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Do you really need a career change?

Nov 27, 2022

Career change often sounds simple but is a complex process.

There are several steps to this process, with many tasks to complete and actions to take.

And then there is a need for introspection.

Do you really need a career change?

Or is there something else that you actually need?

Don’t you wish there was a secret formula to tell you whether you should stay or go?

In my experience talking to Physicians, I feel like a good number of them have a hard time pointing to exactly why they are looking for a change.

Many are overwhelmed due to extraneous reasons, and it is not yet clear if this transition is originating from their well-thought-out exit strategy or not, whether it is due to some internal motivation or due to some other factors.

I personally take the idea of someone leaving clinical medicine very seriously…

There is a need to keep Physicians in the workforce, you make a bit more in clinical medicine, and it is difficult to return to it if your career change doesn’t go as planned, and this may result in further professional dissatisfaction and frustration. These are just some of the reasons to make sure your decision is well-informed and your transition strategy is effective.

What to do when all you know is that something needs to change, but you can’t really pinpoint it. For example, people would say that I don’t even hate clinical medicine, my job is not bad, my salary is good, benefits are great, and I even get a pension, but something in me wants something more or something different.

This, for me, is a sign that this individual needs to do some homework.

Others would say that they dread going to work or that they are unhappy with the lack of autonomy. Some think burnout means they should change the direction of their career trajectory.

I recommend a simple exercise for people who want to assess their decision to change their path.

Take a pen and paper and write down all the reasons that you can think of.

Now pick 3 or 4 major reasons and evaluate them against these questions.

Why is this a problem
Are there things that can be done to make it better?
Can you separate facts of the situation from thoughts, feelings, and emotions?
How will things be different in your new position, so you do not have the same problem?

You can try this career change self-reflection and see what valuable insights you come up with.

I wish you all the best in your journey.

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Sudha Bakhshi

For me, Jawaria has been a game changer in seeking non-clinical employment. I’ve been working with her for a period of time that was divided into a number of phases.

This first part was to undergo an inventory of professional traits to better understand my strengths and weaknesses. In general I am skeptical of organizational personality assessments and feel that they tend to overgeneralize and group people based on superficial assumptions. However, I decided to commit to this approach in order to obtain a more objective view of how my interactions may result in certain perceptions in a work environment. This helped me to focus on my motivations and how I wanted to approach this stage of my career.

In the second phase, Jawaria helped me to create a coherent narrative that was reflected in a revision of my resume. She was very supportive as I overcame my hesitation to assert myself in more contemporary formats, such as LinkedIn. I felt that the conversations that we had were essential to feeling more confident as I moved forward to identifying positions that were of interest, researching the employers and writing customized cover letters to accentuate skill sets.

The third phase navigated the strange and often confusing experience of the interview process. Jawaria helped me to just accept the black box that is HR for many corporations and to then move forward to interviews with medical directors and company executives. She was present after every interview, to challenge and also to validate my perceptions of what transpired.

I have many supportive friends in medicine and other professions that offered insight and encouragement in my job hunt. But I feel that the investment in the professional coaching Jawaria offered was essential to creating the mindset necessary to approach and feel comfortable competing in the current non-clinical environment.

In the end, yes, I was able to get an offer for a job that I feel will be very interesting and challenging. And I am very grateful for Jawaria’s assistance in helping me in this process. She was very willing to share her own experiences as a physician and this was enormously meaningful.

There is a saying: “When the student is ready, the teacher will come”. This definitely applied to me and I felt that what she said resonated, even from our first conversation. As physicians, we invest into our profession, but there is something to be said for investing in ourselves as well. I would encourage my fellow doctors to consider how important professional mentorship can be and how often it can feel inaccessible. But if you are ready, then Jawaria can be the catalyst to empower physicians to feel energized about their career choices.