This week we are starting a new book for Book Review Tuesdays, career expert Alexandra Levit’s latest “New Job, New You.”
Not only do I admire Alexandra Levit’s own career path- once a corporate diva, now a Mom, a self-employed best selling author of 5 books, coveted speaker and weekly Wall Street Journal columnist- but I felt this book was very timely for many our readers. ”New Job, New You” gives another perspective on answering the same 3 questions I always try to help you answer here: who are you, what do you want, and how do you get it?
Many young professionals suffer from the same plague
- We are allergic to working for someone else.
- We want to advance quickly.
- We want to maintain our balanced lifestyle no matter what it takes.
- We don’t necessarily want to pursue a life-long career in the field we majored in during college.
- We want to work for ourselves but we aren’t sure exactly what to do or how to get there.
This “plague” matches up with a recent career builder survey mentioned in “New Job New You.” A survey of more than 5,700 young workers showed that 35% of these workers said they were interested in making a career change. Ms. Levit says that career change is one of the most frequently requested speaking topics on college campuses and at association conferences. Pretty interesting that young people are already seeking change before even becoming immersed in chapter 1 of their career.
In his foreward to “New Job, New You,” best selling author (and personal favorite!) Stephen Covey said it perfectly, “We are not victims of circumstance. We are the creative force of our own lives.” I interpret this as, “stop bitching about the recession, don’t bother waiting for Corporate America to save you, start getting creative, and be thankful that you live in the technology age.”
Easier said than done, right?
If finding a new job or making a total career transition was on your list of New Years Resolutions this year, let’s put some of your ideas into action. “New Job, New You” is split up into 7 sections which represent…
7 common career change motivators
- Family
- Independence
- Learning
- Money
- Passion
- Setback
- Talent
Each of these sections include a resource toolkit, book suggestions, practical ideas about how to put your ideas to work, and most importantly 5 real! stories about people who made a career change based on that motivator.
I hope you that will enjoy this book review series and find it to be pivotal in your life. I am SO excited to continue reading this amazing book, and to get into some great career discussions with you.
What do you think?
Of the 7 motivators of pursuing a career change, which one is most relevant (or might be most relevant in the future) to you?
Do you feel that a career change would significantly improve your life?
Do you feel you have the “young professional plague”?
Why do you think young professionals seek career change more than generations past?
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Nicole,
This is a great post and should make for a nice transition to our conversation tonite. For me, learning and passion have driven my entrepreneurial pursuits. The opportunity to have a vision and to wake up excited to carry that vision through to the end has gotten me up at 6:30am even when I work from home. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also the best time to go surfing
Great post! Interested in reading this book for sure!
Hi Nicole, thanks so much for the wonderful and comprehensive review. It means a lot to me, and I hope your readers find the book useful!
Hey Alexandra,
Your book is a perfect fit for the series. If I were to survey all the readers here and many of my twentysomething-aged peers, I’d bet big money that their biggest struggle is job satisfaction/career unhappiness. This book gives people a way to start actively pursuing change that works for them.
Would love to meet up for lunch or coffee soon! Let’s put something on the calendar.
Nicole
I’m going to have to find this book! I’d definitely say passion, independence and money are my motivators for a career change. I think young people today are not satisfied with the status quo. they expect more for themselves, and they have the ambition to go get it.
I agree. A huge stereotype of Gen Y is that we were always told that we could “do anything” as children. Older generations harp on us for this. I think it’s fantabulous and people are successfully executing that idea every day. Get it girl!
Nicole