My Career Transition

Phil's Careers Blog My Career Transition By Shane Dixon A few years in the past, I decided to make a profession transition, leaving sales to enter the non-revenue/fundraising world. During a current conversation, an in depth good friend instructed that I share my story as he felt a number of individuals may gain advantage from my experience. As we method the New Year, I figured I would take the time to write down about this important part of my life as it might help someone this yr. Although I’d spent approximately 13 years in IT Sales, something all the time appeared to be ‘lacking‘ from my career. When I made this decision, a few of my former sales colleagues had been actually dumb-founded and their feedback ranged from“Why’d you do it?”, to“I would simply suck it up and get one other gross sales job!”, to my private favorite,“But……. you can also make a lot of money in Sales!”. My response was easy, I wasn’t pleased! **Blank stare***(Eventually adopted by“What do you mean y ou weren’t ‘joyful’? What in regards to the money?”) It’s nearly as if these people had been merely content going by way of the motions of working at a job,like zombies, just for the potential of being profitable! It at all times boggled my mind how cash appears to at all times trump happiness when most people make profession selections. What good is having some huge cash when you’re working ridiculous hours, shedding useful time with beloved one’s, and placing your health at risk because of stress?! Don’t get me incorrect, there are people who find themselves lucky to have both happiness & cash in their careers, however, it seems to be uncommon today. I made the decision to search out something that I was truly excited about, and, that could make me pleased on the identical time. Fortunately, I was able to have the ability to take time off of labor, and focus on this profession quest. Over the course of some months, I did some research into careers that could be a r easonably seamless transition, and allow me to leverage my gross sales skills (i.e. networking, relationship-constructing, customer support, project administration, and so on.). Since the majority of my free time had always been spent volunteering for non-earnings, I determined to explore fundraising roles at Universities, Charities, and Hospital Foundations. After a number of ‘bumps in the street‘, my choice to move in a brand new course lastly paid off for me as I was offered an incredible management alternative with Prostate Cancer Canada. Although I’m extremely happy with how this all turned out, don’t be fooled, the process was robust & required the utmost of endurance and perseverance! Something very shocking occurred after I moved again to Toronto for this new place earlier this yr. I began receiving LinkedIn messages & emails from pals, and former colleagues, offering me reward, and, asking me for recommendation because they had been in need of a career change. It wa s a relief to know that there were different people, like myself, that were fed up with the ‘status quo‘ and wished to shake issues up with their life! I’m all the time open to discussing this in more element with folks, nonetheless, I needed to use this time to share a couple of suggestions/ideas for anyone that could be considering an analogous move. 1) It’s OK to be afraid! When I first made the decision to jump to a new field, I went via a mixture of emotions, starting from worry, intimidation, and doubt. At one level, I even came close to settling, and returning to the world of sales as soon as once more. The reality is, if I hadn’t made this move, I would have just ended up floating from one gross sales job to a different (something that happens with a number of sales reps!)! If you’re sad with your present career, whatever it's, don’t be afraid to make a move. Fear often holds people back from making changes, nonetheless, what they don’t notice is that steppin g exterior of their comfort zone can usually result in some incredible, life-changing experiences. If you don’t like the next job, try one thing new, and hold going till you do discover ‘the one‘ that makes you happy! It could take time, however, belief me, will probably be value it! 2) Patience is the key. Brace yourself, it’s going to take time, as altering your profession is one thing that won’t occur overnight! It’s necessary to set the best expectations on the period of time it might take. If you assume it’s going to take a year, give your self a couple of extra months (at least), simply to be secure. As fulfilling as this process may be, you’ll only damage yourself extra if you don’t give yourself adequate time to enact these adjustments. Stay optimistic, targeted and good issues will occur! three) Be sensible. I must emphasize, although I’m an advocate for change, I assume it’s crucial that you just set your bar accordingly. For example, if you’ve by n o means been good at science/math/biology, I wouldn’t suggest quitting your current job to pursue a profession in neurosurgery! To minimize the danger, I simply assessed my existing skill set and then proceeded to explore careers the place these might be finest utilized. If you are looking at making a change, take the time and research all facets of that field (i.e. job outlook, education requirements, costs, size of time, etc). You may be shocked to learn the way many options are available to you, but, you won’t know until you begin the process now! 4) Network, network, network! If you’re excited about altering your career, I strongly suggest that you talk with as many people in that field as potential. You’re not going to meet folks staying at home, merely researching from your PC, so get on the market and explore! Every day I tried my best to line up coffee conversations, cellphone calls, and/or conferences with varied people to be taught and take up as much data as possi ble. Don’t be afraid to achieve out to your folks & household to see if they've any contacts in your required field. You’ll be shocked at who you would possibly encounter simply by asking folks which might be close to you. Not sure who to ask?Well, you’re fortunate to live in an period with so many resources at your disposal. Twitter, & LinkedIn are just a few of the numerous tools I used to satisfy contacts within the Non-revenue/fundraising world. If you haven’t carried out so but, I strongly counsel that you also verify outTen Thousand Coffees, it’s an unimaginable service that lets you work together and meet with ‘subject matter experts‘ in various fields. During my time usingTen Thousand Coffees, I was lucky to have met a variety of attention-grabbing & informative people, ranging from Senior Fundraising Coordinators, to Chief Development Officers & CEO’s of some high profile Non-profit Organizations. All of these folks had been sort sufficient to share informat ion about their job’s, and each performed an integral role in my pursuit for a brand new profession. Keep in thoughts, though the world could seem massive, it can be really, actually small, relying on the field you explore! It didn’t take me long to find that the more individuals I spoke to, the more they had been all linked in some capability. If you make the best impression, they’re prone to recommend different people in their network that you can reach out to. If you’re skilled, and respectful, it simply may reward you with a lead that might land you the ‘break‘ you need! 5) Find a mentor/coach. Regardless of how many people you have in your nook, the highway to a new profession can usually be lonely, tiresome, and very irritating. As a end result, you'll be able to by no means have too many people on your aspect, providing you positive support, recommendation, & guidance. During the early phases of my quest, I was fortunate to have met a non-profit professional that I had found on Twitter, Paul Nazareth. One of Paul’s many specialties was teaching people who had been looking at making the transition from the Corporate world to the Non-Profit/Fundraising sector. Over the past few years, and countless espresso conferences, phone calls, and emails, he became an amazing mentor to me! Using a Star Wars reference (sorry, I needed to!), Paul was like Obi-wan when it got here to the world of non-income! In addition to being very knowledgeable, he was patient and all the time prepared to offer me with strong (and generally harsh) recommendation. Despite the constant challenges I faced, he helped me understand that I was truly doing the ‘proper issues‘, and that I simply needed to keep urgent forward. During your networking conferences, maintain your eyes and ears open, and you just would possibly encounter somebody who may help you in your journey for a new career! Just bear in mind, in case you are blessed sufficient to find a mentor, don’t ove rlook to thank them alongside the way in which, and pay it forward! Anyways, these are only a few of the various things I realized after I determined to transition to a brand new profession. I’m definitely not an skilled, nonetheless, if you’re contemplating making an analogous career move, please don’t hesitate to message me, and I’ll strive my finest to assist you. It’s not going to be straightforward, but, I’m telling you, it might find yourself being probably the greatest decisions of your life! Something so that you can consider as we method 2016, should you’re unhappy with your profession, do something about it, and make a change! Shane Dixon is the Senior Manager for Events and Community Giving at Prostate Cancer Canada. After spending 13 years in the IT Sales world, he made the decision to move in a path and transitioned to the Non-profit Sector. He’s a self-proclaimed ‘advocate for change’, and at all times prepared to share his story with people which a re looking at making a profession transition. /in/dixonshane Post navigation Fill in your particulars under or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting using your Google account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting utilizing your Twitter account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting using your Facebook account. (Log Out/ Change) Connecting to %s Notify me of recent comments by way of e mail. Notify me of recent posts via e-mail. 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