How to Identify Your Ideal Career Fit

Explore top LinkedIn content from expert professionals.

  • View profile for Delia Garced

    Synchrony SVP | Marketing Executive, Board Advisor

    3,470 followers

    A recent conversation with a mentee trying to navigate the next steps in their career reminded me of an essential rule I always emphasize: You own your career, therefore you have to be in the driver's seat. They recently received some feedback from their manager that was confusing as it didn’t align with previous feedback. The conversation on next steps was very vague. Reality check: waiting for clear guidance or validation from others can leave you stuck in neutral. Instead, you must proactively manage your own career path. Here are a few things I suggested: 1. Do a Self-Assessment You need to understand your strengths, weaknesses, passions, and career aspirations. Identify what excites you and where you see yourself in the future. Remember they can all change due to new experiences and gaining new skillsets. 2. Seek Constructive Feedback While feedback from leadership is valuable, it’s important to triangulate. Reach out to mentors, peers, and others in your function that you admire for their insights. Feedback is just one piece of the puzzle. Use it as a tool for improvement, not as a definitive roadmap. You never know when you might run into an unconscious bias. 3. Continuous Learning and Development I’m ever curious and always looking for learning opportunities. Look for opportunities to learn from other functions. The business world is continusly changing, and staying on top of the game, requires investing time to learn. Stay informed about your current industry trends but also look for best practices in others. 4. Advocate for Yourself People can’t read your mind, so they don’t know what your career goals and aspirations are. Don’t be afraid to articulate them to your leadership. Express your interest in new projects, responsibilities, or roles that align with your goals. 5. Adaptability and Resilience Career paths are rarely linear. My own has been a lattice. Be adaptable. Embrace challenges and view setbacks as learning experiences. Being in the driver's seat of your career means taking an intentional role in your professional development. While others can give you guidance, the ultimate responsibility for your career lies with you. What else would you tell him?

  • View profile for Nina Yi-Ning Tseng

    Helping Asian immigrant women and leaders build a career & life they are proud of, even more so than their parents

    3,871 followers

    Hey there, it’s me, your coach Nina, how are you today? Are you feeling overwhelmed by the exciting but vast possibilities in your career? Society, your parents, friends, strangers on social media, and even your own expectations have all been suggesting paths you “should” take professionally. If you're intellectually curious and enjoy learning, you likely have a strong drive to grow already. You might already have some ideas about where you want to go and how to get there. However, with endless possibilities and only 24 hours in a day, it's important to have a focused and sustainable approach to your career development, one that prevents overwhelm and burnout. Here are some strategies to consider: 1️⃣ List out your career goals: What do you really want in your career? Is it money, title, creative freedom, influence, fame, or making an impact? In my early career I wanted to get promoted because the society says so, but after a few years I started to optimize for learning new experiences (hence jumping from corporate to startup to stand up a new team.) 2️⃣ Figure out your why: understand why you want to achieve something adds meaning and boosts motivation. Are you aiming for FIRE (financial independence to retire early), seeking respect as a manager, or craving intellectual exploration? 3️⃣ Define success: know your destination helps you figure out what resources or skills you need to get there. For instance, aspiring to be a people manager might require learning how to inspire others. 4️⃣ Identify the resources you need: Just like planning a trip, you need to know what to pack for your career journey. Determine the skills or knowledge necessary for your dream role. 5️⃣ Choose how to learn: Different people prefer different learning methods—reading, visual cues, podcasts, or hands-on experience. Find what works best for you and experiment if you're unsure. 6️⃣ Practice: Apply your new skills whenever possible. Shadow others, volunteer for projects, and actively develop the competencies you need. 7️⃣ Reflect regularly: Set a monthly reminder to assess your progress and adjust your strategies if needed. 8️⃣ Seek accountability: Remember the saying, "If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together." Find a mentor, friend, or a coach friend to support and hold you accountable. What strategies have you used or would you recommend to feel less overwhelmed and more empowered in your career growth? #careerdevelopment #professionaldevelopment #midcareer

  • View profile for Kara Ebel

    Salary Negotiation Coach | Helping people ask for more 💰 | xBig Law Technology M&A Attorney | Lawyer

    1,877 followers

    “I don’t want people to micro-manage me” Defining our next role is often about what we 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 want 🙅♀️. But how can we figure out what we actually DO want? My coaching clients have found this approach effective: 🔍 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭 Reflect on your most and least satisfying jobs. Focus on your personal experience, not what ‘should’ make a job satisfying. 📋 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮 Identify what specifically made those roles satisfying or not. Make a list. 🔎 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯 Compare your list with the 7 factors that research supports as leading to job satisfaction (see below). 💡 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱 “𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁” 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵. 📚 The 7 factors that tend to lead to higher job satisfaction: ✅ 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣-𝙅𝙤𝙗 𝙁𝙞𝙩: roles that match your strengths, values, and where you can be yourself. ✅ 𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙤𝙢𝙮: meaningful control over your work, like flexible scheduling or choice in projects. ✅ 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙜𝙪𝙚𝙨: a team that shares your values and goals. ✅ 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙊𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨: growth opportunities aligned with your interests. ✅ 𝙏𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙑𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮: What keeps you engaged? Identify the level of variety that suits you. ✅ 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨: both the physical workspace and the company's culture. Does it foster creativity, trust, etc.? ✅ 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙡𝙤𝙖𝙙: a balance – not overwhelming but enough to keep you engaged. 🤔 What qualities will you look out for in the next role? Reach out if you're looking for guidance on this path.

  • View profile for Jennifer Fink

    Helping Mid-Career Leaders clarify their ideal career move and make it | Want to discuss your career? Let's ☕️ chat!

    16,567 followers

    Here’s my best time saver if you’re wondering, “How do I learn more about career paths and see if they are the right fit?” When you initially identify a new path, you might think, “Ok, well I need to learn a lot about it and probably talk to a bunch of people in the job.” I think that’s a great idea, but it can be also be a time suck and produce overwhelm of reaching out to strangers and sounding like an idiot. Instead, I think one of the best ways to get up to speed quickly and determine whether it’s even worth putting in all that networking time is to join a free (or often paid) community of professionals in that job path and see what they are talking about. Here’s an example: I’ve been exploring my interest in interior design and learning about career options in this space. I started by reading some blogs, magazines, and following some IG accounts where I stumbled upon a career path called interior photographer, which sounded really interesting. I then found a very active community of interior photographers on Facebook, with a $5 monthly fee to join. Whenever I had free time or was trying to break a bad habit I replaced it with going to the group to read through some posts there for a max of 15-20mins. Then I tried to observe how I was feeling with some reflection questions: > What’s my energy level? > How engaged am I to keep reading? > What’s my confidence level? > How confident am I to do this job with the right knowledge and skills? > What’s my interest level in learning more? > Do I wish I had time to explore and do down rabbit holes on all the things people are thinking about? > How does this align with my strengths and values? > What am I learning that feels appealing versus unappealing? Within a few weeks of reading the posts, I realized that while I think the career path sounds cool. The level of lift to pursue this shift would be high. And more importantly, there are many technical aspects of the job that I’m pretty sure I’m not in to. Does that mean I should immediately shut it down? Maybe not. Maybe I could now (knowing a lot) come up with a variety of questions that I’d like answers to, and then reach out to this community to ask them. Or maybe, I’ve gathered enough data to cross this path off my list and consider another one. Within a few hours of time, I gathered hundreds of pieces of data directly from professionals speaking candidly about their field, work, days, struggles, wins, etc. From an efficiency perspective, that's hard to beat, friends. If you want to learn about some new career paths and you've been hem-hawing on the informational interviewing front, try this instead and let me know how it goes. #Careers #CareerClarity #CareerTransition #Jobsearch

  • View profile for Meg Applegate

    Resume Writer for Women | LinkedIn Writer ✨Career Branding for Women✨Content Specialist | Ghostwriter for Women Executives + Founders of Female-Forward Brands ✨Thought Leadership, Newsletters, Blogs

    33,615 followers

    6 ways to try on a new job 👉🏻 Without career commitment "OH NO," I shriek, as I look down from the seat of my office chair. A hole in my favorite black jeans (in a not-so-welcome place) has me all 😭 You know THE pair. The best slimming fit, looks good with everything and is the go-to for feeling your best. My fingers scramble to the keyboard to re-order. The brand no longer makes them. It's fine. I'm fine. Mustering my fragile ego, the research and the purchasing decision commence. 5-7 business days later - 🛎️! The arrival of THE jeans 2.0 land on my doorstep. The packaging is my paper trail up the stairs as I stand in front of my bedroom mirror where I stand, hands on hips, mystified. My well-researched purchase just isn’t fitting quite right. I thought it checked all the boxes on screen, but on my body, well…it’s a different story. The same can go for your career. It’s challenging to know if you're making the right choice when deciding on a new professional path. Skip occupational hazards, like you would a fashion faux pas, and try a role on for size without all-in career commitment. Consider: 1. Informational Interviews A day-in-the-life info gathering sesh to get in on what a role is really like. Don't just stop at one networking conversation. Examine many realities of the job to see if the gig matches up with your skills, giftings and values. 2. Job Shadow Experiential learning is not just for the college student. Consider becoming a shadow for the day in mid-career. It’s easier than ever with remote and hybrid work environments across industries. 3. Volunteerism Nonprofit organizations have similar needs to their corporate counterparts. Volunteer your skills and expertise to test out your new direction in real time. 4. Contract Work Take on project or contract-based work to test career fit in the market.  You'll get a real life feel if this role is all it is cracked up to be in terms of long-term career fulfillment. 5. Side Hustle All it takes is a Facebook page and a passion to start up a new career game on the side. Take a trial run on your skill set and the market to put your pivot to the test. 6. Returnship It's a paid internship for adults looking to re-enter the workforce. Programs vary in length and occupation, but you can expect to polish new skills, receive quality mentorship and even land long-term work. ❓What's your take?

  • View profile for Ashley Dennison

    I'll help you find a consultant you can trust.

    16,521 followers

    Figuring out your niche can be really tough. But it's really important - especially as a consultant - to specialize in something, and differentiate yourself from the pack. (Read "The Business of Expertise" by David C. Baker for much more valuable insight on how to do this and why). Here's something that helped me when I was first positioning my consulting business. I created a Venn diagram with three circles. * In one circle, I wrote down all my professional abilities and talents. Pretty much everything I'm good at. ESPECIALLY the stuff where I know I'm truly above average. * In the second circle, I wrote down everything I feel super passionate about, whether work related or not. For this list, think about activities or interests that get you fired up or make you lose track of time. * In the third circle, I wrote down opportunities I saw in the market - skills, characteristics and offerings that aren't already oversaturated. Think about your targets' unmet needs and biggest pain points. Then I looked at the overlap / synergies between the three groups. I thought about how things could be combined and enhanced to make them the best of all three worlds. For example, I'm a particularly talented writer (first circle), who feels extremely passionate about improving the employee experience for hard-working folks (second circle), and I see a need in the market for on-call, hands-on, as-needed support (third circle). When you put all that together, you have a potential consulting business concept / niche centered around creating compelling content to reach and engage frontline employees, provided on-call to support busy internal comms and employee experience teams. Maybe this is incredibly obvious, but it really helped me to narrow down what I could do, what I wanted to do, and how I could best position it. #consulting #communications #engagement #justathought

  • View profile for Daniel Wolken

    Land your dream remote job - DailyRemote.com  | Remote Work Expert | Connecting professionals to thousands of remote jobs worldwide  | Sharing fresh remote opportunities & career advice every day

    44,850 followers

    Thinking about a career change? Here’s how to actually make it happen, step by step. I’ve spoken with hundreds of people stuck between “I don’t want to do this anymore” and “But where do I even start?” Here’s the truth: Changing careers isn’t about starting over. It’s about repackaging what you already know, and proving you can solve a new set of problems. Here’s how to do it (with examples): 1. Start with your story. What’s pulling you away from your current path—and what’s pulling you forward? ✅ Example: “I’ve spent 6 years in education, but what I really loved was designing systems and learning tools. I’m now pivoting into UX design for edtech.” Make the shift clear and intentional. 2. Identify your transferable skills. You’ve built real value, name it. ✅ Example: Sales → Relationship-building, persuasion, handling objections Ops → Process design, cross-functional collaboration, execution List your strongest 4–6 skills and align them with your new target role. 3. Learn the language of the new industry. Every field has its own lingo. Start speaking it. ✅ Tip: Search 10 job listings in your target role. Write down the top 5 repeated words/phrases. Mirror those in your LinkedIn, resume, and pitch. 4. Rewrite your resume to match the direction, not the past. Lead with relevance, not chronology. ✅ Example: Add a “Career Summary” section: “Operations leader transitioning into product management, with 7+ years leading cross-functional teams, driving process improvements, and delivering results.” 5. Build proof fast. Don’t wait to get hired to show your skills. ✅ Options: Freelance Volunteer Build your own project Take a short course and create a case study Demonstrate that you’re not just interested, but also taking action. 6. Apply smart, not just often. Instead of applying everywhere, focus on quality roles in flexible environments. ✅ Pro tip: Use DailyRemote to find legit, remote-friendly roles across industries. It’s especially helpful for career changers who want fresh opportunities and a bit more breathing room. 7. Network with purpose. Start with conversations, not asks. ✅ DM example: “Hi Alex, I saw your post about transitioning into UX. I’m making a similar shift from content strategy. Would love to hear about your journey, no pressure at all.” Career changes take courage. But they’re absolutely possible. You’re not starting from scratch. You’re starting from experience. Now package it with purpose, and go get what’s next.

  • View profile for Gabrielle Filip-Crawford, PhD

    Program Evaluator | Data Strategist | Empowering Teams with Data Analysis & Literacy

    9,577 followers

    When I build a college course or a workshop, I start from the end-goal – the key learning objectives – then I work backwards to figure out the best ways to convey the necessary information and evaluate learning. Searching for a job, especially when you’re pivoting out of academia, can be approached in the same way. The thing is, the end-goal isn’t the target job itself, the end-goal should be what you want your life to look like. Start by asking yourself some very concrete questions: 1.    Where do you want to live? Do you want to be near family? In a city? In a rural area? 2.    How do you spend your downtime, and what do you need access to in order to pursue those activities? 3.    What kind of support systems (healthcare, education, identity-based communities/affinity groups, friends, family, etc.) do you need? 4.     How much money do you need to make to live in your chosen area and engage in your chosen activities? 5.    Which kinds of people, things, and activities make you happy? Which kinds drain your energy? Craft questions that work for you, then work backwards from those answers to figure out the best ways to get there, including the best career paths for you.   Don’t forget to build in evaluation of your progress! How often will you check in with yourself on your progress? How will you know you’re moving in the right direction?   Job searching is easier when you have a clear direction and a clear reason for heading that way. #RecoveringAcademics #LeavingAcademia

  • View profile for Chris Mannion

    I design and run Headcount S&OP so leaders stop firefighting and hit plan without layoffs.

    6,490 followers

    I’m thrilled to see so many green circles disappear as exceptional recruiting talent is snapped up. But many people are still looking for their next opportunity. Here are my favorite free resources in an 8 steps process 👇 Step 1. Understand your own strengths and the environment in which you’ll thrive. Managing Oneself by Peter Drucker: https://buff.ly/3V71Ejo. Step 2. Look for common requirements and responsibilities for different roles at different seniority levels in your chosen field to narrow down your ‘job title’ options. The new Google for Jobs platform aggregates all the major job boards and makes it easy to filter: https://buff.ly/451lRfZ. Step 3. Highlight multiple examples from your previous roles for each responsibility identified in Step 2 using the STAR Method: https://buff.ly/2B4ehW9. Step 4. Rebrand your LinkedIn profile to highlight these experiences. Recruiters actively search for candidates daily but will only glance over your profile to see if you have the right skills. Improve your chance of being found by learning how recruiters source in this great deep dive with Glen Cathay: https://buff.ly/3tPYpRO Step 5. Build a target company list based on who is actively hiring in your space (ideally, 1+ role open for one of your chosen job titles in Step 2). Google for jobs is probably the best general source, again, but there are a ton of curated niche job boards (I add the latest postings from a shortlist of startups to our weekly tracker here: https://buff.ly/3GAzoRZ) Step 6: Look for first- or second-degree connections at your target companies and contact them for informational interviews to better understand the company culture. LinkedIn is the best professional social network for this stage. Step 7: Become familiar with common interview questions and good ways to respond. Bain has some of the best general interview prep material available: https://buff.ly/3V71EzU. Step 8: Don’t forget to thank your recruiters and interviewers, even if you don’t get the job you want. There’s always another role, and you want to be top of mind when the next position is posted! I’m not a career expert, but I learned a ton moving from the kitchen of a fast food restaurant to an executive role at a Fortune 250 company over 20 years. I’d be happy to share my experience if helpful? Please drop any questions in the comments below if someone else has the same question! #layoffs #hiring #planning

  • View profile for Josh Wymore, Ph.D., PCC

    Executive Coach | TEDx Speaker | Author of Humbler Leadership | Empowering Leaders to Become More

    7,850 followers

    Figuring out your #career is a lot like those scatter plots you did in your high school math class. Your life experience creates so many data points for you: that photography class you loved, a controlling boss you couldn’t stand, that volunteer tutoring opportunity you really enjoyed. Each of these experiences tells us something about our #gifts and #passions. When we pause and figure out where these data points are leading us, we can often see a pattern emerging amidst those points. That’s your Career Path of Best Fit. I say best fit because it's not always a perfect fit or predictable fit or even socially acceptable fit. It’s often a lot less clean and linear than we would like it to be. But even still, there is a path, and that path can inform our next career steps. Don’t assume that your scatter plot will be linear or even increasing exponentially. Instead, periodically step back and assess the data. Where are your growing strengths and evolving passions leading you? In light of that, what's the next best step? #careercoaching #purpose #selfleadership #selfawareness #humbleleadership #humility