Reinvent Your Career In Five Simple Steps

The phrase "reinventing yourself" seems to be popping up all over lately. Just a few days ago a friend asked me how he could do it without starting completely over. His concern was, "How do I move in a new career direction without sacrificing all the skills and experience I've worked so hard to achieve?" The underlying question is, "Is this even possible?"

Yes, it is possible to start fresh without starting over! Here's how:

1.) Take inventory of the skills, experience, credentials and achievements you've built into your career to date. Know your strengths and weaknesses, your assets and your liabilities. Recognize your transferable skills and how to market them. Describe the breath and depth of your work experience. Understand the value of your credentials. Match power verbs, specific nouns and quantifiable descriptors to your achievements and practice telling stories about them.

2.) Clarify your values. Dig deeply enough into yourself to know which values are yours and which are your parents', mentors', employers', culture's, society's or faith community's. Claim yours and release theirs. Look again at any value regarding money or security: What you think is a value may not be a value at all, but a mask covering a cluster of values. For example, "money", "benefits" and "security" often mask values such as lifestyle, adventure, independence and safety, so record these values as the latter, not the former, if you hope to actually live them.

3.) Identify the talents, gifts and passions that drive you. Be honest and real with yourself and if necessary, seek the objective opinions of others. Claim what is truly yours then describe it in who-what-when-where-why-how detail and practice condensing your description into a 60-second story. Note how related talents and gifts seem to cluster around passion themes. This is not coincidence, but a sign pointing the way to your life's purpose.

4.) Use all the data you've collected about yourself in Steps 1,2 and 3 to brainstorm a list of jobs, careers, employers and industries that match and make positive use of your skills, experience, credentials, achievements, values, talents, gifts and passions. Use career professionals and reference materials such as the Dictionary of Occupational Titles and the Occupational Outlook Handbook to assist you. Shorten, refine, categorize and prioritize your list.

5.) Develop a stellar self-marketing package to match each cluster of jobs, careers, employers and industries you want to market yourself into. Create multiple versions of your resume and cover letter to cover a series of related titles, career paths or industries. Use the key words associated with each profession. Distribute your resume and cover letter package to employers strategically via ads, online postings sites, networking, recruiters and targeted mailings.

It really is this simple! Yes, these steps are dense with all kinds of "to do's", but if you do everything suggested, you will get to where you want to be. The worst mistake you can make in career reinvention is to believe it you can't do it. Aren't you worth that hope?

Cheryl Lynch Simpson is a Spiritual Director and Solutions Coach who helps women discover and create the life they've always wanted to live. Cheryl is the author of over 30 print/Internet articles and the founder of Coaching Solutions For Women, a coaching website that produces and showcases career, business, and life solutions that improve the life balance of today's busy women. For a complimentary copy of her latest e-book, Ten-Minute Stress Zappers for Women Service Business Owners, visit http://www.coachingsolutionsforwomen.com.

---

Losing a Career When Youre Moving for Love

Those who watched HBO's Sex and the City (SATC, now... Read More

Thank-You Notes: An Integral Part of Your Career Design

There is one little practice that is vital to generating... Read More

Love What You Do!

"To love what you do and feel that it matters,... Read More

After Your Interview - What Must You Do Next?

Other than actually landing the interview itself and living through... Read More

Career Success: Take Charge of Your Career

People react very differently to the waves of change that... Read More

How to Write a Better CV (UK), or Resume (USA and elsewhere)

The first point to make is that the terms "CV"... Read More

Working in Dubai

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is one of the... Read More

Work Is A Four-Letter Word

I can hear the jokes already and most of them... Read More

The Best Business And Economy Solutions

In todays Business and economy, starting any business service requires... Read More

The 4 Job Search Facts You Need To Know!

Are you harboring bitterness or anger towards your current or... Read More

Students Searching for a Job

Searching for a job has become easier than ever for... Read More

Interview Preparation Made Easy: Create An Interview Preparation List

Here's a quick way to compare your own job experience... Read More

How to Write a Scientific Resume

You're a scientist, you're very well educated, you're intelligent, and... Read More

Knowing and Guessing

The line between average and exceptional work performance is dotted... Read More

How to Access Employers through Proposal Marketing

Use Proposal Marketing and you'll be your own hot spot,... Read More

Turning Their Loss Into Your Job Gain

It isn't the end of the world, even if it... Read More

When Should You Update Your Job Skills?

With the U.S. economy still slumping and unemployment numbers barely... Read More

Can You Compete?

Are you looking to hire the best talent? Are you... Read More

Cracking the Connection Code: Networking for the Introverted

We've all heard it before: "Just get out there and... Read More

Cover Letter Magic: 4 Ways To ASK For The Job Interview - And Get It!

Just how important it is to ASK for the job... Read More

Career Change - Is Your Career A Good Fit Or Is It Causing Pain?

Do you leap out of bed in the morning looking... Read More

Relocation Issues...Who Will Pay?

In light of recent unemployment figures, and a continual downturn... Read More

How to Success On The Job from Job Hunting to Keep Your Job and Get Most of Out of It

INTRODUCTIONThis article will prepare you for the difficult task of... Read More

Seven Deadly Types of Job Recruiters

Collect them all!Over the course of six months in my... Read More

Is Job Loss Making You Sick?

Job loss affects most of us like any other loss... Read More

Master Responding to Selection Criteria and Win Your Next Job!

As a human resources specialist for many years, I've seen... Read More

Hiring the Perfect Fit Through ELance.com

Outsourcing has moved upward in the most-improved columns of efficiency... Read More

Seven Steps to Better Networking

If published statistics are accurate, employment agencies and search firms... Read More

Career Change Is Not For Wimps! 3 Powerful Steps to Do Work You Love

Tough words... but I truly believe that folks who make... Read More

?How to Look Your Best in a Down Economy?

As you know too well ~ many jobs have been... Read More

Surviving in Corporate Amercia: Part 1 - Email

There is a saying that goes, "The best offense is... Read More

Reinventing Yourself for Multiple Careers

In many countries around the globe, people are born into... Read More

Resume Writing - Importance of a Professional Summary

The Summary is the preview of your entire resume. This... Read More