Poor-fitting careers can compromise our physical and emotional health. Career stress, dissatisfaction and work and life imbalance can be destructive forces. In a survey conducted by the career coaching organization Rockport Institute, 70 percent of Americans reported feeling neutral or dissatisfied with their current careers.

Choosing work that rewards us for being exactly ourselves is powerful. It can make all the difference between a life of struggle and dissatisfaction and one that is thriving, inspired and extraordinary. We must choose work that matters to us and offer the world something that counts.

Innate gifts, aptitudes and the story of one’s life provide enormous clues to finding work that fits perfectly. Each of us is a unique and specialized individual. We have a “right fit” place in the world, including the working world. We should reframe ourselves from the perspective of our natural strengths, not just learned skills and knowledge.

How to Choose a Career

Get clear on who you are; consider your nature and dynamics. Start seeing how you best relate in the working world. Decide on a set of key career components. Then choose a job or career that fits all of you. If you’re trying to sort it out but feel overwhelmed, consider hiring a coach.

Why Coaching?

Sometimes it’s difficult to sort through it all and put the puzzle back together into an actionable plan. Coaches can help you get “unstuck” and provide an objective outside perspective. They have expertise in gaining clarity and taking action. They can also be accountability partners.

How to Choose a Career Coach

Look for one that specializes in career coaching versus broader life coaching. Choose one who uses tools that actually test for aptitudes, talents, personality and temperament, not just interests. Find a coach that has personally experienced a career change. He or she knows what it feels like to be stuck in a career that doesn’t fit and the challenges and fears that come with making a major life transition. 

Kelly Lewis, of Kelly M. Lewis Coaching & Associates, in Edina, is a certified career coach specializing in career aptitude testing and career choice programs for mid-career changers and students making an original career choice. For more information, visit KellyMarieLewis.com.