Approach a Potential Career Change As If You Were Developing a New Product.

Feeling unhappy and unfulfilled at work is one thing, but knowing what to do instead is another. By now, most people probably understand that there is no such thing as a “dream job,” but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the only other option is to stick with a job you hate. The hardest thing (well, one of the hardest) is figuring out what a career change might look like.

One way to do this, according to Ingrid Goldbloom Bloch, founder of Mosaic Careers, is to approach a potential career change as if you were developing a new product. Here’s what you need to know about this strategy.

Think like a product designer

In a series of webinars for the Harvard Extension School , Bloch discussed why design thinking can be useful in reimagining careers. If you haven’t come across the term before, ” design thinking ” can refer to the process used to create a new product to meet a specific consumer need, or more broadly to an approach to problem solving that focuses on solutions . to the problem, not to the problem itself.

How to Apply Design Thinking When Planning a Career Change

According to Bloch, here’s how you can use the four stages of design thinking to help you navigate a potential career change:

1. Empathize : Take an honest look at your goals, the challenges that scare you the most, and any upcoming major milestones that may require some kind of career change. Question your negative thoughts and the assumptions behind them.
2. Define : Figure out what career problem you want to solve and whether it is truly something within your control and feasible at this point in your life. Be as specific as possible, rather than viewing your problem as “dissatisfaction” or “not following your heart.” Identify something actionable by defining the problem in terms of what you can do to solve it.
3. Get creative: Brainstorm creatively by allowing yourself to use your imagination. Then give your ideas some thought, without immediately rejecting those that may seem more far-fetched. Ask others for their ideas.
4. Prototype and testing . Mistakes and failures are part of the process, so when they happen, consider them a learning experience, learn from them what you learned, and move on to the next idea, knowing that it means you are right. track. Also, instead of trying to find one general solution to your problem, break it down into smaller, more actionable goals.

If you’re interested in learning more, a recording of one of Bloch’s webinars is available on YouTube .