Most people settle for unpleasant jobs at some point in their lives, but many people stay in those unpleasant jobs on a long-term basis. However, you don’t have to view your job as some horrendous chore. Whilst a career should involve hard work, it shouldn’t be unsatisfying. If anything, that’ll ruin your productivity. You need to be keen to tackle the challenge if you want to do a job well. In order for that to be the case, you need to pick a career which motivates you in some way. Is there a satisfying career path out there for everyone? Yes. Let’s talk about how you can find it.
Figure out whether you hate your current job or the profession itself.
The first thing you need to figure out is whether you hate your current job or the profession itself. In other words, you need to figure out whether a new job would actually help you or not. Perhaps it would. Perhaps you’re simply bored with your current role because it’s become mundane and repetitive. And maybe that’s because you’re doing the bare minimum. If you approach your role with a different mentality, then maybe your boss will notice your renewed sense of spirit and set you some challenging new goals. That might help to switch things up and make the job exciting again.
Alternatively, the problem might be rooted in the career itself. You could get a promotion or switch from one digital marketing job to another, to give a couple of examples, but how long would it be before you became bored with your new job too? If you hate the profession itself then you need to stop job-hopping and start looking for an industry that’s actually well-suited to you as an individual. That’s what we’re going to talk about in this article. We’re going to take a look at the necessary criteria for job satisfaction.
Do some career hunting based on your personality and skills.
Once you’ve decided it’s time for a career change, you need to reflect on who you are as a person. Rather than hurriedly searching for any alternative option, give serious thought to your current predicament. Why do you dislike your present job role? You don’t want to make the mistake of immediately taking another job that you’ll end up hating in a few weeks. You need to do some career hunting based on your personality and skills. Think about your talents, but make sure you think about your preferences too.
For instance, you might be an analytical person. Perhaps a career in accounting would be well-suited to you. However, you might also be interested in making an impact on the world rather than simply helping a particular company to manage its finances. Maybe you could look into forensic accounting; that way, you’d have an impact on legal cases that could make the world a better place. Or perhaps you’re a caring person. A career in teaching might be well-suited to some, but you might not be interested in education. Maybe a career in nursing would be better-suited to your caring character trait. The point is that you have to weigh up both your personality and your talents. Don’t just pick a dull job because you think you’d be good at it.
Think about the lifestyle you want.
You also need to think about the lifestyle you want if you want to pursue a satisfying career. So many people make the mistake of revolving their lives around their jobs, but you need to maintain some degree of work-life balance. Even the most exciting industries can quickly become tiresome if they demand too much of your time and energy. You need personal time too. That way, there’s a sense of division between your work and your life. Some careers are so linked to a person’s character that it can be hard to draw the line (e.g. charity work, teaching, nursing, etc), but you still need to make time for yourself. Exhaustion can rapidly render any career unpleasant and unsatisfying.
Set goals for yourself.
Of course, you need to think about more than simply the lifestyle you want. Think about more than the number of hours you want to work. Even a job with flexible hours and all the perks in the world might still leave you feeling unsatisfied if it isn’t a fulfilling line of work in terms of your personal goals. We talked about picking a career based on your personality and skills, but you also have to think about your goals. What are your hopes and dreams? You might have a social personality, so a career in sales might be very rewarding in the sense that it allows you to continuously interact with people. However, you might not feel satisfied with the job itself; you might not feel as if you’re making a difference.
You should really do some research into different job roles within different industries if you’re looking for a new career. That way, you can assess not only the line of work that suits your personality but the line of work that allows you to achieve your life goals. Maybe you want to be a private tutor rather than a school teacher, for example. Both careers are educational in nature, so both jobs suit individuals with a certain personality type, but a private tutor has more flexibility than a school teacher; if they’re self-employed, then they also have control of their earnings. This career might be better suited to someone with an entrepreneurial mindset, for example.
Tidy up your resume.
Figuring out the ideal career path for yourself is only the first step. If you want to actually head down that particular path, then you need to tidy up your resume. Competition is fierce in any industry, and you have to make sure you’re more promising than other potential candidates for a particular role in the eyes of an employer. This can be difficult if you’ve switched careers, so it all comes down to presenting yourself well. Make your passions and skills incredibly clear in your CV. List your experience, and find a way to make it relevant with regards to the role for which you’re applying. There is a satisfying career path out for everyone, but even those who find their calling might struggle to get the job they want if they don’t present an impressive resume to potential employers.