The Career Coward’s Guide to Changing Careers, the second book in the revolutionary Career Cowards series, helps adult job seekers tackle this intimidating job search situation. In her friendly and comforting style, career coach Katy Piotrowski walks career changers through all the basic steps of transitioning from their current career to the new one that they will love.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Be ready to work!
Really enjoyed the author’s enthusiasm and insight. She knows her stuff! Activities are very helpful. Worth the money! Highly recommended.
1 Star A Book I would NOT recommend to a Career Changer
I recently bought this book, “Career Coward’s Guide to Changing Careers” (CCGCC), along with “What Color is Your Parachute” and “Do What You Are.” The latter two were quite helpful; unfortunately, CCGCC was not. (And I have read numerous career-related books in the past several years.) I will discuss CCGCC and then the other two books.
I guess the title of CCGCC should have warned me, as books such as “The Idiot’s Guide to [Whatever]” and “[Whatever] for Dummies” were never my cup of tea. I tried, however, several times, to give CCGCC a chance, to see if maybe there was something worthwhile in this book to merit suffering through to the end. There was not. Some of the problems: (1) the author’s juvenile, cheerleaderish attitude–I really couldn’t stand it, page after page (her writing style seems geared more towards teenage girls than adult career changers); (2) her giddy overuse of exclamation points (if the writing is effective, exclamation points aren’t necessary–this seems to be a cheap trick that lazy writers use to try to be more “expressive,” or in this case, “motivational”); and (3) her condescending tone ( she never seemed to tire of using “coward,” again and again). I kept thinking, “Can you give it a rest?” In short, this book just didn’t work for me–a guy who is looking for a well-written, well-researched, and useful book to help me change careers. Simple. There are much better career change books out there. I will now turn to two of these.
I have read several past editions of “What Color is Your Parachute,” and as always, I found the 2008 edition quite helpful. Briefly, “Parachute” helps the reader determine: (1) what their favorite transferable skills are, (2) where they might best use these skills, and (3) how to go about finding their dream job. I had to spend a good bit of time reflecting and writing about myself in order to complete the exercises in the book, but it was time well spent. (There really are no short-cuts when planning a career change.) Doing these exercises gave me a clearer idea of the types of job I should pursue, by (a) confirming what I had suspected about my favorite skills, interests, etc.–this was reassuring, as it made me more confident that I was on the right path, and (2) making me consider other career options that I had not previously thought of. I could have done without the author’s occasional use of “God,” “His Plan,” etc., but since he doesn’t overdo it, it wasn’t a big deal.
“Do What You Are,” is a book to help one discover their “type.” There are free online sites that can help one do this (and my results were the same for both–the book and the online site); but as the book required me to think more (instead of just choosing between two choices, as many online inventories do), I felt more confident with my results. These writers also seem to be exclamation point-happy, but overall, the book is well-written and I fould it quite useful.
But if I had to recommend only one career change book to buy, it would be “What Color is Your Parachute.” This could be supplemented by doing the inventories on free online sites to discover one’s Type, as well as Interests, Values, Skills, etc.
Hope this helps.
5 Stars A Must-Read Blueprint for Changing Careers
Making a career change can feel traumatic. So many fears and doubts can get in the way. How do you start? How do you decide what career to pursue? Is it really possible? The Career Coward’s Guide to Changing Careers answers all of these questions and more.
There are 3 reasons I recommend purchasing this book if you are even contemplating a career change:
(1) This book gets to the heart of what stops you from making a career change–your fear. Each chapter contains a golden nugget called “The Panic Point!” that identifies the specific fears career changers have and more importantly, shows you how to overcome them.
(2) This book isn’t theory; it’s fact. Katy has worked with hundreds of career changers. In fact, as I was reading this book, I was thinking, “Boy, a lot of what she describes mirrors how I made my own career change.” (I’m a former practicing lawyer-turned-career coach for lawyers.) From brainstorming exciting career possibilities to deciding which career is for you to re-crafting your resume, this book covers it all from A-Z.
(3) It’s easy to get bogged down in career books. Not this one. It’s clear, concise, and fun to read. It is indeed a step-by-step guide.
Beware: If you’re just interested in complaining about how your career makes you miserable, don’t read this book. Because if you do and you do the exercises, you may find yourself transitioning to a career you love!
5 Stars This book got me unstuck!
“Career changing has seemed like such a scary step for me. I love that this
author tackles it head on…’You’re going to be afraid, and that’s
normal!’ Her upbeat, encouraging writing style makes the process seem much
more doable to me. After YEARS of thinking about a career change, I’ve
finally started taking action on a few of the career experiment exercises
she recommends…and they’re fun. I truly believe I can make a career
change this time. I love this book!”
5 Stars Practical Advice
Finally! Words of wisdom I can actually use! After being stuck for over a year, I read this book from cover to cover. The advice is sound, practical, and do-able. I appreciated the simple yet actionable steps, as well as the lists of words and exercises to get me unstuck. Best of all, Katy’a voice is encouraging throughout. I now have lists of contacts for informational interviews, specific industries and job titles to consider, and am well on my way to a new career. Thank you Katy Piotrowski!