How to Start a New Career Without Starting Over

Have you ever thought “I can’t do this anymore” while at work?

At some point we have all felt that, even if we love our job. But what if we really can’t? What if we need a new career, but we can’t financially start over.

There are ways we can change a career, without entirely starting from scratch.

Look Where You Already Work

When I was 17 I got my first real job at Walgreens.

My title was “service clerk” which basically just meant front cashier, and at times stock person.

As I got older, and wanted to make more money I started doing more, I got moved into the cosmetic department, and learned more about makeup and shampoo then I ever thought I would. After some time I moved into the photo department, management, and eventually into the pharmacy.

The final move into the pharmacy was the one that made the biggest impact. Cashing people out for their soda and candy is wildly different from filling people’s prescriptions and dealing with insurances.

The great thing about this was that the company paid not only for the training, courses, and certification for me to become a pharmacy technician, but they also paid me my hourly rate while I was at any classes or taking any tests.

This training allowed me to start a different career from retail and work for an insurance company, hospital, or anywhere else that a pharmacy technician is needed, and best of all it cost me absolutely nothing.

Most jobs offer some sort of training, or incentives to get additional education. Every job I’ve ever had has some sort of program to help you pay for college, it may not pay for the whole thing, but helps. Others will pay entirely and pay you while you’re learning.

If you’re interested in starting a new career, first look where you already work and see what other positions they need and if they are willing to train you to do them.

School At Night

If you have normal hours, and really even if you don’t, you can go to night and weekend classes to get an education for a new career.

It will take a lot of time and sacrifice to do, you won’t be able to go out every Friday night because you’re studying, or taking a test, but in the end it will be worth it.

Depending on the new job you want to start it can take months or even years to get the education required to do it.

To cut on costs try to find the most inexpensive school you can that can teach you what you need for your new career.

Also, keep in mind that you don’t always want to change careers that will require a college education, sometimes you want to do a specific trade such as plumbing, electric, or mechanic. There is a very large trade school in my area that teaches you to become a mechanic for airplanes.

My wife went to a school to get her cosmetology license so she can work in a salon, and there are schools for real estate agents, pharmacy technicians, CNA’s, really anything you could want to do.

Most importantly, they have these schools at times that will work around your schedule no matter what your work schedule is.

Work At Night

If you look at people who are working towards their dream career they almost always have something in common. They work a regular job at night.

Think of a struggling artist, they spend their mornings trying to get noticed, or working on their art. Hoping someone will buy a piece of art, or hire them to do what they love.

At night though, they work at a restaurant or bar, because what they really want to do is not make enough money to cover their expenses yet.

You may not have a skill that you’re trying to get noticed for, but you can live your life the same way until you are able to work the job you really want. Going to college or a trade school during the day and working at night.

Start A Side Hustle

If your dream career is running your own business you don’t have to wait till you have enough money saved up to start that business. You can start it as a side hustle.

The first thing this does is reinforce this is really something you want to do. If you do it on the side for a while and find you don’t enjoy it as much, or worse at all, it’s much better to find out now before you have put your all into it.

You’ll also start building up clients and income that will help make the switch from a side hustle to a full time thing easier.

Even if you can’t do your dream job as a side hustle, you should still start one. Having another stream of income that can help pay bills while working towards your dream job is never a bad thing to have.

Live Your Dreams

No matter what your dream job is, if you’re willing to put in a little leg work you can switch careers without entirely starting over.

Though there are ways to switch jobs without starting over, they will all take some amount of work. Before you start down that path make sure you really want that career and aren’t just going to have to start another new one a few years later.

At the end of the day, all jobs have good days and bad days, what we want is to have as few bad days as possible, and even the few bad ones to be better than most good days at your last job.