7 things that I’ve learned by (completely!) changing my career to content designer
Deciding what way you will take for your professional career can be a tough thing.
From the perspective of where I came from — Brazil — this is a decision that we take on so early in our life that I like to think that it is almost certain that it can turn out to be wrong in the future.
But, thankfully, no decision is to be taken forever, right? (at least if you are privileged — like me — to take another chance).
And that is what I did.
After eight years of working as a nutritionist (and one post-graduation and one master’s degree), I decided to give it all up to do what I love: writing for the web.
I could go on here talking about all the content I read online or all the courses I did to learn things like SEO, data analytics, content marketing, or UX writing. But I wanted to share something more valuable that actually can help anyone looking for a new professional path: what I’ve learned through these ten years of changing, completely, the course of my career.
1. Always be prepared to be questioned a lot
This tip is “Career Change 101” for everyone thinking about taking this crazy professional journey like I did, so don’t get too comfortable here.
Yes, you will be questioned — and I mean a LOT — by everybody (parents, friends, classmates, partners, coworkers, bosses), including yourself. They all will have something to say or ask about your move. The crazier is your career change, the more all kinds of questions will come. So, I only have one piece of advice for you: be ready for that.
I confess that until today all the questions I have about my decision still haunt me (“Did I make the right choice?” “Am I able to learn this?”, “Will I be as good as people who already does this?”) but I regularly work not to let them keep me down. And the reason why I don’t let this happen is that those are the same questions I hear in a job interview, when doing a presentation at work, when asking about a promotion, or at having lunch with my family members.
I’ve learned that questions will keep coming, no matter how long it has been since I decided to let the nutritionist years behind. Instead, I turned those answers into my storytelling. And this is what I tell people when I have to talk about my professional experiences. Every time a new question about this change pops-up, it helps me add more detail and passion into my career story.
2. No one knows everything
The first thing that comes across our minds when we get our first gig or job in a new professional field is the feeling that you don’t know everything — and this can be even worse when you don’t have an academic background. But after working in different kinds of businesses (including a big international retail company), you know what I’ve learned? That no one knows everything.
You will find managers, coworkers, directors, analysts, interns, HR professionals with no (or just a little) idea of what your work is. And that is OK.
You will learn that most of the skills you develop as a professional will be retained throughout your work experiences. So it is better to carry around with you a little bit of willpower and curiosity to get them developed than a bunch of hard skills certificates.
You will learn more about your job deliverables when you are humble enough to ask questions or assume that you don’t know something. And don’t be afraid to do so, because this attitude is what will take you further. I mean it.
3. The impostor syndrome will be a constant companion
It is impossible to talk about career change without talking about impostor syndrome. I won’t discuss the psychological matter of this issue (or the fact that it is a diagnosis often given to woman by many problematic reasons), but when you are in a career-changing process, this feeling can come across quite often, especially during difficult times or after receiving negative feedback.
First, as a "career changer" I would like to be clear about something: the impostor syndrome will not go away, and it is going to be by your side in every step of your career path. But this shouldn’t scare you.
The best thing to do about it is using it in your favor, and remember that being unsure about something is normal and is totally different than being an "impostor". I do it by taking all the feelings it brings me and turns them into actions:
· I ask for more feedback about my work, so I can see how I’m doing.
· I look up new concepts or techniques to learn when I feel that I’m behind on some topic.
· I try to cool down and breathe when this feeling comes to haunt me, remembering that I am not alone on this one.
4. You will become more resilient and adaptable
The most remarkable thing about changing is that it is all about resilience and adaptability. No matter if you are changing jobs, home, city, relationships, or your career, this is what you learn and develop the most on your way through it. And when you get to change your entire career, you eventually will learn to deal with new situations and get on your feet when things don’t turn out the way you’ve planed (and this will happen quite often at the beginning of the journey).
Those are also two essential characteristics that a modern professional should have these days since job descriptions are always evolving, new technologies are coming, and the job market can be terrifying at times. So, even though it sounds discouraging at first, you will get something from it in the future.
Changing is hard, I know, but it will help you through many other challenges that your life will offer you ahead.
5. Empathy turns out to be your thing
No one knows better than you how difficult it is to start over a career and how demanding it can be to be challenged by yourself and others on the way. You wish people were more understandable and patient, right? Well, you get to be that person on your new professional path.
Because you’ve lived (or are living) new professional situations, you naturally get more empathic with other coworkers or professionals facing challenges, feeling lost or hopeless about their careers/jobs. This will help you straighten up relationships, get people to trust you more, and even give you more opportunities and abilities to lead teams or work as mentors. Empathy is an essential and scarce skill (not a soft one!) on the professional market these days, so let people know that you have it as one of your most important characteristics!
6. Your non-traditional background makes more difference than you think
One of the things that upset me the most about showing my CV to HR professionals or recruiters when I was hunting for a job was my educational background. I wasn’t proud of having a “Bachelor of Nutrition” on my academic info instead of a “Bachelor of Administration” or any other communication/business-related course.
The hardest thing I’ve learned in this “new career” thing is that there is nothing to be ashamed of having studied something you are not working with anymore. Because you always use something you’ve learned — even if it is a little study technique — on your daily job. And we even get a bonus skill: people with non-traditional backgrounds are more plural, more adaptable, more attracted to challenges, and more able to see the big picture or ask the questions no one would ask — and believe me, this behavior makes an enormous difference at any job.
7. Have to start all over again? You know how to do it!
If there is one thing that is certain in our lives, it is that we can’t be sure of anything (and those pandemic years are harshly teaching us this). So even though you’re in a stable job, working with what you love and with people that admire you, someday you might need to start it all over again — because you want a new career, you moved to another city/country, you’ve lost your job, or for any other reason.
The good news is that you, better than anyone else, know how to start all over again. Being susceptible once taught you how to do it, where to start, and how to put yourself together when it gets hard. It will always seem less scary than the first time you decided to give your life a new context — and this gives you already half step of the way to get back on track.
If you read everything until here (and I know it was a LOT), you must be thinking that changing for me is now more comfortable after I’ve learned all this.
Well, let me reassure you: switching careers is never going to be an easy thing (and only for taking that decision, you should already pat yourself on the back). But it is a journey of growth, self-development, and especially of getting to know yourself and what you love doing.
It demands guts — and a little bit of detachment. And I wrote this text to keep reminding me of this because sometimes we insist on forgetting.
If you are thinking about changing your career path (and if you are privileged to do it), in my humble opinion, you shouldn’t think twice. It is worth it.
Be ready for the scariest — but most exciting journey — of your professional life!