Rethink your old career

Before taking the plunge and completely changing your career, it may be worth reassessing your current career and take it in a new direction which fulfils your passions and makes you happy. There are always reasons as to why you start a certain career and if you are feeling unhappy in your current job it may be that you haven’t fallen out of love with your line of work but other factors have been bought into play

Reasons why you may start to dislike your job include:

Lack of opportunities
The boss
Colleagues
Bordedom due to lack of challenge
The commute
Poor pay
Type of environment
Location of work

These kind or reasons can be eliminated without necessarily changing your career. It may be that you need to remodel or rethink your current career. Below are some options open to you.

Set up your own business in your current line of work

Setting up a business can address many of the issues of people who are fed up with their current job but love the career that they are in. You are in charge of your own business so you can choose where you work and you're your own boss.The challenge of a new business ensures there's no boredom and there are so many opportunities to be had. Issues of poor pay can also be overcome if your business is successful. However, starting your own business can be very hardwork and sometimes stressful but you will acheive nothing in life without putting in some hardwork. So, if there's a voice whispering to give it a go, why not start to investigate.

Amend your current job slightly

Could do your line of work in a different organisation or work setting? For example, a secondary school teacher might use their skills in a university or teaching English abroad. Can you write about your profession? Text books are quite often needed about all kinds of subjects for education. There are lots of opportunities to write online. Start by writing a blog covering your professional issues. Write and sell an e-book or write for an e-zine. Can you teach what you know? You may be able to teach your skills in a work place setting or teach in a college or school. Or consider information consultancy

Obtain new qualifications to help you progress in your career.

You may be able to get your current employer to pay for you to do further qualifications if it will benefit them. Otherwise there are lots of part time training opportunities, online and distance learning courses that aren’t too expensive and that you could combine with your current job.

Get a similar job which offers something your job lacks

Identify what it is about your job which you don't like. For example, if it's the commute, look for jobs in the same field but closer to you. If it's the lack of challenge, find a job which offers better promotion prospects or a wider variety of work. Easier said then done, I hear you say. Yes, but there are ways to make a search for a new job easier. Network in your current job, build up contacts and relationships which may lead to new openings. Many people hear and obtain jobs not through applying but through who they know.

Become a consultant

If you've built up specific skills in your job, it may be worth investigating becoming a consultant. Consultants can work in many areas including human resources, information technology, law, medicine, finance, design and knowledge management to name but a few. They are normally self employed and offer their expertise to companies on different projects for a set period of time. It may involve heavily marketing and selling your service at first but once you are established it can provide more financial return than a salaried job.