According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics professionals will change jobs up to 12 times over the course of their working years, while other career resources project the average professional could change careers five to seven times before retirement.  A recent study conducted by Lumina Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Omidyar Network, and Gallup found that more than half of U.S. workers are unhappy with their current professional situation.  These statistics suggest not only is a career or job change normal, it is also a healthy way to manage your career.

There are many elements that need to be considered when deciding if a career or job is right for you.  In this blog, I am going to focus on three of these key elements and pose questions you can ask yourself to see if you are in need of a change.

Key Element #1: Your interests

Question #1: Do I like my work?

Are you required to do and learn things that you find interesting on a regular basis?  Does your job make you happy more than it makes you unhappy or frustrated?  It is totally possible to be good at your job and not like what you are doing.  Take me for example.  My first job involved a lot of event planning.  I’m very very good at event planning, but I really really hate event planning.  I loathed planning my own wedding!  Don’t get me wrong – You do not have to like what you are doing ever single second of the day.  Every job, even your dream job, will have parts of it that you do not necessarily love.  However, the likes should outweigh the dislikes.  In short, if someone asks you, “Do you like your job,” your answer should be yes.

Key Element #2: Your strengths

Question #2: Am I good at my job?

Obviously, someone would not be eligible for a job that they could not do well.  To answer this question, assess the things you believe you are best at and then decide whether you are using these strengths regularly enough to say that you are good at what you do.

When you are engaged in work that you like and are good at, you will find yourself in a state of flow.  Flow sounds like a very hippy dippy concept, but it is actually a concept that is easily recognized.  According to positive psychology, flow is “a mental state in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity” (Wikipedia… to all my educators out there, especially my graduate school professors, yes I just cited Wikipedia, but this is a blog post…cut me a break).  Basically, you are in flow when you are doing something so captivating that hours fly by and you can’t believe time has passed so quickly.  Tasks you engage in at work should allow you to achieve this state of flow.  You will not be flowing through your day every single day, but some of the tasks you are engaged with on a regular basis should include work you are good and actually like to do.

Key Element #3: Your purpose

Sign #3: Do I feel my work is contributing to the greater good?

Another way to phrase this question is – why do you work other than to earn money…That’s always a given. (This is another element that goes into the career decision-making process which I don’t get into in this post.) By nature, humans have a desire to be a part of something that is bigger than themselves.  This is the same reason why we form communities and gather around other people.  We want to feel like our life is meaningful to others, so by nature, we also want to feel like our life’s work contributes to something larger than ourselves.  I am proud to be a career coach because I know how closely our professional lives are tied to our self-worth.  I value the opportunity to help my clients find work that makes them feel good about themselves.  In my mind, my work allows others to live happy and more fulfilling lives and therefore I am contributing to the greater good.  Prior to this job, I helped students learn how to take notes and study for tests so they could pass their classes.  I am sure doing this type of work had a positive impact on some of my students, but I personally did not think a sound understanding of the Cornell Note Taking Method could change the trajectory of a student’s life.  Although I was helping people, I was unfulfilled by this job because I did not believe I was contributing to the greater good.  So now I ask you – Why do you work?  What are you contributing to?  Is it meaningful to you?

You should feel like your job allows you to explore your interests, use your strengths, and contribute to the greater good.  If you answered yes to all the questions above, you are probably in a job that is adding meaning and fulfillment to your life and that is awesome.  If you answered no, maybe it is time to start exploring your options to see what else is out there for you.  I know it is hard to make the decision to start looking for a new career or job, but don’t worry.  You don’t have to make that decision just yet.  However, there is no harm in looking 😉.

Still trying to decide if a career or job change is right for you?  Check out my free Career Inventory Workbook!  This workbook will help you self-reflect and discover if your current job is making the best use of your skills, talents, values, interests, and personality.  Happy reflecting!!!