Did you make the right career path, or do you think you’re stuck in a place where you don’t belong? At some point, you might have felt that you’re not living the life you wanted in terms of your career. Your college self might have been too young to actually decide the life you’re gonna live, or the career path you just have has thorns you didn’t foresee and couldn’t take. No matter what the reason is, you came to a point that you want a career shift, and feel guilty about it.
Here are the ten reasons why you shouldn’t feel guilty about changing careers:
1. You should not feel guilty about chasing your own happiness.
If your current career makes you feel as if your wings are clipped, it’s time to shift. For example, you might be working behind the computer screen for eight hours when you are actually happier talking to people personally. If your current situation doesn’t make you happy, go ahead and do something about it.
2. Remember that trying another career means learning.
Though the shift may also mean leaving your comfort zone, don’t let the fear that is hiding behind guilt fool you. You might fear starting from scratch in terms of knowledge, skills, and fitting in with the new co-workers you’ll be with, so you feel guilty about quitting your job. Don’t be fooled by this fear. Instead, focus on the learning that you’re gonna get when you shift. Put it this way: you’ll develop new skills, learn new things, and meet new people. With that mindset, you’ll feel better about shifting your career.
3. Know that you can’t be productive when you stay somewhere you don’t belong.
You’ll be dragging your feet to work, you’ll be waiting for your shift to end, and you’ll continuously lose focus. End that cycle by making good use of your skills and talents in the career that fits you.
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4. Accept the fact that there’s such a thing as falling out of love in terms of career.
Falling out of love isn’t exclusive to people in relationships. It can also happen to you and your career. If you’ve realized that there’s nothing lovable in the career that you are pursuing, it’s okay to move on.
5. You might have notable changes in your life, and it’s okay to change your career to fit them.
Your life might have changed since the time you chose your career, hence, the mismatch. For example, you were single when you chose to be an on-call volunteer nurse in far-flung places. Now, you might have already built your family, and you already have kids to look after. You can no longer leave anytime and stay away for days like you used to. You might be in need of a new career that allows you to be a hands-on mom, something fixed and more stable. So, go ahead and make that career shift that you need.
6. Be kind to yourself and accept that your career realization might have come in late.
Your college self might have thought, for example, that being an engineer is something you want to pursue because your other friends followed the same path. Now that you’re older, you actually gave it a try, but you realized that you’re more interested in interior designing. Forgive your younger self, and be contented with the fact that you gave your first choice a try, but it just won’t work out in the long run.
7. Don’t let your college self haunt you.
You remember the sleepless nights you had because of finishing a paper or a project. You remember skipping going out with your friends because of your internship. You remember all the information you tried so hard to tattoo on your mind to pass all the exams. College may just seem so difficult that you don’t want to waste the career you landed because of it. It’s like you owe your college self where you are right now, and shifting your career just makes you so ungrateful. Avoid this guilty feeling by changing how you look at things. You haven’t wasted a thing because you learned, and life is a continuous learning process.
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8. There’s nothing wrong with exploring other possibilities.
You’re a skilled individual, and don’t be guilty in wanting to discover what else you can be. If you’ve started with a career in the medical field, but you know for yourself that you also love singing, there’s nothing wrong with making a career out of it.
9. You might have reached the level of stability that can allow you to finally get the career that you really want.
Not all people have chosen the career they took because of passion. There are others who have chosen their career for better income. One career path may give better income than the others, and that might have been a factor for career choice. If you are one of those, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. There’s nothing wrong with wanting stability and wealth. But if you’ve already reached that stability that you wanted, and you are now considering a career shift, go ahead. It’s not yet too late to follow your heart.
10. Shifting career is a must if it means putting your own health first.
There are some careers that are not good for your health especially when talking about the long run. You might be an anemic person, but are working with a job that requires you to stay awake at night. There might also be jobs that require you to render long shifts in the office. If the working conditions are detrimental to your health or are already affecting your health, consider shifting. There’s no sense wasting all your hard-earned money paying the hospital bills.
The world has endless possibilities, so shift if you must. Live your life to the fullest by discovering who you can become and by taking action to make good use of your hidden skills.
ALSO READ: 15 Ways to Live Your Life to the Fullest
