If you’ve thought about switching career paths lately, you may wonder if now is really the time? With the world in the middle of a pandemic, it may feel like an uncertain time to make a career change. Is this the best year to do it? There are some good reasons why 2021 may be the best year ever to start a new career.

Employment is Projected to Grow in the New Year

You’ve seen the headlines—many companies have had to lay off employees because of the pandemic. Maybe you or someone you know was one of those employees. So how is employment expected to grow? The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects six million jobs to be added in the U.S. between 2019 and 2029 because of the aging Baby Boomer generation and a decline in men and women who are active in the workforce. So even as the pandemic continues, the economy is still expected to rebound.

This doesn’t mean that every sector will grow. The retail industry, for example, is expected to decline because of the popularity of e-commerce. The key is to find the fields that are predicted to increase employment and work toward a career in one of those areas. You can probably guess that healthcare is one of them, but jobs in the business and information technology industries are also on the rise.

Now Is a Great Time to Network and Job Hunt

After months of quarantines and social distancing, people want human interaction. That means that now is a great time to network with professionals who are in the field you want to be in. You can connect with people via LinkedIn, or you can find a professional Facebook or online meetup group to join. The new remote landscape has also made it necessary for employers to connect with and interview candidates online. It was never a best practice to hire someone without meeting them in person first, but it’s now become the new normal. This means you can look for, and ultimately interview for, jobs from the comfort of your own home.

You Could Attain Skills to the Workplace

Before you dive into a new career field, you may want to acquire the skills that will help you succeed through a degree or certificate program. What employer doesn’t want to hire someone who brings 21st-century skills to their workplace? With a new certification or degree, you’ll bring knowledge of the latest trends and technology, the best practices and guidelines for your new field. Seek out training that is taught by professionals from the field with years of work experience in their industry, so your employer will also be able to trust your knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Highlight Transferable Skills to Find a Job

Don’t forget that your past work experience is just as valuable as your new skillset. You aren’t a teenager who just needs a gig to start their resume. You’ve already built a resume! And that means you have transferable skills and abilities that are needed, no matter what field you decide to work in. Maybe you’ve worked in an office before—that experience is a perfect fit for a career in dental assisting or business administration. Or you might have gained a strong set of problem-solving skills just from being a parent, which is essential for a career in IT or the trades. Whatever you’ve learned in your previous roles, you can be sure to use it in your new career.

Leave your old job behind in 2020. Start the New Year with a new career. At YTI Career Institute, we offer a variety of training programs in the areas of Business, Medical, Computer, Culinary Arts, Criminal Justice, and the Trades. You’ll learn the real-world skills that you’ll need on the first day of your new job. Fill out the form to request more information.