Why the best career change comes while you’re doing other things

Serendipity can be the best career coach.

One of my favorite pop song lines is from John Denver, where he sings about returning to a place he’d never been. Listen to the first four lines and substitute any age for “27th year.”

That’s what coming home to a career feels like — finding a home and a “key for every door.”

Sometimes you find your new career only when you make a geographical move.

Janet had lived on the East Coast for many years. Although she had a law degree, she was working as a paralegal to avoid the stress of a full-time lawyering job.

One day she decided to move to the west coast, mostly to get a change. But her move turned into a career homecoming.

First, she found a job with a wonderful law firm. She genuinely liked her coworkers and she found the work interesting and challenging.

Then she got into fitness, changed her diet, and lost weight. Her health blossomed. She made friends with some people from her health club.

Eventually, her colleagues persuaded her to take the bar exam and use her legal training. She passed with flying colors (after burning a lot of midnight oil) and she’s embarked on a new, satisfying life.