Is your career not going the way you want it to? Don’t even have a career at all? Do you have a job, but you’re ready to find a career that aligns with who you are? If you said yes to at least one of the questions here’s a plot twist: it doesn’t necessarily or automatically mean that it’s time for you to work with or invest in a career coach.
But how do you know if it’s the right time? Well, that’s what this article is all about! Continue reading as I share with you the 5 signs that it’s time for you to work with a career development professional.
5 Signs You Need to Invest in a Career Coach
Before actually discussing the five signs, let me clarify that when I use the term career coach, I’m referring to a broad range of career development professionals.
If you’ve ever done research or tried to find help with your career, you might have seen that different professionals go by various names. Some of these titles might be career counselors, career coaches, career development, mentor, career development specialist, career development expert, career development strategists, or career strategists, even leadership coaches.
If you are wondering what really differs between each title, the answer is simply in training and experience that they’ve had as well as what they specialize in–yes, that’s right! Every career coach doesn’t do everything! Some specialize just in resume writing, some in job search, others in leadership development, and a multitude of things.
So, as mentioned, when I use that phrase, “career coach”, I’m referring to any career development professional who might be helping you with any aspect of your career growth. That being said, let’s talk about those 5 signs that you need to invest in a career coach.
Sign #1: You Are Unhappy at Work
I feel like this one is the most obvious one! You can be unhappy at work for numerous reasons. For example:
- The role no longer aligns with who you are, and you’re experiencing misalignments that are leading to career dissatisfaction.
- You’re trying to transition into something else, but you have no idea where to start or what your next career move should be.
- However, you can also be unhappy at work, yet you can’t figure out why you are unhappy in the first place.
Overall, if you are unhappy, dissatisfied, and miserable at work, then that is a sign that it might be time for you to invest in a career coach. That person might help you speed up your results and get the clarity you need to make your career transition fast!
Sign #2: You’re Not Getting the Results That You Want in Your Career
Waiting for results can be disappointing especially if it’s not arriving when it should be. There are multiple situations that I can think of when it comes to not getting the results you want. Maybe you’ve…
- Been applying for jobs, but it feels like you’re sending your resume off into a black hole because you haven’t heard anything back
- Been going on interviews but haven’t gotten a call back
- Tried to negotiate a salary, but it didn’t work out
- Attempted to get a promotion, but you haven’t been able to start the conversation or facilitate the discussion with your manager or your supervisor
The point is if you’ve been trying to achieve something in your career but you haven’t been able to get the results that you want, that’s a signal to work with a career coach. It’s time to look for someone who can help you get a clarity-developed strategy so you can achieve your results faster.
The point is if you've been trying to achieve something in your career but you haven't been able to get the results that you want, that's a sign to work with a career coach. Share on XSign #3: You’ve Been DIY-ing with No Solutions or No Outcomes
So, you’ve been doing all the work yourself in hopes to get a positive outcome or a change. Does this look like your checklist?
- Researched online
- Looked at all the free webinars
- Downloaded all the free resources
- Grabbed the free guides
- Took advantage of free templates
- Read pretty much all the articles on Forbes
- Talked to friends and family
You’ve pretty much tried all the DIY things under the sun that you could potentially try. If you find yourself still unsuccessful in trying to navigate your career growth yourself, then that’s one more sign that it’s time for you to team up with a career coach.
If you find yourself still unsuccessful in trying to navigate your career growth yourself, then that’s one more sign that it's time for you to get a career coach. Share on XHere’s the thing: career coaches are specifically trained to help you achieve the kind of results that you’re probably trying to get in your career.
If you’ve been trying a DIY strategy here and there, you are already investing time and energy unsuccessfully.
It’s time for you to think about investing your money into working with a coach who makes the process simpler, easier, and more seamless for you while saving you time and energy.
Sign #4: You’re Feeling Overwhelmed by All the Moving Parts Of A Career Transition Or A Job Search
Let’s be real. When it comes to transitioning careers or job searching, there’s a lot that goes into it.
What I’ve found is that when women feel overwhelmed by all the processes involved in job searching or career transitioning, it leads to them feeling stuck and not taking any action at all.
For instance, if it’s job searching. You’re thinking, “Okay, I need a resume, a cover letter, but I need a different one for each company. I need to research the company needs to negotiate the salary”, “Am I going to move cities? Am I going to move states?”
All those thoughts can become so overwhelming and so big that it makes you think, “You know what? It’s not even worth it. I’m just going to stay where I am”. That is NOT ideally where you want to be.
If you’ve been job searching, you were already unhappy at work. Instead of getting overwhelmed by all the moving parts, you might want to invest in a career coach who can give you a clear plan to make the process feel a lot less stressful.
Sign #5: You Need Accountability
If you’re someone who already knows what you need to do or you’re informed on where to find the relevant information, how to do the career transition, the searches you need to do, then that’s great! But if you have no one you can regularly check in with, there’s a possibility that you’re pushing the progress off.
You keep thinking, “I’ll do it later”, or “I’ll do it on the weekend”. And then the weekend comes, and you think, “Ugh. I just want to sit on the couch”. So, then the weekend goes and the next weekend, and so on and so forth. Next thing you know, you’re not making any progress toward your career growth in general.
There’s a high chance that you need to work with a career coach who will keep you accountable. You need someone you know you can check in with. Someone you can strategize with, get feedback from, and vent to when the going gets tough. Your career coach can also help you reevaluate a strategy in case it’s not working so you can pivot as necessary.
There you have it, five signs that it might be time for you to work with a career coach!
