Episode Notes

On the eighty-fifth installment of Tristan's Tips, our amazing host Tristan Layfield talks about how you can gain some clarity on what you want to do for a career while also gaining some new skills. Now's a great time to gain some new skills, knowledge, and contacts to set yourself up to get back to work or to change careers, so make sure to listen to the full tip!

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TRANSCRIPT Tristan: What's going on, Living Corporate? It's Tristan back again to bring you another career tip. This week, I want to talk about how you can gain some clarity on what you want to do for a career while also gaining some new skills.

With many people either out of work due to COVID-19 or having a bit more time at home thanks to social distancing and the impending winter weather, now's a great time to gain some new skills, knowledge, and contacts to set yourself up to get back to work or to change careers.

Many of us are looking to invigorate or reinvent our careers but aren't sure how to do it. One of the ways I always suggest is taking on a couple of projects outside of work. You can sign up for sites like UpWork, Fiverr, Thumbtack, and more that have sprung up to support the gig economy. Maybe you've wanted to break into social media marketing or sharpen your skillset in sales; these sites offer an opportunity to set up a profile, bid on jobs, and have people request your services. You get to set and negotiate your rates, helping you sharpen yet another skillset.

All of the projects you take on do not have to be in direct alignment with your current or potential new career path. These are great opportunities to expose yourself to new and different types of work while gaining clarity on where and how you best work, and what you may or may not want to do more long-term as a career.

If you decide to go down this route, remember that you are gaining real-world experience; therefore, you want to create a projects section in your resume to include the relevant projects and showcase your new skills. When writing your bullet points, focus on the value you provided and the results you've created. This will show a hiring manager or recruiter that you are taking the initiative to learn new skills and test them out in the real world.

Taking on these projects is a great way to clarify what you want to do while earning some additional cash. They also help you position yourself to either reenter the workforce or potentially pivot your career.

This tip was brought to you by Tristan of Layfield Resume Consulting. Check us out on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @LayfieldResume or connect with me, Tristan Layfield, on LinkedIn.

Find out more at https://living-corporate.pinecast.co