Note: This is the first in a series of posts on how I transitioned from a career in librarianship to working in UX as a content strategist.
The year was 2020. We were six months into a global pandemic and I had never felt more disenchanted with librarianship and, more generally, working in higher education. After almost 20 years in academia, I knew I was ready for something different, but I wasn’t sure what. I’d been in the ivory tower so long, I didn’t even know what the hell people do for a living in the “real world.” And even if I could identify a new career, how would I convince people in the field I had the skills they were looking for?
Where do you want to go?
I heard about a career coach through a friend, and I decided to meet with her for a free 45-minute consultation. She was so insightful in that brief meeting that I knew I was going to sign up for more.
A coach is like a travel agent: they can show you a wider range of options than what you could find on your own and get you there in a more efficient way. But just like with a travel agent, it’s your job to make sure your coach understands what you value, what you can’t tolerate, and what delights you.
A coach is like a travel agent: they can show you a wider range of options than what you could find on your own and get you there in a more efficient way.
| Travel | Work | ||
| What I value | Privacy | Autonomy | |
| What I can’t abide | Bus tours | Monotony | |
| What delights me | “Living like a local” | Donation matching |
Before I go into too much detail about the kind of help you can get from a coach (and how to DIY it if coaching is out of budget for you), let’s talk about two things trip planning and career change have in common: time and money.
How much time do you have?
How miserable are you at your job right now? Can you take some time exploring new career options, re-skilling, networking, and tweaking your resume as you learn more about a new field? Or are you at the end of your rope, ready to swing to the closest branch, even if that branch is a little wobbly?
Schedule specific days and times to work on career transition, preferably when you won’t be totally exhausted.
In her newsletter, Nice Work, Sara Wachter-Boettcher discusses what she calls “recovery jobs.” These are jobs you pursue when you needed to leave your current job yesterday. They’re lateral (or even downwardly mobile) jobs that don’t sap your energy, giving you time to figure out your next big move. If you need out, by all means seek a recovery job. If your circumstances are less dire, sticking it out while you get your dossier together is usually the way to go.
Being realistic about how much time you can devote to career transition is crucial. I’m a single parent to one human and one canine, I recently became a homeowner, and I’m neurodivergent. Initiating tasks can be tough for me, same for sustaining projects when I get bored. I had to consider all of this about myself to make a sustainable work plan.
Some ways to organize your career change timeline:
- Identify optimal days and times to work on career transition. If you’re a morning person, set aside time first thing in the morning. If you’re a night owl, plan to make revising your resume part of that midnight groove.
- Assign yourself benchmarks. For example, schedule an informational interview a week, apply for three jobs every week, or spend 15 minutes writing about what kind of work tasks you enjoy each day.
- Write a list of tasks to complete by the end of the week. You can even use a Trello board if that helps you keep it organized!
I did a combination of all of these, and changed it up as I had more or less time in a given week. Varying the cadence kept me from getting overwhelmed or bored throughout the process.
As you plan how to use your career transition time, pay close attention to the things you dislike doing. I don’t particularly love writing cover letters and I have a tendency to put them off until the last minute. So I gave myself a quota for how much time to devote to cover letters every month. I also have a habit of collecting job postings and letting them pile up, because it’s much more fun to search than to apply. So I gave myself a deadline every Sunday to apply for a certain number of jobs. Know your habits, know how to effectively disrupt them.
Know your habits, know how to effectively disrupt them.
Money money money money…MONEY!*
While it’s possible to change careers without spending money, it’s good to have a budget in mind. I decided early on that coaching was a good investment for me because I struggle with follow through. Having someone to check on me at specific milestones was crucial.
Depending on how big of a change you are making, you might need to take some classes or get a certificate. You’ll definitely want to attend webinars and conferences, and you might want to join professional orgs so you can attend networking events and get access to paywalled job boards.
Some other expenses you might encounter:
- Resume writing and/or reviewing services
- Web hosting and/or consulting fees if you plan to hire someone to design your site
- Photographer fee (for LinkedIn photo, if needed)
- Petty cash fund for your informational interviews–you should be buying their coffee if they agree to meet with you in person!
I spent about $1700 over nine months on career change-related expenses, predominantly on coaching services.
Now that you’ve figured out what your time and money budgets are for this journey, you’re ready to start figuring out where you want to go and how you’ll get there. In my next post, I’ll share a bunch of diagnostic tools and thoughts on discovering new career opportunities.
* If you immediately started singing this song to yourself, congratulations: we’re best friends now.
