5 Signs It’s Time for a Career Change

Are you waking up to the alarm and dreading the workday ahead? 

Perhaps you’re daydreaming about a career that makes you feel good about what you do for work. 

Or, you’re a completely different person than you were when you entered your current field, so it no longer aligns with who you are. 

At Catalyst Group ECR, we meet many professionals facing a crossroads about the next phase of their lives and wondering whether it’s time to start a new chapter in their careers. They often bring with them a sense of anxiety about the change or even the feeling that they’re destined to fail if they dare make such a huge transition. 

With the support of an executive coach, though, undertaking a career change can be a profoundly fulfilling opportunity for transformation. 

But how do you know when it’s the right time? Keep an eye out for these five signs:

Sign 1: You Feel a Lack of Passion and Motivation

There comes a time in many professionals’ careers when the enthusiasm that once propelled them out of bed each morning begins to wane. It’s harder to muster the energy for your daily tasks and projects that, at one time, made you excited to head into the office but now leave you feeling completely indifferent. 

Don’t let your boredom go unchecked. It will quickly lead to decreased job satisfaction, which can ripple out until it affects how content you are with your personal life.

Rather than seeing it as a failure on your part, recognize it for what it is: You’ve grown, and your profession hasn’t kept up. It’s natural for your interests and passions to evolve, and your career needs to keep pace with who you are becoming. 

Sign 2: Your Skills and Development Have Plateaued

Growth is a fundamental human need if we want to reach self-actualization, and we often rely on our careers to fulfill that desire to improve, learn new skills, and tackle bigger challenges. But when professional development stalls and you feel like you’ve hit a plateau, it could be a sign that your current role no longer meets your needs for your long-term growth trajectory.

Plateaus can be tricky to catch, too, because they often manifest as a feeling of comfort that’s verging on complacency. You’re meeting all your targets with ease, so there’s no real push or incentive to stretch beyond your current capabilities. 

The longer you wait to search for new horizons, the more likely you are to lose your sense of drive and ambition. 

Sign 3: You Have No Work-Life Balance 

In pursuing professional success, it’s easy to let the scales tip too far as you start sacrificing personal time and well-being for work. There may come a point where late nights at the office start pushing your personal commitments to the back burner, and that’s a slippery slope that needs correcting as soon as possible.

Not only are you going to start experiencing serious burnout, but a lack of work-life balance is going to have an even more profound impact on your personal relationships. 

At the end of the day, your loved ones will always matter more than your job. So, if you’re starting to feel the push to forgo healthy personal relationships for the sake of reaching a KPI or getting a project completed on time, it’s time to reassess your current career path.

Sign 4: The Market Is Changing

With the unbelievable rate at which we continue to create new technologies and business innovations, it’s not all that uncommon to find that your expertise is becoming obsolete. In the last few decades, we’ve watched everything from cashiers to travel agents become a thing of the past in favor of automation and internet-based options. 

When you shift a market shift that may not bring your role along, you’ve got to take a professional leap before you find yourself out of the job with no time to figure out your next move.

Sign 5: Your Values No Longer Align With Your Company’s 

Over time, as you grow personally and professionally, your values start to change. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for many enterprises, especially larger businesses that see no reason to change when their current course has always led to success. 

When there’s a stark misalignment between your personal values and the culture or direction of the company you work for, it can leave you feeling guilty and dissatisfied as you try to compromise your core values just to keep your job. 

It’s not worth it. There are plenty of other career options out there that won’t leave you with a bad taste in your mouth every day after work.

The Value of Executive Coaching Before a Career Change

Making a career change can be a scary process that can feel like a hurdle between where you are now and where you want to be. 

An executive coach is equipped with the tools and perspectives needed to help you assess your current situation with honesty and clarity. Whether you’re aiming for a promotion, considering a complete career shift, or starting your own business, a coach provides the structured support you need to make informed decisions that will empower you both personally and professionally.

Lori Moen of Catalyst Group ECR is a seasoned professional who has walked the path you’re on and can bring you a wealth of experience from her time as a business owner and in various leadership roles. She can use this expertise to:

• Identify your core strengths and how to leverage them
• Clarify your goals
• Develop a practical, step-by-step action plan 
• Navigate challenges and setbacks by helping you build resilience and adaptability
• Achieve greater balance

Investing in executive coaching is an investment in yourself and your career change, so let’s start today!