Are you in a career transition? I’m sure you cannot wait until you have securely landed, created a new career. The transition period tests anyone’s fortitude and focus.

According to Helen Rose Ebaugh, five factors influence the journey of career transition (1988). Ebaugh experienced substantial career transition herself, moving from a traditional nun to becoming scholar, professor and published author. Her book The Process of Career Exit is a highly regarded examination of social roles and reflection on identity after moving out of a job and career.

Here are the five factors that shape a career transition:

Magnitude of transition. Some job changes are bigger than others. Lindsay Lohan moved from being a top-earning Hollywood star to becoming a convict sentenced to 90 days followed by a rehab treatment. I hope the magnitude of your transition is not quite as spectacular! Large magnitude transitions can take longer to complete, and can be more painful to the psyche.

Visibility of the transition. Your transition may be quite public, with many people aware of the new phase in your life. When a transition is highly visible, most of us are highly conscious about how we will act, perhaps less likely to take risks. When a transition is less visible, the career-changer is less likely to think, “What will my friends think of this?” A person with less judgmental pressure feels greater freedom to take risks.  A career change is enhanced when someone is willing to take exploratory actions.  When we don’t think someone else is watching, most of us are willing to try something new.  Career change requires trying new behaviors! On the other hand, a person who feels she is in a fishbowl may choose to do only things that will get her approval. Take the risks the send you to your victory.

Role identification. “I’m an engineer looking for a new career.”  Some of us identify closely with our career roles.  Engineers, sales professionals, teachers, nurses, all of these careers and more often have unique expectations about the way to act, work, and see the world.  Anyone who has worked at a job for a while comes to see that job as our life role.  It is hard to drop roles! In seeking a career transition, it is helpful to make this mental change comfortably.  See yourself as a person skilled in engineering, open to other patterns of work! Practice mental flexibility.

Nostalgia and sentimentality. Goodbye to the good old times.  “We had five great years there, didn’t we?” If you are in a career transition, sentimental feelings can hold you back. Offer a toast to what has gone before, and move on. Shed the emotional attachment like the party clothes you wore on the weekend. Look forward to creating something new, perhaps something remarkable.

Coping resources. Do you have a supportive family, a career advisor, and a large network of professionals who will take your phone call? Your transition can be shortened if you have coping resources.  Learn to use the resources at your disposal.  I talked to one career changer this week who told me that she found her ideal job through her network, “The company only interviewed two people, and hired me.  I owe it all to my friend.” Lesson: if you want to reduce your transition period, put your resources to work for you!

Transitions are difficult periods for many career changers.  One’s sense of identity is often connected with a career path, and life decisions often follow perceptions of one’s self. Understand what factors may govern the length and quality of one’s transition, in order to smoothly adapt to the next phase of your career.

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