How to test out new career ideas
Prototype your new career direction
When you’ve reached the conclusion that for your own peace of mind and fulfilment you need a change of career direction, it’s a good idea to test out your new option before simply making the leap with only hope for comfort. Prototyping, or testing an idea out grows your understanding of the reality of your potential new career, builds contacts and potential advocates in the real world, and allows you to measure this new direction against your own criteria - what you want and need your work to do for you.
Understanding what you are really looking for, what will motivate you, play to your strengths, provide optimum conditions for you to do your best work, while also aligning with your values and offering a sense of purpose, all these are essentials before you reach the prototyping stage. These are some of the areas my clients gain clarity on in my Quickstep Career Change Programme, and is the vital blueprint of your personal career fulfilment puzzle that many ignore.
But once you have that clarity, once you have generated new ideas and sifted these against your criteria for a happy life with fulfilling work, then you are ready to test out your top ideas, the ones that really excite you and make you feel alive. So what does prototyping look like in practice?
What is ‘prototyping’ a new career idea?
‘Prototyping’ is an idea that comes from design-thinking and offers a low-risk way of exploring an option without completely burning your boats. You will be able to design a plan to test out an idea in a way that will provide you with more knowledge of what it means in today’s world to be someone in your target profession. You’ll come away from your experiment with insider information and a greater understanding of the role, key organisations, challenges they are facing, important developments - all of which will enable you to make an informed decision about whether this new route is for you.
In prototyping, there is no failure. You gain information, you weigh up what you have discovered and you emerge in a better place to make a decision. You are not going in blind with mere hope to drive you.
1.What is the problem you are trying to solve?
In terms of a new career direction, you are trying to understand whether a named option is right for you. Will it provide what you need and want from your work? Will it support the kind of life you are looking for? Will it align with your values, play to your strengths, motivate and engage you? Will it offer the best environment in which you can thrive?
2. Build the specification
What will your test look like? To explore careers, it could involve any or all of the following:
Desk-based research around the job role, entry routes, expected qualifications, key organisations using career websites like Prospects, career services, professional associations, and recruitment agencies
Conversations with people already doing this work to better understand the daily pattern of work, type of organisation, culture, challenges, new developments, and to potentially build advocacy. These are best arranged through your existing network, via introductions from mutual connections, or even an approach on LinkedIn (although here it is always advisable to build a relationship first by supporting and commenting on their posts before going in for your request for a short conversation)
Volunteering with organisations in your proposed field to gain experience and an insider’s view of how things work, along with potential connections and advocates
Starting your target work as a ‘side project’ to your existing career if you already have the relevant skills and are ready to offer a service
Attend a conference or seminar in your target profession to better understand current issues, challenges and innovations. This will also allow you to build connections in your new world and provide leads and other sources to build your prototype
For more ideas, send me a request for my free Insider’s Guide*
3. Test and reflect
Once you have gathered a wide range of information from as many of the sources above as possible, you can now press the pause button and reflect. It’s time to consider what you have learned.
Ask yourself which setting or organisation has the greatest potential for you to thrive. Consider what you now know about the role itself, its different presentations and settings, and which would best suit you. Remember to go back to your personal criteria for what you need to be fulfilled at work and in a way that can also offer you a happy life.
4. Decisions
When you have gathered together all this learning, you are in a far stronger position to decide which direction is best for you.
At this point you will be working on a transition strategy, a way of positioning yourself to be a stronger candidate, understanding not only why this is a great option for you, but also what you can bring to an employer in your new field in terms of enthusiasm, energy, motivation, experience, skills, values and purpose. The greater your clarity and belief, the easier it will be to create a narrative that is compelling to future employers.
Understanding WHY this role is great for you and a win for them, will make the transition so much easier.
You might also consider taking your first role in this new career as itself a prototype - perhaps over a year or two to understand what it really offers you.
Ready to prototype?
I hope these ideas will help you approach a potential career change from a practical point of view. If you need help identifying your own needs and wants, your strengths, optimum work environment, values and purpose, take a look at my Career Change Programme that is available either in a coaching format or as a self study version.
To understand your own values better take a look at Values Discovery, or if you would like help building your own Prototype or Transition strategy, just get in touch via the button below to arrange a free career call.
Happy prototyping!