The #1 Reason People Change Careers

Do you know what it is? Well take a look at what’s been going on lately…

They’re calling it “The Great Resignation”

As health care providers, we have trusted science to help address one of the underlying causes of this phenomenon. Sadly, the science hasn’t caught on with as many people as necessary to end the pandemic, which has shaken up a lot.

It certainly burned out many first responders and service providers… Therein lies a clue.

We have all been trying to make sense of our lives, and make new decisions for how to navigate during a public health crisis that has upended the economy and everyone’s situation in some way.

 

Here’s How This All Unfolded…

• In 2020, 20 million people lost their jobs. People who could, learned how to work from home. Some even moved their homes to places they wanted to be and continued working virtually.
• Science brought us a vaccine and people felt safer to try and get back to “normal.”
• In 2021, 6.4 million new jobs were created, with bonuses and incentives to return to work, and unemployment fell.
• Then in November of 2021, 4.5 million more people quit their jobs – in all sectors of the economy.

That’s interesting. Why? That last “big quit” gives us a LOT to consider…

The pandemic has continued with viral mutations – as they do. We are all learning to live with a “new normal” focused on protecting ourselves and our families from getting sick. That is going to continue for awhile yet.

 

What Are We Learning Here?

Experts reviewing more than 9 million employee records at 4,000 global companies revealed two trends among resignation rates: they are highest among those in midcareer, and those in the tech and healthcare sectors.

Changes among healthcare professionals makes sense. In the tech industry not as much. But at midcareer, professionals tend to look up anyway, and wonder.

All of them are starting to ask questions, like:

Who am I really?
Why am I still doing what I’m doing?
What do I truly want from life?

If I made changes, what kind of work do I really want to be involved in that would be meaningful, make a difference, not take up every waking hour or suck my soul dry?

This past two years, here’s how those questions have been answered:

• For some, workplace changes meant job benefits like greater flexibility from working virtually, which wasn’t possible for them before the pandemic. Those people stayed put.
• For others, pursuing ideal careers and lives was put on hold, dreams for advancement or more fulfillment suspended. They stayed, but still wonder about making a move…
• Some people have started to question their career path entirely – wondering why they got into it to begin with or why it’s no longer as satisfying as it once was, and what they could do instead… Until they get clarity on that, they are staying put, but the questions are getting louder
• Many did quit because they simply could no longer stay where they were. They decided that the unknown was better than that, and they’d figure something out…

Just quitting (what we may think of as the Great Resignation) is a risk people don’t take unless they are truly miserable, or their job is really a dead end.

That’s because most follow the old adage “don’t leave a job until you have another lined up.”

Generally, people know it’s better to have a clear plan…

 

So Why Do People Change Careers?

Many, many people are considering a change of direction for one reason of another – but the #1 reason is this:

To take the future into their own hands,
and craft a more meaningful life.

That illustrates perhaps the biggest point behind the Great Resignation: for most people how much they earn is NOT the biggest reason they work, nor is it the biggest reason they make a career change.

Rather, it has to do with what’s commonly called “Work-Life Balance” including happiness, meaning, a feeling of contribution, and a sense of purpose…

 

We Like To Approach It As “Whole Life Harmony”

Work-Life Balance doesn’t really, fully address the situation. You can’t have less of work and more of life – or vice versa – like the two are on opposite sides of a scale.

There are a number of factors to address with work and career pursuits. Likewise, in life there are many different areas to consider (family, friends, fitness, finances and faith are a but a few examples).

Work is about a LOT more than money. Money IS important, but working for money without meaning and without having a life is the quickest route to dissatisfaction and burnout.

It’s better to discover what harmony among ALL those variables means for you – and then put together a plan to create that for yourself.

So you can actually make a successful move in a new direction.

Then it’s not a resignation, but a redesign.

That’s what we help with – to get that all put in place for a life that’s not just too full and too busy, but one that’s fulfilled in all areas important to YOU.

 

Final Points?

The Great Resignation is not about quitting – it’s about re-evaluating what’s important (as we say, redesigning…)

The #1 reason people change careers is about this same thing.

It may be to address burnout – but it’s far better to do something about dissatisfaction before you reach that point.

Oh, and overall, virtual and remote work is mostly here to stay. So, there’s a bright spot for flexibility in your approach to work planning and life design. (It’s something we’ve been doing for a couple decades now, and it works…)

If you have questions, and don’t have all the resources you need to figure out what a redesign might mean for you, we suggest you don’t venture into that territory alone.

Support makes a great deal of positive difference. We are here to help.