With changes in technology and culture come shifts in career trends. Some of the jobs that exist today will be obsolete in a few decades, while many future jobs don’t exist yet. Entire industries die and new ones develop. This is all good news if you’ve identified a good career in an up-and-coming field. But what if your dream job is in a dying industry? Read on to learn how can you achieve career satisfaction even when your dream job is disappearing.
Make it a Hobby
Your passion doesn’t have to be your livelihood – and maybe it shouldn’t be. When you have to do something, it automatically becomes less appealing. Work will be stressful, no matter how interesting, and your passion may fade when it’s associated with the stress of a full-time job. Solution: find a job you like and save your passion for a hobby.
Embrace Technology
If you’ve always wanted to be a journalist, you can still be one, but you’ll need additional skills. Web development and programming abilities will improve your chances of landing a job. Technical skills combined with a traditional career can lead to greater job satisfaction and security. Look at job listings in your chosen field to find out what skills are in demand (I recommend the employment trends feature at SimplyHired.com).
Why Do You Really Like the Job?
Maybe your dream career has everything – it’s interesting, fits your personality, and aligns with your values. But it’s also possible that an underlying characteristic of the job appeals to you more than the job itself. Maybe it’s creativity expression, social interaction, or autonomy. Find out what you’re really looking for in a career and search for high-growth jobs that offer it.
Even if you choose a stable job, it’s likely you’ll change careers several times during your lifetime for various reasons. Rapidly changing technology and globalization require a more flexible, adaptive workforce. Don’t feel like you’re stuck in a job once you make a career choice or that you can’t break into a new field. Read the Top Ten Sites for Choosing a Career for great online career planning resources.