Making big changes to your career can be surprisingly tough when you’re already working. You would think that having a job would help, but it can just get in the way of your career advancement.
You get stuck in the same position and can’t find a way out, and many of the possible solutions require you to make a full-time commitment. But you don’t need to quit your job to start advancing your career.
You can do it while you’re working, even if you want to seek out a different career path. You can work on things both at work and in your spare time.
Take an Online Degree
Going back to school is a great way to advance your career, whether you want to improve your skills for your current career or start something new.
For many people, quitting your job or even working part-time just isn’t an option, especially with the expense of school. One option is to take an online degree, which you can complete in your own time.
Some degrees are designed to work for people working full-time. If you want to gain an online MSN degree, you can do it while you’re still working. Nurses can fit their studies around their work and choose a nurse practitioner track to gain specialist skills.
Start a Side Gig
If you’re thinking about growing your skills in a practical way, you can use your spare time to do so. Instead of just learning about things in theory, you can put your existing and new skills to work.
Start a side hustle that will allow you to work on building new skills and experience. It might be a way to help you get into employment in another field.
Or you could use your experience to eventually run a full-time business, once you’re ready to let go of the safety net of your full-time job.
Find a Mentor
You can also think about ways to advance internally at work. You might be thinking of going for a promotion in the future, but you’re not sure how to make yourself stand out. If you want to find some ways to start advancing at work, you could consider asking someone to be your mentor.
Approach someone in a senior position about giving you some pointers, keeping you in mind for some extra work, or perhaps letting you shadow them occasionally.
Read also: 4 Career Hacks to Take You to The Top
Discover Ways to Stretch Your Current Role
There are ways that you could do more in your current role to help you build your skills and expand your scope. Instead of sticking to your usual tasks, look for opportunities to try something different.
Make yourself the person who is willing to give anything a try to reshape your role. You might be able to help out with a new project that needs an extra pair of hands. Maybe you can swap tasks with a coworker so you can both try something new.
You don’t need to quit your job to advance your career. You can make some big changes while you continue to work.
