How To Make A Successful Career Change After 10+ Years In The Same Role

When Emily reached out to us for the support she had been in the same company and role for about 10 years. She hit the ceiling in terms of professional growth and earning potential. She felt stagnant and wanted a career change, but she was stuck on what to do about it because she had no idea what to do next or even how to make a career change. 

Here is Emily’s journey from being unclear and frustrated about what her next career move would be to finding and landing her dream job in the interior design industry.

“I made a career change! I got a new job!”

I had been in my comfort zone in the same company and department for ten plus years. 

My boss told me that I hit the ceiling in my role and capped out in salary. However, I didn't feel comfortable not being paid at the rate I thought I deserved with my skill set and work ethic. 

Sure, money isn't everything, but it feeds the rest of your life, your passions, what you do in your free time, and life choices, which was another reason that prompted me to make a career change. 

I wanted to make a career transition for a while but was confused about what direction and job to look for. I felt very stagnant with no motivation, commitment, and confidence to make that move towards making a change. 

I knew I needed help or would get stuck in this rut until I died. So at that moment of clarity, I reached out to Kori, and suddenly that one tiny step just snowballed from there.

The Career Clarity Process: The Truth About Making a Career Change

I was motivated at the very beginning. Then late in the process, I just wanted to see something tangible happen because you're looking at the small details, not the big picture but puzzle pieces. 

I kept asking, “Are we ever going to get to the whole picture?”

And I remember Kori was like, “okay, fine, let's move forward, let's start applying, let's start doing that,” and all of a sudden, I was like, " Oh, okay, maybe we should finish the steps, and then do that. 

I remember feeling scared just because it was something I wanted. I mean, that's what my struggle was going in and why I reached out. I couldn't stop listening to my inner critic, who was like, “you don't know anything about this new company. Why would they hire you?” It’s so hard to shut down, especially without help, without somebody going, “Emily, you're great, you know you are a great employee, and you're a great candidate, and you can do this.”

One of my goals was to improve my interviewing skills. Durning our job search strategy phase, I landed an interview at a company that I was excited about. Not getting the job was disappointing, but I had gotten through to the final round, which was a great learning experience, proving I could do it.

During the Passions and Interests session, Kori kept telling me,” I hear a lot of energy from you, Emily. I feel like this is something we need to explore,” because I would get passionate about talking about HDTV shows. So that helped, and I learned that if I'm excited to talk about something, that could be a future job for me. I even used it during my interview that I love watching HDTV shows! 

Emily’s Career Goals

Eight months later, the goals I had come in with on day one, we met every single one! 

I now have an updated resume which was a massive barrier for me because my resume was ten or more years old, and I just had no idea how to update it. As a result, I'm much more comfortable showing it to hiring managers and recruiters. 

I didn't have a good LinkedIn profile, and I have one now. I liked some of Kori's suggestions on crafting it, so it wasn't generic. Instead, it is optimized but a bit more creative, which I love because it catches recruiters' eyes! 

I have confidence in my interviewing skills because I have strong, impactful career success stories. But, again, part of my hurdle with resumes was that I didn’t know what to put down or shout out about myself in a resume or an Interview. But, by the time we got through the blueprint, I had many career success stories that I could use in interviews, and I now have them for the future. 

I learned negotiating skills. I had read up and researched salary ranges with Kori’s guidance. So when I went into the interview with the company's owner to negotiate a better salary, I negotiated over a 30% increase from my previous job, which was pretty exciting! 

All of those combined got me to apply, interview for jobs, and then accept a job!  

Emily’s Current Reality

I made the career change! I’m a Production Coordinator for a design and remodeling company, and Interior Design is one of the passions we defined in the program! 

Right now, I’m learning the job and continuing to grow. It's a brand new position and is a bit open-ended. Still, the expectation is that I find ways to make systems more efficient and take the initiative, and a few of my suggestions have been implemented! I love doing that kind of stuff. 

For those thinking about joining the program, it doesn't happen quickly. You can’t be in a situation that needs to happen within a month. You must be patient, trust the process and utilize Kori with any roadblocks. Use the resources available because that’s the whole point! 

Yes, it's a monetary and time commitment, but if you put in the time and effort, the hard work will pay off. Hopefully, you'll be lucky enough to meet 100% of your goals like I was, or maybe close. But it's something you're taking away that you can use for years.

Watch the Case Study Video with Emily and Kori Burkholder