Feeling Like a Career Change at 40? Read this First

If you’re a in your 40s, you could be in a wide variety of places in your career. Generally, you’ve got a lot of experience behind you, but there’s still a long way to go before you can get that condo in Florida and spend the rest of your days in the sun. Now is the perfect time to figure out your next career goals, including considering making a career change at 40.

How to Choose the Best Career Change at 40

It may be easier to assume that it’s too late to make a career change at 40, but the truth is that there are some amazing opportunities out there just waiting for you to take the plunge. Only you know what the best path for you is, but we’ve compiled some tips to help you figure out what that is:

Figure Out Where You Want to Go

Take stock of where you are in your career and where you want to get to, for example by the end of next year or over the next 10 years. If you’re feeling stagnant in your current career, ask yourself some evaluation questions, such as:

• Am I where you want to be?
• Is the work I’m doing energizing or demotivating?
• Am I beginning to feel like it’s time for a drastic change or a more subtle one?

Try Something New

Seeking a new direction in your 40s or even your 50s can help your career stay fresh. Make a commitment to invest your time and energy wisely on what nourishes you most at work. For example, you could volunteer for or propose a new project at your current company to keep your work interesting and challenging. Taking this initiative can also be helpful to showcase your continued value.

If you feel like you want a bigger change, you could try out new opportunities by volunteering, taking a course, or reaching out to your network for information about possibilities for a career change at 40. Taking small steps at first can help you make more long-term decisions about where you want to end up.

Get a Mentor

It’s not too late to get a mentor in your 40s. At your age, a mentor can help you take that next leap toward achieving career goals such as moving into a leadership position or making a career change at 40. Find someone who is a step or two ahead of you within your company’s hierarchy and invite them for lunch or coffee to learn more about their career path. Take their advice and focus mainly on forging a relationship - it’s also never too late to network.

Tips for a Successful Midlife Career Change

Once you’re clear on what you want, take note of these general tips for making your midlife career change as successful as possible:

Become a Mentor

At this point in your career, you’re in a unique position to become a mentor yourself. You’ve accumulated a lot of knowledge during, and you now have an opportunity to give some of that insight back to your less-experienced co-workers. Sharing your experiences and advice to help others achieve their goals can add a new layer of fulfilment to your work. You could even pursue becoming a career coach full time.;

Keep Up with Technology

Now, more than ever, it’s important to make a sustained effort to stay on top of new technology. It’s likely that things have moved on quite a bit since you started in your field and it could be time for a refresh.;

Start by checking out online classes to advance your career. Whether it’s becoming fluent in social media or learning about software developments in your industry, building your tech skills will help keep your other skills relevant as your career progresses. You don’t want to be that one person in a room full of 23-year-olds who doesn’t know what TikTok is.

Strengthen Your Brand

Building your network and online presence is a good way to start learning how to build a personal brand, which can be key in helping you pursue new opportunities. Join online industry groups to increase your network and follow trends, and share insightful articles on social media.

Even if it feels like strange and unfamiliar territory in terms of career goals, remember that it’s called social networking for a reason, and putting yourself out there online can be just as fruitful as hitting the next industry event. Just make sure your profile pages are suitable to be seen among your professional colleagues.

Focus On Your Own Fulfillment

You’re likely much busier now than you were in your 30s, so work on your focusing skills. You may be realizing that being always on and hyper-connected isn’t the silver bullet you once thought it was. Your motivation for a career change at 40 may be the benefits of presence, downtime, and mindfulness. So, think about your career values and if they are upheld in your current position, or which companies would better support them.

Stay Prepared for New Opportunities

You never know when you might find yourself looking for a new job, whether proactively or reactively. You may think you're too important to lay off, but sadly no one is immune, and having to start over in your 40s can have its own pressures. Be ready for anything and identify other employers that could benefit from your skills in the event of a surprise layoff.

Update Your Resume

When was the last time you updated your resume? We bet you’ve achieved a few career bullet points in by now. Even if you’re looking for a move into a senior leadership position rather than a dramatic change, take the time to add new accomplishments, goals reached, awards, and highlights. ;

If you’re looking for a career change at 40, it's much easier to have all of this information ready to go when you need it as opposed to having to create a resume from scratch and remember what you have accomplished for the past 10 years, so start now. When it comes to applying for new jobs, make sure you also create tailored cover letters specific to each opportunity. Focus on your transferable skills and showcase what you’ve learnt so far in your career.

Finish Your Career in a Job You Love

Embark on a career change at 40 with help from Monster. We help you showcase your years of experience to potential new employers. Upload your resume to our expert writing services and we’ll help you stand out from the crowd. You'll get detailed feedback, including a review of your resume's appearance and content, and a prediction of a recruiter's first impression. It's a quick and easy way you can position yourself for greatness.