 Dear E.,
It is certainly scary to have to change careers at any time of life, but in mid-life it can be terrifying. It is also the last thing most people want to do at that time. Most people during those years are looking forward to reaping the rewards of past work and hoping to relax more. Despite this, career changes often cluster around this phase of life.
Often mothers are beginning to spend less time with active parenting and can now devote more time to the career that they put on hold. Unfortunately, many people either are caught in the downsizing of corporations or are let go by these same organizations in an attempt to not pay for retirement that is looming. Many people are also reevaluating what they want to focus on for the rest of their life and another career might look more appealing. With the fast pace of change today many formally lucrative careers become fazed out by technology which forces people to make uncomfortable changes.
Due in part to all of the above reasons recent research indicates that most people will change their careers several times in their lifetimes. It is important to remember that you are not alone and that this is now the norm rather than the exception. The reason that this is important is because a person in this life transition often feels isolated, scared, and guilty as if they have done something wrong and that is why they need to change careers. This is usually not the case.
The first suggestion that I would make to you is to find a good career counselor. Let someone guide you who specialize in this particular field. They will usually administer a battery of tests to ascertain your aptitude in a number of career fields, vocational interest tests to define further what your likes and dislikes are, and also personality tests so they can help match what personality traits go best with which jobs.
There are a number of standards in this field and you can often take them more cheaply at the community colleges at least here in the United States. The Myers-Briggs or the Keirsey Personality tests are used to discover which personal traits match best with particular jobs. The Strong Campbell Vocational Test or the World of Work test measures preferences and some aptitude. I would not attempt to analyze them yourself however. A competent vocational counselor can decipher them more fully.
Even though this is probably an uncomfortable time in your life you might look to the fact that our greatest growth as individuals usually occur in times of crisis or pain. We have to grow and reinvent ourselves to cope with the changing currents. Usually we look back and are grateful for the experience. It is difficult to remember that at the time however.
Good luck and I hope you find just what would fulfill your life most at this time.
Jef Gazley, M.S., LMFT, DCC
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