coaching & mentoring should be available to all. Our wide array of experts cover a whole host of industries and specialisms, including switching careers, securing a promotion or launching your own business.
Get support for your career change at 30 – UK or internationally, with one of our 100+ experts.
