Do I want a change?
Do you feel like you're looking for the next step in your career, but are not sure what that is?
Complete and print out this worksheet to help you consider what's driving your desire for change
and what the impact of change might be.
20 questions to ask yourself:
1
Am I unhappy with my career or my job? Would I prefer to stay in the same field but work
in a different job?
2
Are my working conditions one of the reasons I am considering a change?
3
If so, is the only answer a career switch, or could I change my environment or my attitude
towards it?
4
Do I want my work to meet certain values that my current job isn’t meeting?
5
Do I feel as though I could maximise my abilities and skills in another occupation?
6
Do I understand my own personality and the type of environment I’d prefer working in?
7
Do I know what my interests are? Do I know what my desires for my career are?
8
Do I know what my skills are and have I listed them?
9
Have I acquired new skills that I don’t have the opportunity to use in my present job even
though I’d like to?
10
Am I willing to make sacrifices to start all over in a new job? Would I be willing to take a
drop in pay? What will I be sacrificing? Are the people who are dependent on me also OK
about me making those sacrifices?
11
How important are the long-term benefits of the job (seniority, retirement fund, etc) to my
welfare, both in the short and long term? Have I realistically assessed the situation or am
I simply daydreaming?
12
What will I be gaining in making a career change?
13
Will I need to study or retrain to be able to start my newly chosen career path?
14
Will my functional skills transfer to the new job I have chosen or will I need to develop
new skills?
15
Is there any way I can try out a new career without quitting my current job?
16
Is there help available in my community to support me as I make the change and help
ensure its success?
17
Do I have the patience to spend time in an entry-level position to get to my goal?
18
What small preparations can I make today to help my career switch? Have I developed a
list of small, medium and big goals to help me make the transition?
Resource Bank: Self Awareness/Change
Careers New Zealand | ID: RB00016 | May 2011
Do I want a change?
19
Do I have other options for change, or are all my eggs in one basket?
20
How willing am I to take risks? Would I take the chance of not being happy in a new
occupation? Would I be willing to make yet another switch if that happens? What are
risks could there be?
Resource Bank: Self Awareness/Change
Careers New Zealand | ID: RB00016 | May 2011