Are You in the Right Career? How to Choose the Best Job for You?

If you're considering a career change, chances are, you've been debating this issue privately for some time.First, you need to determine if you're in the wrong field or just the wrong environment. If you picked the wrong [job], make sure you take the time to figure out why it is the wrong one. What is making you unhappy? Make sure you find what you are looking for before moving on to the next job.

2. Figure out what you want — and don't want.

People end up on the wrong career path for many reasons. They may choose a job to please a friend or family member, to achieve a certain status or salary, or simply because it seemed like a good idea at the time. We are taught that if we are good at something, we should do it as a career. The problem is, we're often good at several things, and we're passionate about several things. It's where those two meet that we should look. It's best to be specific about your end goals when deciding on a new career direction. You can discover those goals by asking yourself the following questions:

• What do you enjoy doing?
• What skills do you use when doing the things you enjoy?
• What means a lot to you?
• What are you good at?
• What do others admire about you and why?
• What things do you do that you're better at than others?

Once you've answered these questions, it will be easier to determine where you want to be and what you need to do to get there, Sunley said.

3. Assess your background and personality.

When you know what you want out of your career, evaluate your qualifications for jobs in that field. Two of the most important factors in choosing your ideal path are your background (education, previous experience, practical skills) and your personality (character traits, interests, values). Both should be taken into consideration but depending on your desired career, your personality may be more important than your résumé.

Holding a degree in your chosen field can certainly help, but not having one won't necessarily bar you from getting a job. A person with the right aptitudes and a willingness to learn can be a good fit for a position, even if you don't have formal education in that field. Ideally, your career should be a place where your personality and background intersect.

4. Ask for advice, but don't always take it.

Everyone has advice, has seen it all and always knows what to do when it comes to careers — or so they think. Regardless of whether your friends and family offer you great advice, you don't always have to follow their well-intentioned recommendations.

It is noted that outside advice can be very helpful, but only if you take control and ask specific questions that will assist in your self-discovery and career research.  

Suggestions can always be welcomed as a courtesy, but it is unlikely for friends and family to know all the dimensions of the person who is making a career choice. Most people don't even realize their own total person until [they are] assessed to reveal the information about their style, aptitude and values. Family and friends can be far more important in helping one get a job after the appropriate career path has been determined."

5. Be open to all possibilities.

No matter the stage of your life or career, the most important thing to remember when choosing a job is to keep your options open, career experts say. If you're just entering the job market, take the time to explore your interests and learn about different career paths."Trust your own instincts, and refrain from being swayed by naysayers," said Joellyn Wittenstein Schwerdlin, owner of The Career Success Coach. "Know that trial and error in choosing a career path is part of the process."

The same can be said for individuals making a career change; it's never too late to achieve your professional goals, Kang said. Even if you've been on the wrong path, you can still switch to a job that you may not have considered but that will make you far happier than the one you have now.