It’s natural to have problems with your career as your goals and motivations change. While it’s hard to report exactly how many people change careers during their lifetime, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has found that those born in the years 1957 to 1964 held an average of 12.4 jobs from ages 18 to 54.

Most recently, the pandemic has caused 20% of Americans to change their career, as found in a study published by Purdue. If you’re looking to change jobs or are having issues with your current career, a psychologist can help you identify specific issues and how to resolve them.

Here are some ways a psychologist can help you identify career issues:

1. Gain a Clearer Sense of Your Goals
2. Navigate Communication Barriers
3. Assess Your Mental Health
4. Lessen Self-Comparison
5. Locate Resources & Plan Next Steps

Gain a Clearer Sense of Your Goals

Whether you’re just starting your career or figuring out where to go next, a psychologist can help you gain a clearer sense of your goals. As you start to figure out what you’d like to change about your current situation you can create short and long term goals to work towards. Some goals you can set include learning a new skill, making connections with more people in your field, or reaching a leadership position.

Navigate Communication Barriers

In the workplace, there are a variety of communication problems that can occur and create difficulty if they’re not addressed. This includes things like assumptions and misinterpretations, lack of transparency, and unclear communication. These issues can cause problems between you and your coworkers as it lessens the level of trust and reliance on others. Your psychologist can help you create a plan to ask for the help you need as well as strategies to communicate more effectively.

Lessen Self-Comparison

It’s easy to compare yourself to others who may have advanced in their career more quickly than you, whether that be at your job or posts you may see on social media. That constant self-comparison can negatively impact how you view yourself along with breeding envy, lowering your mental health. Working with a psychologist can help you reframe your mindset and have a more positive outlook.

Assess Your Mental Health

Problems at work can negatively impact your mental health and lead to or worsen problems like anxiety and depression. A psychologist will be able to assess your mental health, provide a diagnosis, and offer the proper treatment plan. You’ll also learn a variety of strategies that can help you navigate day to day life such as breathing strategies, changing your self-talk, and identifying your triggers.

Locate Resources & Plan Next Steps

If you’re having problems with your career, it can be difficult to figure out how to make the next step. By working with a psychologist, they can help you locate resources that will help you with this process. This includes things like networking events, finding a mentor, and job recruiters in your area. Once you’ve identified your career issues, you’ll be able to plan out the next steps with help from your psychologist. They’ll be able to help you with any roadblocks through the process and hold you accountable so that you stay on track.

Need help identifying your career issues? Contact Dr. Phil Chanin, Licensed Clinical Psychologist in Nashville to learn more about our services.