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	PREPARING FOR A CAREER CHANGE TAKING MINI STEPS
By Ron Visconti

We are bombarded with daily changes in both our personal and professional lives. In our professional lives, many changes happen to us: a corporate merger, a shift in job duties, a new boss. When was the last time that you made an important life decision? What did you do? How did you go about making the decision? What was the outcome? Making changes takes careful planning, including mapping out where you would like to end up. Many times, we let others map out the course of our lives for us. Does that make sense?

The beginning of a new year provides us with both challenges and opportunities. It provides us a time to in look at and reflect on our values. What do I really want to do? What is my real purpose? Mapping out your course begins with simple goals. After all, they will not become real if we do not commit to writing them down. How do I start and how will I get where I want to go? This first step is always the most difficult part of the journey.

Ask yourself: What are some little steps I can take this year to further my career? Remember: you can make big changes through beginning with small, deliberate steps, such as:

Joining a new group
Taking a professional development class
Learning a new skill
Asking to take more responsibility in your job
Volunteering in an area outside of your comfort zone

If you are having trouble getting started, ask yourself these questions:

What is holding me back?
Have I ignored or dismissed something emotional or psychological?
Can I overcome these barriers?
Do I need extra support?
Am I being unrealistic in my expectations?

What I know is that something magical takes place when you take small steps, you are open to new possibilities and as result, bigger steps follow. Be aware, however –just as losing 20 pounds does not happen immediately, but rather in gradual steps, and with lots of hard work, making a career change, comes through little steps, which lead to greater bigger steps before you reach your goal(s).

The future is always scary and intimidating; however, we can enter new territory by taking measured steps. As the Chinese proverb says about little steps:

"Raise the sail one foot and you get ten feet of wind."

Ron Visconti is a career and recruitment specialist who has worked with and assisted numerous career changers through the career change process.