Things I learned from this story will interest you.
Firstly, there are myths that surround and greatly affect the perfect career transitioning process There are so many myths that often limit an effective transition process. Myths like connections, degrees (qualifications), funds, or money. I’ll explain further. For connections [network], you don’t need an extensive and existing network of contacts to achieve a transition. You can forge a new kind of network from scratch. You don’t need a new degree to make a switch. Perception is reality, and results speak volumes when it comes to perception. And finally, you don’t need money. Everything you need to know about your new field can be learned for free. Now, to transition into a new career/field, you need to paint yourself as the perfect candidate – by understanding what ‘perfect candidate’ means in the eyes of recruiters. The next step is to develop a different perception of job descriptions – in your new field. Note that job descriptions are essentially resumes in reverse. They spell out the exact skills you need in order to be successful in that particular role. Now, it is left for you to look at it using a different perspective.Let me break it down further.
A company is searching for a “Growth Marketing Analyst”. Part of the job responsibilities states that you will be expected to work on the company’s products and the ability to use tools like Oracle, PhP, Python, etc.Now, the qualifications required mentioned a degree in computer science, experience using SQL, etc.This is what the job description says. But here is another perspective… XYZ company is looking for someone who understands how to identify trends/patterns within big data that will have a direct impact on revenue. That person also has enough knowledge of programming to efficiently make those discoveries and present them in a simple, concise fashion.
Again, one question – why do companies hire?
They need someone who can have a positive impact on their bottom line. Bring in results. Someone could have a PhD in Computer Science and be fluent in all of the programming languages in the job description I mentioned above, but if they lack the ability to clearly convey results, the company isn’t going to benefit. On the other hand, someone who may not have a degree or total fluency but understands how to find impactful insights and presents them in a concise, actionable manner is extremely valuable. Your goal is to become that second person. But how do you achieve this? Skills!To transition properly, learn what the new field NEEDS. Understand why companies fill roles in those fields and then build skills relevant to that field.
But it doesn’t end here. Now you have learned the skills of course using a lot of free resources, it is now time to get paid to hone your skills. Build credible & real-life results. You can also do this part-time for free (this will help you faster). Now, you have the understanding of the new field you want to transition to, you have the skills needed, and you have the RESULTS to show you are capable. If you have perfectly transitioned into a new career, please drop a comment explaining how you did it successfully.
