Solution Tool 3: Change Your Job Target

Targeting jobs and employers that don’t consider your issues a barrier or, even better, are looking for people just like you, is a great way to avoid getting screened out. Instead of changing yourself, you change the job you pursue! If wearing a suit is not you, target a job that requires a uniform or the clothing you own and love. If your age is a problem, look for companies that target customers in your age group—often staff reflects the customer base. If your industry has left town and you can’t move, target local industries that need your transferable skills. Changing your job target will allow you to overcome issues you can’t or don’t want to change. Change is inevitable, but it can be fun and profitable if you are strategic and have a positive attitude.

Changing your job target is a quick way to eliminate barriers that hold you back. There are three reasons to change your job target:

1. You can’t go back to what you did before. Perhaps the industry is diminishing, you’ve been injured and have limitations, you have a criminal conviction that disqualifies you, or you lack transportation, tools, or other necessary resources.

2. You don’t want to go back to what you did before. Maybe it was too stressful, paid too little, required too much time away from your family, or you are no longer willing to conform to industry expectations. Maybe you’ve had an experience that makes the old job incompatible with your new values, such as having kids, discovering a new faith, getting clean and sober, or realizing that you don’t have to endure abusive or unsafe working conditions.

3. You’ve identified a new direction you want to take. This is about looking toward the future or new goals, pursuing a field that fascinates you, using skills you enjoy, or accommodating a new lifestyle or value.

Knowing why you want to change your target will help you decide what to change and where to start looking. If you are changing because you can’t or no longer want to use specific skills, consider other jobs in your current field that use skills or knowledge you already have and enjoy using. Randy was a pipe fitter for more than two decades before sustaining a back injury. He was sad to think he’d have to leave the industry he loved, until he realized he could use his extensive network and knowledge in commercial construction. He became an estimator. Randy also could have pursued sales for a construction supplier or equipment rental company, project or safety management, and even some driving jobs—none of which required him to use his bad back or leave the industry.

If you are changing your job target because you can’t or no longer want to work in the field, consider jobs in other fields that use your current skills. Helen was tired of the constant travel required in medical sales, so she took her sales skills and her network of doctors to a new field. She became the membership manager for a golf course. A few other fields that would appreciate her sales skills, extensive network, and ease with high-end customers include fund-raising, real estate, and fine jewelry or art sales.

If you are changing your target because your current job doesn’t match your values and you are unhappy, identify your most important values (making a difference, earning more money, feeling appreciated, time with family, and so on) and consider jobs in your field or skill group that support those values. Ted, a chef in a gourmet restaurant, recognized he was an alcoholic and joined AA. He wanted to continue cooking gourmet meals, but in a place that didn’t serve alcohol. He chose a fitness resort/spa, but could also have targeted private hospitals, elite private schools, or companies that specialized in first class meals for airlines.

One common mistake people make when changing their job target is that they change everything. When changing your target, keep as much as you can . . . your proven skills, your knowledge of the field, or the positive attitude that comes with choosing a job that matches your values.

To explore the skills you want to use, consider the skills you most enjoyed using in past jobs, throughout your education, and in your personal life. Then think of other jobs that require them. Or visit O*Net at http://online.onetcenter.org, a partnership project with the Department of Labor, to discover other jobs that use those skills. Don’t be put off by the acronyms and jargon, because the information is well worth it. O*Net gives information about thousands of jobs, including the required skills, education and training, pay range, and expected growth of the field. As you change your job target, choose jobs that rely on as many of your favorite skills as possible.

QUICK TIP FOR USING O*NET

Go to http://online.onetcenter.org. In the box labeled “Occupation Quick Search,” type in a past job and you’ll get a list of skills the job requires. If you know your skills, the “Advanced Search” will help you find jobs that utilize your skills, specific tools, and technology proficiencies. If you are transitioning from the military or from one field to another, go to “Crosswalks” and type in your military title or previous job to generate a list of civilian jobs that require the same skills. The “Find Occupations” tool indicates jobs that share similarities, as well as jobs that are “green” and “in demand.” Tip: Most of the boxes that ask for a code also accept job titles written in plain English.

To discover your fields of fascination, consider what you enjoy talking about with friends, doing in your spare time, or learning about by reading, watching TV, or surfing the Net. If you choose broad fields like “people,” think about what type of people fascinate you—children, seniors, professionals, disenfranchised, famous, and so forth. Reviewing the index or major headings in your local yellow pages can also point you to fields of interest, as well as hundreds of local companies and their phone numbers. If you want your work to focus on a specific field, community, or issue, look for related magazines, newsletters, or newspapers online or in print. Your local librarian, chamber of commerce, or associations can help.

To discover jobs that match what’s important to you, list your most important values, then list every type of employer or specific companies that share your values, want people like you as customers, or are likely to be sympathetic toward those values. Dale had long hair he didn’t want to cut, and visible tattoos he didn’t want to cover. In many jobs, this would not be a problem, but Dale felt a corporate office offered him the best opportunity to use his skills and education and make good money. Even today, most corporate offices want a clean-cut look. So Dale brainstormed with friends and family about fields where his appearance would not be an issue, industries that targeted “people like him” as customers, and corporate offices where they had seen male employees with long hair or tattoos. His top three choices were entertainment, advertising, and Internet-based companies. Remember, as you narrow your focus and what you are willing to accept, you limit your opportunities. So know what is nonnegotiable for you, and realize that sometimes you may need to relocate or compromise to get your most important demands.

CREATING SOLUTIONS BY CHANGING YOUR JOB TARGET

A great way to discover jobs that combine your skills and fields of fascinations is to list the six skills you most enjoy using and three fields that fascinate you, then brainstorm with friends or colleagues about jobs in the fields that use the skills. Think outside the box because there are many more than come to mind at first. Don’t be limited by jobs you’ve heard of or openings you’ve seen recently. Think of any jobs that capture much of what you want and give them a name—assisting movie stars, conducting research on the Internet, helping children, and so forth. For five minutes let the creative juices flow, and write down everything that comes up. Many of the jobs may seem very unusual, and that’s okay. Chances are someone is getting paid to do them. Why not you?

➵ DID YOU KNOW?

The Dictionary of Occupational Titles¹ lists more than 12,000 distinct job titles. About 95 percent of us work in the 3,000 most common titles. The remaining 5 percent work in more than 9,000 unusual jobs, such as bridge painting, carpet designing, cow inseminating, personal shopping, artificial limb maker, and animal training for movies, just to name a few.

Afterward, eliminate any that don’t interest you. Do some research to discover real titles and details about each job, then cross off any that don’t match your values. Brian had been laid off from an auto plant. The skills he most enjoyed using were welding, assembling, problem solving, and, from his hobbies, SCUBA diving and snowboarding. His fields of fascinations were extreme sports, nature and being outdoors, and construction. Brainstorming with friends, he came up with a list of possible jobs, including equipment builder for extreme sports, leader of outdoor adventures for the public, and underwater welder for bridges, oil platforms, or shipping companies. Next, Brian did an online search to learn more about each job and compiled a list of potential companies he could call—for example, for underwater welder, he listed companies that offered training in welding underwater, made and sold welding equipment, and the Association of Diving Contractors, whose members hire welder-divers. A few investigative phone calls produced a good understanding of the transferable skills employers looked for, which skills they were willing to teach, and what he needed to do and learn before applying. Today, Brian is a welder-diver working on oil platforms around the world.

➵ DID YOU KNOW?

Employers who hire for uncommon jobs often provide on-the-job training because too few people pursue the jobs to justify dedicated college courses. Also, advertising uncommon jobs in the Open Market is often a waste of money because the general public doesn’t understand the transferable skills required for them. If you’re interested in one of the nine thousand plus unusual jobs, search in the Hidden Market. Prove you’ve got the basics skills and a desire to learn, then often the employer will hire and train you in the remaining skills!

A few words of caution about overcoming barriers by changing your job target:

• It may seem like there are no openings in your field of interest, but there are always openings. As people retire, move, quit, get promoted, and pass away, openings are constantly created. They may not be advertised to the public, so search in the Hidden Market. They may no longer be available in your area, so you may need to move. Don’t ask yourself if there are jobs. Ask whether securing and maintaining employment in this field is worth the extra work it requires.

• Don’t use your old résumé for the new job. Create a new one that tells employers why you are qualified for the job you want now. Use the skills résumé format, and be sure to use the terminology of the new industry to describe your transferable skills.

• If you are anxious at the thought of changing the field you work in, the skills you use, or the type of company you work for, you are not alone. Gather information about new opportunities and talk with people who do the new jobs you are considering. Give yourself permission not to make the change if you don’t like what you learn. Also, consider volunteering. It’s a great way to try something new in a safe setting. Finding a mentor who can teach you the ropes and advise you along the way will offer you wisdom, support, and connections if you decide to make the transition.

• Finally, sometimes the problem is not the field or skills or values. Sometimes it’s our outlook on the situation. Eric left his first job because his supervisor was “a demanding jerk.” He left his next job because his boss was “a know-it-all.” He decided to change his job target, and used his proven skills in a new field, only to discover that his new manager “had no idea how to lead or how to support him in his job.” Do you see a recurring theme here? Eric could continue to change where he looks for work, but his inability to get along with people in authority is likely to make him hate every job he gets, and make each of his employers wish they hadn’t hired him. If you find that the same problem recurs in every new job, perhaps it’s time for some introspection and personal growth.

Knowing the job you want is important for a successful job search, but often what we believe matters just as much. The next solution tool helps you overcome barriers when it’s your view of the situation that’s getting you screened out. It also includes a description of the only attitude employers want to hire.