Conquer Your Career. Change Fear With Self Coaching
20 Powerful prompts to help you find direction when you don’t know where to start.
Making a career change can be scary but asking yourself the right questions before you proceed is the starting point to help you get over your career change fears.
Simple questions enable you to take action. They can hold you accountable to make small but bold steps in an exciting new direction. Even when what you don’t know what to do or where to start.
Here are 20 powerful prompts to help you build the courage to get over your career change fear. Prompts that I have used myself to self-coach in my career transition.
- What are the current blocks or issues I am aware of in my career?
- What is the current reality in my career?
- What is my desired future ideal state in my career?
4. Will there be a demand for my the chosen future career I have my heart set on?
5. Does this new career path offer what I think it will offer?
6. What are the barriers preventing me from achieving my future desired state?
7. What are the forces for change that exist in my life and career?
8. What are my core values? Try this additional values clarification self-coaching exercise here
9. Why are they important to me?
10. What do they give me?
11. How is my readiness and capacity for change at present?
12. Are there any anticipated changes in my environment that may impact my personal and professional relationships if I proceed?
13. Am I engaging with reality? Facts versus fiction!
14. What evidence do I have to support the facts?
15. Do I have the staying power to see this through?
16. Do I have the financial means to support this vision?
17. Will my spouse/partner or other family members support me?
18. What systems can I put in place to monitor my progress and new learning if there are skills gaps to consider?
19. What contingency plans will I put in place in the event of it not working out?
20. Do I have the courage to fail and still find a way forward?
Take the time to ask yourself the above questions. It will enable you to see the bigger picture and position yourself better.
It will help make sure that a career change is everything you think it is going to be and not a dream or fantasy. Wishful thinking is exactly that it prevents us from engaging with reality.
Many people embark on a career change without giving proper consideration to the future job market or demand. They press on regardless. Then they find out after a lot of struggle and potential financial ruin that there is no career or business model for them.
Some have to return to their old careers. There is no shame in this. But, unfortunately, people can carry the negative experience of a failed career change. This, in turn, can demotivate them even further.
You want to set yourself up for you new definition of success on your terms to avoid this. You can only do that with self-assessment, research and evidence of market demand.
Identifying your transferable skills which are your biggest assets to realising any career change, is key. Research how many industries and new roles you can apply them to so that you are not in a position of having one choice only.
You want options to open up your mind and perspective. In doing this, you will be able to view the world as your oyster. A place where you can pick and choose if you have done the groundwork and research needed to proceed.
Many career changes will be within your reach others will not be, and that’s life! But it is important to understand the clear boundary line between the two.
That way, you get a realistic starting point with a higher chance of realising your ambitions and future vision.
