1. Spread the word
Tell people around you that you’re looking to change careers – you never know what might come up in conversation.
Somebody might know somebody, who has a friend, who has a husband, who has a sister-in-law in your target industry.
Hey, presto! New contact for you.
2. Get smart
Learn as much as possible about the industry you want to move into.
Set up meetings with people who have the job you want, to discover what they do on a day-to-day basis. Use your contacts to find people you can talk to or find them online.
3. Stay social-media savvy
LinkedIn groups are a great place to form relationships with people in your target industry. Interact with group members by commenting on posts and sharing them.
Find key people that could help you and contact them directly. Don’t push them if they don’t answer, they are probably busy people. But keep looking.
Don’t forget about Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – also valuable sources of contacts and information.
4. Attend industry events
Find out when organisations in the industry hold events or information nights, and go.
Social media is great for making relationships, but face-to-face contact strengthens them.
5. Go back to school
Of course, you’ll have developed a set of transferrable skills in your last job that you can take into any industry. Check out microcredential courses at VU to find out more.
But if you want to move into a job with specific technical skills, re-training may be unavoidable (think: teacher to scientist or vice versa)…It’s all about finding the right uni!
