Your friend has decided to switch careers but isn’t sure which to choose. What advice would you give them? Provide reasons and examples to support your response.

When children are young, they asked by adults what they want to be when they grow up. This, unfortunately, causes kids to think that they can only have one job for the rest of their life. But, in reality, it is perfectly normal for people to want a change. If my friend was thinking about switching her career, but she didn’t know what she wanted to do, I would give her the following two pieces of advice. First, if my friend was considering changing her job, I would suggest that she go back to the drawing board. The best career path is one that encompasses three values, each of which everyone gives different weight. The work must allow her to make enough money to live comfortably, it must be something that she is good at, and it must be something that she finds rewarding. For instance, when I was a lawyer, I was good at my job and I earned plenty of money, but I was not proud of the work I was doing. I decided to leave the legal field behind and pursued a job that I could actually enjoy while helping people. That is when I decided to become a teacher instead. In order to determine which new career will be best for her, my friend will need to do some soul-searching first and then look for a job that will include these three ideals. Next, if my friend wasn’t sure which new career to choose, but she had a few in mind, I would advise her to job shadow them. As they say, it is best to check the temperature of the water before diving in headfirst. This happened to my aunt when she wanted to quit her job and become a policewoman. Before signing up at the police academy, she job-shadowed. She sat in on some of the classes first, to see if she was interested. She interviewed police officers, to find out if the job would be what she expected, and she rode along with them while they were on duty, to learn what it would be like. Ultimately, she discovered that being a policewoman was not the right fit for her. It was better that she job-shadowed first before making the commitment. This is what I would advise my friend to do too. In summary, if my friend was thinking about leaving her career, but didn’t know which one to choose, I would first recommend to her to search for work that best fit her values. Then, I would suggest that she job-shadows any potential jobs she is considering before she makes her choice.