Career Change Stress

Often, no matter how great the need, perhaps for financial, health or domestic reasons, the stress associated with a career change stops people from pursuing it or even considering it, but if you do not go for it then you stay where you are and maybe also lose what you have with nothing in line to replace it. The stress can be felt as being due to perhaps the need to move to a different location, finding a new home and resettling your family and /or moving away from family and friends.

Good research and planning and being prepared can help to make the process easier. Be sure that any job you are taking offers all that you need, especially if you are making a move to a different location to take it. Check out terms and conditions such as medical insurance and any relocation payments. Think about things such as if the salary can finance new living accommodation, schools for children, and the local community for chances to make new contacts and friends. Check out doctors and activities you may have enjoyed in your previous community such as worship groups and sport and leisure facilities.

To not know for sure if you are making the right decision can be a huge cause of stress, but career histories have long since stopped being one job for life. Any training that you need for a new job is a benefit as it can be added to your CV/resume and useful again in the future.

If you need them to make your career change then look online or in the community for help with writing resumes/CV’s, looking for jobs and interview skills and any necessary training. Being well prepared for your career change, whether it be because of health, age, redundancy or just fancying a change is stressful but can be made a lot easier by good planning and preparation.

Valerie Hartland

Create your own boardroom position

While I was a child in 1960’s and 70’s London, girls played with dolls, baby dolls such as tiny tears were popular, dolls that could drink from a bottle and wet a pretend nappy, just like a real baby. If they were lucky, they had a dolls pram and maybe a cot for the doll and tea sets and dolls houses with miniature furniture while boys played with construction kits such as Meccano and train sets, cars and toy soldiers. Games became popular such as Ker Plunk , Frustration and Connect 4, art and design toys were becoming popular with Etch-a-sketch , Sketch - a - graph and Spirograph. There was Play dough, much more fun and easier to use than hard plasticine.There were no game boys and laptops but there were visual toys that were becoming more advanced and common in the home such as toy home projectors and view master with its reels of pictures. Games were beginning to show the beginnings of technology such as the amazing Magic Robot that you asked it a question and it pointed to the right answer

 Today In 1959 Barbie was born, already grown up and with a trendy wardrobe of clothes and brush- able hair!!! Barbie was just what young girls wanted to look like, the perfect body …. Barbie was not a baby doll, but a doll to be a friend and act out dreams with.

Gradually society, while there is still a long way to go, was giving women a new image and they had a voice with a new message …They were no longer largely limited in their business options to something in an office or Woolworths ..or maybe teaching or nursing if they had the academic requirements for training.

However, while the number of professional women has certainly increased, they still have limits in the areas of promotion to management and in salaries. This is especially true of women with children and disabled women. Confucius once said, Ignorance is a woman’s virtue, but you won’t sell that to any woman today.

Maybe not as glamourous as being seen in the boardroom, but certainly capable of creating a high salary and being the boss without even the need for a degree, women can and should think about beginning an on line business. Think about what interests you, what your skills and talents are and create a business ...you think you don’t know how? There is plenty of advice available, on line and often from your local council, job centre and voluntary organisations.

Valerie Hartland