How to Switch Jobs Smoothly

Are you trying to get into a new career? If so, you may be worried about switching from the one you currently have. It is incredibly hard to let go of a career you are familiar with because it acts as a bit of a security blanket for you. In most cases though, a career change can lead to a better and brighter future. I decided to finally devote myself to working online three years ago, and now I make five times the money I made in my old job – literally. You could have similar results if you went through a smooth career transition. Here are some tips to help you get into a new job with ease.

Get an Education

If your new career is something that you are not familiar with, you need to make sure you have an education to work in the new field. If you want to work in software engineering, you will need to go to college to learn how to become a software engineer. If you want to be a chef, you will need to go to a culinary arts school to learn how to cook. You may not need an extensive education, but you need to make sure you have whatever it will take to get you into your next job.

Look before You Leave

A lot of people make the mistake of leaving a job before they have actually secured a new one. My father did this once, and then he ended up unemployed for a few months because he couldn't find work. If you are going to try to find another job, start looking while you still have work to fall back on. Then you can give your new and old employers a two week notice of your transition if you happen to get hired somewhere else. If you don't, you can at least have a career to work through until you can find a source of income.

Leave on Good Terms

Don't use your job transition to tell your old boss to screw off. You may need to use him or her as a reference in the future. Rather than leaving on bad terms, you need to try to maintain a good relationship with the person. He or she may offer you more money to work where you are right now. In that case, you can determine if the transition is truly going to be worth it in the end. Sometimes the threat of leaving is all you need to light a fire under someone's ass and get a raise you've been looking for.

Put Money Aside

You may not get paid from your new job for the first few weeks you are there, so you will need to make sure you have some source of money in the meantime. Try to pay your bills early or have a savings account that you can pull from until your paycheck starts to come up. A family member of mine recently changed jobs, and it took him two months to go through training. He was only working part time during the training weeks, so he didn't make nearly the money he needed to make to cover his bills. Luckily, he and his wife were three months ahead on their bills. They were able to last because of that. You need to make sure you have a similar safety net so you can do the same.

Switching jobs doesn't have to be a difficult process. You should be able to do so without a lot of drama on either end. If you follow the tips above, you could be happily secured in your new job in no time.