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It can not get worse.
The stomach contracts as soon as the front door is opened.
The working day goes on forever, the mood is down.
Even on the weekend you can no longer relax.
Monday: hell.
Such a situation calls for change.
Only after which one?
“First you have to find out exactly where the problem is,” says Elke Wagenpfeil.
She is a psychologist and career coach and also advises clients on restarting.
Wagenpfeil analyzes with you what exactly makes you dissatisfied.
Often it is not the job itself, but the fact that someone cannot live their values, she reports.
An innovative, curious guy is always thwarted, a tidiness lover is tossed back and forth in a chaotic company, a sensitive boss is forced to enforce corporate goals at the expense of his employees.
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All of this happens - and yet it is only a part of all possible problems.
Around 14 percent of employees have already resigned internally and have no ties to the company, according to the Gallup consulting firm's “Engagement Index 2018”.
Whether you have to change jobs right away is another question.
Wagenpfeil asks her clients about their careers so far, about what has given them pleasure.
“When do the eyes start to shine?” Only then can we jointly consider what someone would like to change.
Professional reorientation: Can drag on
"Moderate changes" are usually sufficient, says Wagenpfeil.
For example, to develop yourself further in your own area, to change the company or the branch or to change the working conditions, for example by reducing your working hours.
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Sometimes the causes lie in yourself. Perhaps someone hasn't learned to say no.
Or it is driven by inner beliefs like “You have to work” or “You are not good enough”.
Then you should first work on yourself, otherwise you will have the old problems in a new position.
A complete career change is a big step.
And rarely.
Because: "The more you change, the more you have to get involved," says Wagenpfeil.
This step only makes sense if you are dissatisfied with the core content of the job for a long time, she explains.
When this point is reached, everyone has to decide for themselves.
“There is no scale for this,” says Sanaz Lodin, head of the Lifelong Career Counseling project team at the Düsseldorf Employment Agency.
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It is difficult to determine how many people in Germany change their job.
The Federal Employment Agency (BA) only counts those who are supported by it in the reorientation.
In 2018, these were mainly geriatric nurses.
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The Institute for Employment Research (IAB) found that in Germany, with its strong focus on qualifications and the well-organized training system, changing careers is difficult.
Only a few Germans change voluntarily.
The hurdle is particularly big if you have specialized and have to start again from scratch.
Especially since you have to expect a lower income, at least at the beginning.
Those who do change often look for a similar area, the IAB found.
That means, for example, one moves from corporate communication to company-related service professions.
Reorientation is a process that can take a year or more.
The family must also be involved.
At the beginning of coaching, someone often just wants to get away from their job, but they also have to get to the point of having a goal and instead of building a 'moving away from motivation' to 'moving towards motivation', says career coach Wagenpfeil.
To do this, you have to be able to assess the desired profession well.
Weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of changing jobs
Wagenpfeil recommends a reality check: "Talk to five to ten people who work in this field, because one often has illusions about a job," she says.
“Ask: What does a typical week look like?
How much time is spent on which tasks as a percentage?
What are the challenges? ”She believes that you should not only talk to employees, but also to decision-makers.
You can find them via career networks on the Internet, write to them and ask for a short interview.
"Not all will answer, but these people are best at saying whether their own profile fits their job or whether they still need to be readjusted," she says.
If you have all the information together, you can continue.
“You have to pay a price for every reorientation,” says the expert.
You also have to consider how the advantages and disadvantages relate to one another.
Would you like to work in a social profession so much that you accept the lower salary?
Does distance learning justify sacrificing vacation for the next two years?
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Perhaps there is also a false expectation behind it.
Work is now charged with expectations in a similar way to love: company portraits are about “passion”, and HR managers expect you to be “passionate” or “absorbed” in your job.
But not everyone does that.
“For many people, the job doesn't have to be a calling.
They prefer to go home at three o'clock and have time for their family, their hobby or their volunteer work, ”says Wagenpfeil.
“It is important to know your own values and to stand by them.” If you know them, you can look for a position that fits them.
And dedicate the rest of the day to his true passion.
Seven professions that will give you a top salary
Earnings play an important role in choosing a career.
Anyone who thinks that they can only earn a high income by studying is wrong.
Even those who have been employed with in-company training sometimes have top salaries.
Source: WORLD / Sebastian Struwe
This article was first published in June 2019.