Making a Downward Move – Can This Ever be the Right Career Tactic?
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Strange question you may think, but for those of us stuck in a rut, wanting a new career, or ambitious to move from a current specialism to a very different career path, it can be a smart, if tough, move.
Over the years I’ve met many people who are dissatisfied with the path their chosen career has taken them. They have a good job, are well paid and have a comfortable life, but realise they have changed their mind about what it is they want from life and feel trapped by the comfort their current job brings.
A downward or side-ways move or a complete change starting at the bottom may be just the right thing. So how do you square this with your need to be seen as successful?
Groundwork for taking on a bigger role
Be clear about the end goal and the value a downwards or sideways move can bring to your CV. Someone I was coaching recently wanted a senior Exec post but had no commercial experience. Driven and successful, she had to make a difficult decision – keep on the current path and reach Board level in a support function or take a side-ways or downwards move to develop that commercial experience now with a future CEO role in mind? She chose a downwards move to gain the experience now rather than leave it any longer showing she was willing to invest in herself at a critical point in her career.
Will it give you more energy and time to study after work? A friend of mine had been a senior nurse for many years. She wanted to qualify as a GP. She had two children studying for GCSEs to consider. She decided to take a downward move to a less stressful nursing role, work shorter hours and concentrate on her own studying. She is now a highly respected GP whose opinion is sought on all manner of local NHS committees. Far from being wasted time, her no-nonsense, coal-face experience as a nurse has been invaluable to the insights she’s given GP service providers and GP/Hospital interface projects.
Career change
Are you considering a complete career change? In which case do as much research as possible first. Can you shadow someone in a role you aspire to? How much studying is required and can you fit it in whilst working or does it have to be fulltime? Make sure you are really honest about your own strengths and weaknesses and whether these will help you succeed in your new career before you make the jump.
Improving your life
There may be other less career-oriented reasons for taking a downward move. Your industry is in decline, redundancies abound, your job is just a job that pays the bills. Or perhaps you’ve recently had children or now have to care for a family member and have to work locally. In these circumstances a job change, even if it’s a downward move, can at least keep you in touch with the workplace, new developments, and the discipline of working. Taking the job doesn’t stop you using the career tactics we blog about; building and maintaining your network, keeping your visibility, volunteering for your professional body, mentoring others, and so on, keeping yourself ‘fit’ for when your life changes again and you can start planning your return to work at a more senior level.
Summary checklist:
Dissatisfaction with our work lives is draining and demoralising. Being brave enough to face this dilemma will bring renewed energy and focus and keep us match-fit for the future. Investing in yourself is never a waste of time.
Over the years I’ve met many people who are dissatisfied with the path their chosen career has taken them. They have a good job, are well paid and have a comfortable life, but realise they have changed their mind about what it is they want from life and feel trapped by the comfort their current job brings.
A downward or side-ways move or a complete change starting at the bottom may be just the right thing. So how do you square this with your need to be seen as successful?
Groundwork for taking on a bigger role
Be clear about the end goal and the value a downwards or sideways move can bring to your CV. Someone I was coaching recently wanted a senior Exec post but had no commercial experience. Driven and successful, she had to make a difficult decision – keep on the current path and reach Board level in a support function or take a side-ways or downwards move to develop that commercial experience now with a future CEO role in mind? She chose a downwards move to gain the experience now rather than leave it any longer showing she was willing to invest in herself at a critical point in her career.
Will it give you more energy and time to study after work? A friend of mine had been a senior nurse for many years. She wanted to qualify as a GP. She had two children studying for GCSEs to consider. She decided to take a downward move to a less stressful nursing role, work shorter hours and concentrate on her own studying. She is now a highly respected GP whose opinion is sought on all manner of local NHS committees. Far from being wasted time, her no-nonsense, coal-face experience as a nurse has been invaluable to the insights she’s given GP service providers and GP/Hospital interface projects.
Career change
Are you considering a complete career change? In which case do as much research as possible first. Can you shadow someone in a role you aspire to? How much studying is required and can you fit it in whilst working or does it have to be fulltime? Make sure you are really honest about your own strengths and weaknesses and whether these will help you succeed in your new career before you make the jump.
Improving your life
There may be other less career-oriented reasons for taking a downward move. Your industry is in decline, redundancies abound, your job is just a job that pays the bills. Or perhaps you’ve recently had children or now have to care for a family member and have to work locally. In these circumstances a job change, even if it’s a downward move, can at least keep you in touch with the workplace, new developments, and the discipline of working. Taking the job doesn’t stop you using the career tactics we blog about; building and maintaining your network, keeping your visibility, volunteering for your professional body, mentoring others, and so on, keeping yourself ‘fit’ for when your life changes again and you can start planning your return to work at a more senior level.
Summary checklist:
- Be clear about the end goal or the work-life balance you need to achieve
- If further study is required how will you fit this in around working?
- If the new role pays less, rework your budget and agree your career plan with your life partner first
- Be clear about the value of the new skills you will accrue
- Remember to use our career tactics at every stage of your career
Dissatisfaction with our work lives is draining and demoralising. Being brave enough to face this dilemma will bring renewed energy and focus and keep us match-fit for the future. Investing in yourself is never a waste of time.