By: Tonya Taylor
A career change can be a daunting prospect for anyone at any stage of life, but it can be particularly nerve-wracking for women with partners and families. If your family budget is based on you bringing in a certain amount each month, the thought of disrupting that stability can be scary.
It’s true that a career change will impact your income (hopefully for the better but that’s not always the case) as well as your routine, and it will have an effect on your support structure too, whether that’s your family, partner, kids or friends. But if it’s important to you, and you do the work to help your loved ones adjust alongside you, it can be life-changing.
Women are more empowered than ever to control their professional destinies, but transitions can be tough on anyone. To help ease the stress, here is a guide to making a career change at any age and at any stage of your life.
1.Your Passion Matters as Much as the Money
A career change can feel like a weight lifted from your shoulders, even if you have to adjust to less pay or longer hours if it means you get to pursue your passion. Plenty of people have made careers out of doing the thing they love, and it doesn’t have to mean throwing away money or security.
For instance, we have helped many women who have a passion for caring for children enter into the field and identify opportunities for them to turn that passion into profit. The important thing to remember is that your happiness matters just as much, if not more, than your income, so don’t put that on hold for the sake of a few extra bucks.
You can even see a financial benefit from changing careers to something that you love, even if you take a pay cut. A flexible schedule allows you to spend less on childcare. A fulfilling job leads to less stress and potentially fewer medical problems. A new network could present new opportunities that are far more lucrative down the line. None of those things are guaranteed of course, but it just goes to show that the possibility of losing income is not a reason to forego a career switch because you’ll most likely reap benefits elsewhere.
2.Honor Your Feelings and Your Limits
The process of changing careers can be an emotional roller coaster—excitement for new opportunities, fear of losing security, impostor syndrome, concern for your family, etc. It is important to respect those feelings and process them, whether that is talking with your loved ones or a therapist, or seeking out other coping mechanisms like exercise or creative outlets to clear your head.
You can also take advantage of professional resources to help ease concerns. At KYDZ Careers, we help women who want to build a career in childcare make that dream come true, and often that means walking them through some of the processes that can be daunting or overwhelming. If you’re worried that you won’t know what business licenses or certifications you’ll need, or that you won’t know how to manage your finances, don’t let that stop you from trying; there are always people and organizations you can turn to for guidance.
And respect your own limitations as well. Women often try to push themselves to take on more in order to succeed, but ultimately that can lead to burnout and can derail your journey to a new career. Don’t just push exhaustion or negative feelings down and forge ahead; give yourself the breaks you need to stay mentally and emotionally focused during this time.
3.Support Your Support Structure
You will no doubt need to lean heavily on your family and friends while you go through this transition. You may be putting in long hours and need your partner and kids to do more at home. You may be too tired to help the kids with their homework, so your partner might need to step up more. It’s important to communicate those changes and your new needs to everyone so they know what is expected of them and what they can expect from you.
And remember that while you need them more during this change, they still need you too. You may have less free time while you’re throwing yourself into your new career, but when you do have time to spare, use it to give back to your support system when possible. Missed the last couple of ballet recitals because you were working? Spend your free Saturday taking your kids to see a dance performance. Had to cancel date night to work late? Take a night off to cook dinner for your partner. The impact of your career shift will ripple through your family, so try to balance it back out whenever you can, and assure them that you’re still there for them as they are there for you.
4. It’s Never Too Late
Besides the possible hit to their stability and comfort, one of the biggest reasons people never take the leap into a new career is that they feel like they’re too old to make a change, that they’ll be competing against a pool of applicants that are much younger. I’m here to tell you that it is never too late to change your life.
There are some industries that tend to skew younger, but even if that is the case, you can bring life experiences and skillsets to an organization or your own business that complement those of younger colleagues. You can also take advantage of all kinds of resources to help you brush up on old skills and learn new, more in-demand skills that will make you an attractive candidate when you apply to jobs. Online learning centers and free e-courses can help get you certified in languages and technical skills if needed, and you can also look to industry-specific career counselors to get you up to speed.
It can be easy to get stuck in a particular career path because it’s the thing you’ve always done and change is scary, or you feel like you’re too old to do something new.
Don’t wish that you were younger or just starting out; embrace what your life has given you and turn it into a value proposition for you in your new career. No matter how old you are or which path you’re on, there’s no reason that the rest of your life can’t be what you want it to be.
If you’re ready to make a career change and would like to learn more about the possibilities of a new career in childcare, visit www.kydzcareers.com.
About the Author
Tonya Taylor is a philanthropist and owner of KYDZ Careers, an all-encompassing childcare staffing, training and consulting agency. A childcare industry veteran with 15 years of experience, Tonya believes all children should be given the best resources and educators to grow into healthy-minded individuals. Her philanthropic efforts include childcare product donations to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and other charitable organizations.