Are you satisfied where you are in your career right now?  Or, do you think back to the jobs you turned down, or the paths you should have taken?

Now, this is not to say that looking at your career (and your life) and deciding what needs to be improved is easy.  But staying stuck is harder. How can it not be when doing the same thing over and over again may be making you unhappy, and starting fresh can bring you joy and excitement?

Maybe your career choice was your best choice at the time that you made it.  Maybe you made a bad choice (it happens to all of us!) but either way there is still time to choose something different if you want to.  It really does not matter how old you are, what gender you are, where you live, your education, how much money you do have (or do not have), or how big your family is. Nothing can get in the way of a person who is willing to try.

So how do you make peace with where you are today so you can create a new future?  Follow the steps below: 

1. Get To Know Yourself Better

The more you know yourself, the better you will be able to decide what is best for you.  It is easy to make decisions when you know what's right for you versus trying to make decisions based on what others think you should do.  You will be swayed less by choices that do not work for you, and will lean more towards choices that do work for you, if you know what your values and goals are first.

2. Forgive Others

Your family, friends, colleagues, bosses, etc. meant well in their advice to you.  Their intentions may have been influenced by what they wanted, but trust that they meant no harm. They really do want the best for you.  When you forgive others, the blame disappears, and you get your life back.  You free yourself up to take responsibility for your own choices, and for what your future will look like.

3. Forgive Yourself

Why do you believe you have to be perfect all the time? Why can't you make mistakes and learn from them? You are human and humans have flaws. (Your life would be boring without them.) Why not forgive yourself for doing the best you could do at the time and then promise you will do better?  People get second chances everyday. So can you.

4. Trust Your Instinct

You know which career is right for you. You have always known. Back when you made your first choices, fear may have kept you from taking the path you really wanted to take.  Now, it may be bills that are keeping you stuck. Trust your instinct (the little voice inside that tells you your true purpose in life), and you will get meaning in your life.  You will realize that you cannot wait another moment. What you will uncover is your gift to the world, one we are all waiting for you to give.

5. Recognize That It Is Not Too Late

There will always be a reason to not push ahead and try something new. But the alternative is not having a life you love. Every day, people your age or older leave jobs that are not right for them. My mom, who is 56, has just gone back to school, and many people older than her are also doing so. If you tell yourself that it is too late, then it will be. Wouldn't you prefer to tell yourself something different?

6. Get A Plan

Decide that it is important to live a life without regrets. Then set goals to support your next career move. Goals help you focus your efforts and motivate you to move forward. You can get always get a job, but you will not find a job you love until you know where you are going first.

7. Take A Chance

It all comes down to "will you do it or will you not?" Life grants big rewards, but only to those who put in the work. You really can do whatever you want, but you will have to step out of your comfort zone and out of your own way.  Take the chance. Why not? If you really hate your new life, you can always go back to your old ways.

So what do you say? You only have one life to live so it might as well be a life you love!

Deborah Brown is a noted Career and Mentor Coach who helps entrepreneurs, executives and pofessionals move into careers they love, excel at the ones they have, start their own businesses, and find time for themselves. She also hosts "Life After The Layoff" telephone coaching groups that helps laid off executives use the power of a group to find their next jobs quickly. To learn more visit: www.surpassyourdreams.com,
send an e-mail to info@surpassyourdreams.com
or call (516) 432-2440.