8 Best Books For Changing Careers

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“Always define WHAT you want to do with your life and WHAT you have to offer to the world, in terms of your favourite talents/gifts/skills-not in terms of a job title.”

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Thanks to job-finding platforms such as Indeed, more people are considering career changes than ever before. The pandemic showed the potential of new ways of working, and having access to potentially hundreds of positions matching their skillsets around the world means people no longer have to settle for a job they don’t enjoy or that doesn’t pay enough. 

However, stepping out of your comfort zone and starting someplace new can be a daunting prospect. To help, we here at What We Reading have pulled together 8 of the best books for changing careers! 

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You Turn – Ashley Stahl

You Turn is a practical book on self-discovery told firsthand by Ashley Stahl. Stahl uses personal anecdotes and helpful exercises at the end of every chapter to help readers get a better perspective on their careers, and what they want to achieve.

One of the best books for changing careers, as well as making more money in your current position, You Turn works on crushing doubt and lifting your belief in what is possible to achieve. 

What Color Is Your Parachute? – Richard N. Bolles And Katharine Brooks

The world’s best-selling book for career guidance has been given a facelift ahead of 2023. Richard N. Bolles and Katharine Brooks’ What Color Is Your Parachute has sold ten million copies and is filled with relevant and powerful insights.

The most widely used job-search guide has information on how to build resumes and cover letters, interview with assurance and successfully negotiate higher salaries. Whether you are looking for your first job, have recently been laid off, or are looking to change careers, What Color Is Your Parachute is just as timeless now as it was fifty years ago. 

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Courageous Career Change – Amy L Adler

Changing careers can be an anxiety-inducing prospect. In her 2020 work, Amy Adler tackles this with one of the best books about changing careers. 

Courageous Career Change lists exactly how readers: 

• Turn their job search fear into courage
• Appreciate their accomplishments
• Present their worth to any hiring team

Adler offers expert tips on everything from creating engaging LinkedIn profiles to tailoring job searches to match their objectives. However, what makes the book so unique is Adler’s ability to change a reader’s perspective on their skills, their worth, and the opportunities they can bring. 

Clocking Out – Raymond Lee

In Clocking Out: A Stress-Free Guide to Career Transitions, Raymond Lee helps readers with the key decisions behind a career change, and invaluable tips on how to make workplace transitions go as smoothly as possible. 

The book is made up of ten real-life cases of how career moves unfolded. Lee focuses on the four facets that go into a career change: choice, mindset, agility, and trust to give readers an insight into how they can make their decisions a success. 

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Invaluable – Maya Grossman

Maya Grossman’s Invaluable is the perfect resource for readers who feel like all of their colleagues are progressing, whilst they are stuck in limbo.

Grossman, a marketing expert and career coach, introduces ten skills that have personally taken her from individual contributor to vice president. The book is her way of passing on the lessons she has learned in the search for a rich and rewarding career. 

The book utilises real-world examples and situations to help make this career guide straightforward and relatable. It also comes with several practice exercises readers can use to see results instantly. 

The Squiggly Career – Helen Tupper And Sarah Ellis

The Sunday Times bestselling career change guide, The Squiggly Career is about navigating the world of work from Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis. 

A modern look at how readers cross between roles and positions, Tupper and Ellis explain how career ladders are a thing of the past. Packed with inspiring stories, this career guidebook we’ll teach readers how to understand what motivates them, what their values are, and how seeing their own ‘super strengths’ can help them unlock potential from their career crossroads. 

Switchers – Dawn Graham

In Switchers: How Smart Professionals Change Careers – And Seize Success, psychologist Dr Dawn Graham examines how individuals overcome blockages and leapfrog into new career challenges. 

The book guides readers to:

• Understand what hiring managers look for
• Discover the transferable skills all companies crave
• Turn challenging interview questions back on to employers
• Negotiate competitive salaries
• Rebrand their personal identities for new industries

Switchers is one of the best books for changing careers for those looking to make the jump into a new position, but unsure how to convert leads into offers. Packed with psychological guides and scenarios, it is the perfect resource for securing the most daring career move in a reader’s life. 

Take The Leap – Sara Bliss

Sara Bliss guides readers through the ultimate career road map with over sixty inspiring stories in Take the Leap: Change Your Career, Change Your Life. 

Calling on side hustlers, rule breakers and trailblazers, the book is the ultimate empowering tool for those looking who have their eyes on their big bucket list plunge. The core message of the book is to ‘never settle’ in your professional life and always look to pursue the career of your dreams. And, with insights from experts ranging from beauty guru Bobbi Brown to NFL star and activist Aaron Maybin, Take the Leap also arms readers with the tools to make these dreams a reality.