A career change at thirty can be an incredibly daunting and stressful experience.
It is the age when an individual has just established themselves in whatever career they happen to be in at the moment. College is just a distant memory, and we have probably changed a few jobs to arrive where we are at.
Suddenly, however, we feel that gut-wrenching sensation which signals that something is simply not right. It can be quite scary, as sometimes there are few outward indicators of something being wrong. We could be living a relatively standard life, with comfortable earnings that are perhaps even enough to start a family with someone. But something just does not feel... in place. It is this feeling that can be quite devastating to an aspiring professional who has just started on their journey.
We are not so young anymore, and everywhere around us we look we see that people are settling into careers and relationships. It can seem ludicrous to think that something is wrong with what we are doing for work. It feels like getting a divorce before giving the marriage a fair chance. In fact, many of the aspects of a job situation can be compared with a relationship. A job, in many ways, actually is a relationship. It is a relationship with our boss, our co-workers, our work and, most importantly, ourselves. Therefore, like any other relationship, it can be either healthy or unhealthy.
Just like a healthy relationship, a job that is right for us caters to both our spiritual and physical needs. We feel that we trust it and that it is aligned with our values. It supplies us with sufficient income and we do not feel exploited by our employer. All of these factors are quite important, and when any of them are lacking, the whole thing can become more of a chore than anything else.
Although changing careers at thirty can be quite daunting, it is perhaps one of the best ideas you can consider. Think about it—is it not better to get a divorce before you had children with someone? In the same way, quitting a job that is just not right for you and looking for something better will save you a lot of headaches in the long run.
There are many reasons why a person might opt for a career change at thirty, and in the next section, we will go over some of those reasons.
Reasons Why People Change Jobs/Careers
It is not earning you enough money. This reason is simple enough to understand. One does not always need some spiritual awakening to realize that they are barely able to afford enough food to keep their fridge stocked.
Well, perhaps things are not that bad, but our monetary needs go beyond the bare necessities, and some of us are pretty ambitious when it comes to how much we would like to earn and what we would like to buy. If our job or career path is not offering us the money we need and does not hold a lot of prospects for improving that, then quitting should be a no-brainer for most people who want to avoid major mistakes in life.
If you feel that you are not earning enough from your work and money is something that you consider to be a key component of your happiness, then you owe it to yourself to perhaps try and find a better option that fits in more with your needs and aspirations.
You are simply no longer interested in it. It is no secret that people change, and their interests change with them. What we wanted to do at one point, perhaps at the end of high school or during college, may simply not be what we feel like doing when we reach our thirties.
Grandiose dreams often shatter upon hitting the brick wall of reality. Perhaps a particular career is not as spectacular as we once imagined it to be. Perhaps the mechanics of our work no longer make us feel useful. Perhaps we are simply bored out of our minds. In any case, when we feel like this it is difficult to justify remaining in such a situation. After all, is a job no longer holds our interest, we will most likely not put in much effort into it, and it will affect everything from our performance to the effect our job has on others (e.g. our customers, clients, patients, or even our families).
Therefore, if we find ourselves stuck in a line of work that does not make us, at least on some days, wake up in excited in the morning with a smile on our faces and ready for a new day at the office, then perhaps it is time to look elsewhere for professional fulfillment. We also owe it to others to free up space where they might be happier than us.
It no longer aligns with your values. Perhaps it is not the case that we do not earn enough or that we do not find our job interesting. We can be decently entertained by a job, earn a decent amount, and still feel like something is wrong and that we want out.
The reason for this is most often that what we are doing for a living is simply not aligned with our values. Perhaps we do not agree with your company's marketing strategy, or we do not like the way they exploit animals. There can be a million clashes in philosophy which can bring about this value conflict.
While working a job we feel does not align with our value system, we will not only perform it worse than someone who does not have that issue but will also suffer doing it. Therefore, it is highly recommended that in such a case we seek out work that we find meaningful, which will give us a sense of spiritual fulfillment as well as material sustenance.
It does not allow us enough free time. Some of us are workaholics, and that is fair enough. Others, however, prefer to have some time to themselves.
This sort of thing especially becomes an issue when we begin thinking about starting a family, as at that point people start to become as (if not more) important than our careers. At that point, we might start making career choices based more around others and spending time with them as opposed to simply our own goals and dry, professional aspirations.
Of course, this can also be the result of wanting to focus more on a beloved hobby or work on one's own business. Whatever the case may be, if you feel that a job is not allowing you enough time for yourself, it might be time to start looking elsewhere.
How to Go About Changing Your Job/Career
In the previous section, we have discussed the main reasons why people might consider a career change at thirty. Although there are more reasons than that, those are the most frequent and relevant.
In this section, we will give you concrete advice concerning what you should think about when changing jobs or careers. It may sound like a daunting move but it is very doable provided one approaches the problem rationally and sensibly. Without further ado, let us start with the most important points.
Choose something that will result in personal growth. This is probably one of, if not the most important thing to consider when transitioning from one job or career into another. We want to change our careers but at the same time, we want to avoid getting into a situation worse than what we were in before.
Just because you are picking another occupation does not necessarily mean that you will feel or get better. A lot of the points following this one will simply be things to consider which will result in personal growth.
Sometimes the desire to change our careers may not even spring from dissatisfaction with the career itself, but rather because we feel stuck in a rut. One does not leave said rut by choosing another workplace that provides zero challenge and does not make you step outside of your comfort zone.
Stepping out of your comfort zone is something you will have to do a lot in this job-hunting phase. Why? Well, if you were comfortable in your old comfort zone, you would not be considering leaving it.
Finally, one of the main reasons people no longer find their jobs interesting is specifically because it no longer offers them a chance for personal growth. Choose something that aligns with your values. Although this might be self-explanatory after reading the preceding section, it is important not to miss out on this important point once again. Remember, we are trying to avoid repeating the same mistakes.
Another reason this is important is that is ties in tightly to personal growth. Sometimes a big reason why we are not living up to our values and searching out careers that do the same is that we are stuck in an old comfort zone, trapped in a value system that no longer serves us on our journey.
Inform yourself about the job market. This is also a very important point to take heed of. Essentially, the job market is constantly shifting, and what might have been the case ten years ago may not be the case today. Thus, it is essential, especially if you have been doing one job for a while, to inform yourself about what is out there and how to go about navigating the professional landscape.
One vital component of this is the required skill set for the job you may be after. Here you can feasibly opt for a job that searches for the skills that you already have, although that has the drawback of not hitting on our previous point about personal growth. While you may not have the time or energy to invest in finishing a new degree, it is good to think about your soft and transferable skills and see which one of them you can utilize or which new ones you can learn. You can often get decent at them sooner than you think and they can be invaluable in your job-hunting adventure. You may even venture outside of your comfort zone which will inevitably result in personal growth.
Choose something that will earn you the money you want while also not overworking you. Above, we stated that one of the most common reasons why people are dissatisfied with their jobs and careers and opt for a career change at thirty is because their work is not earning them the money they want. We want to avoid making the same mistake twice, so if money is a thing that you deem of importance for a happy life, then look for a job with decent financial prospects (we will get to which those are shortly).
This is particularly something to consider if you have started thinking about starting a family and want a stable, well-earning position (as opposed to a slightly unreliable freelancing job, for example).
In the next section, we will focus specifically on this point and discuss which careers are optimal for earning decent money while still maintaining a humane work-life balance.
Best Paid Careers
Everybody seems to want a well-paying job, but hardly anyone is willing to put in the work necessary to attain them. This is because the highest-paying standard careers are mostly in the medical profession, with surgeons and anesthesiologists earning more than almost anyone else except for wealthy entrepreneurs.
Computer scientists are also not too shabby when it comes to earnings, and scientists, in general, follow closely (though be warned that getting a job as a regular scientist is not as easy as it used to be). All of these careers share in common that they are quite useful to society and can thus generate a large amount of profit. Hence, they are well-paid.
Another gear which needs to keep turning to make society function properly is law, and thus it is careers in that segment which are also very profitable, followed by careers in architecture.
As you can see, all of these careers are those which require you to go through several years of intensive university studying and training for you to be able to do them properly. Therefore, unless you have some training in them already, you can see how it would be a problem to try and get into them at a later age. Of course, it is not impossible, but it is inconvenient.
Another reason why these careers may not exactly be the ones you are looking for is that they offer relatively poor work-life balance. In any one of these professions, you will have to put in a lot of hours in order to stay afloat—there is just so much to do. That, coupled with the increased level of responsibility the job of a doctor, lawyer, or architect can put on your shoulders, makes for quite the stress level. Why do that to oneself if one does not have to?
However, for those of us who would like to earn a decent amount of money while still not dying of stress, there are options out there. Jobs such as a medical diagnostic sonographer, compliance officer, or audiologist offer you a passable pay while still allowing you a good amount of free time and a stress-free work environment.
Of course, there are other careers out there that are not that stressful, but these include things like being a hairstylist, and unless one is really good at what they do in professions like these, one should not expect to earn a fortune doing them.
However, there are some professions which neatly strike the balance between earnings and stress. In fact, they even seem to go the extra mile to offer you a pretty decent salary while not requiring you to do much. The catch? It requires you to work smart. If you do, this ratio will work very much in your favor. This is where all the stuff we mentioned about transferable skills and smart career hunting comes into play.
What profession are we talking about? We are talking about sales.
Although it may seem surprising that we are suggesting that you switch to sales instead of switching from it to something else, it is quite a viable profession. With unbelievable earning potential and flexible work schedules, it is a great prospect for any young professional looking for their possible career match.
It ticks all of the boxes that we have mentioned before. It provides an opportunity for personal growth, if one applies themselves they can earn quite a bit of money, it can fit in with a wide range of value systems, and it also allows you a self-made, flexible schedule (most of the time) that you can tailor to your needs.
Another advantage of sales is it can also be a “shortcut” to get in the lucrative industries we mentioned before. Usually these companies seek for graduates, but they also value people who have experience and knowledge in their field, and that is where sales can help you. Sales is a two-way communication. By participating in your clients profits and financial improvements, you can learn about their industry and gain knowledge that many of these companies value.
If you are someone considering a job in sales after reading this and are wondering where you might find a healthy environment to join, you can always give us a look. Here at PGN Global, we offer a platform for producers, consultants, and potential innovators to apply their skills and be able to profit from it.
If you are someone looking for a career change at thirty, then it is most likely that you are looking for an entry-level sales job, and we offer that quite readily. Joining us as a seller or consultant can be a wonderfully rewarding experience, allowing you to monetize your skills and experience. Keep in mind that to join us, a good foundation and a network of local contacts will greatly work to your advantage.
However, if and once you do have that experience and relationships, capitalizing on them is not that difficult. We also do our best to allow you to do so with minimal investment, so you do not feel like you are taking too deep of a plunge with any of the steps you take.
Of course, even if you do not wish to join us as a seller or consultant, but rather have some entrepreneurial spirit in you, you can easily come forward with an original idea and let us help you find clients. Likewise, if you have already ventured out and tried out a business idea but are looking for solutions on how to innovate it and stay ahead of the competition, we can help propel you to success.
If you feel like it, get in contact with us. We may be offering exactly the thing you are looking for.
Conclusion
A career change at thirty is a move that only the bravest and boldest attempt. It may not always yield optimal results, but through careful planning and consideration, it can be one of the best decisions of our lives. After all, better to take the risk than spend the rest of our lives in a career that does not make us excited to wake up every morning.
The most lucrative careers you can opt for are those in medical, law, science, and, generally, fields that are of great practical use to society. The issue is that a lot of these fields come with ample stress and if you are looking to maintain your mental health, they may not be optimal.
In this case, sales might be a good option for you as it is a flexible career that can be molded to many different personality types and value systems. If you have opted for a job in sales, we at PGN Global offer you a plethora of options to get started or improve on an existing, strong foundation.
Keep good track of your options and whatever you decide, know that it is not the end of the world if it does not work out. After all, nobody said that a career change at forty (or fifty, or sixty) is impossible.