Our careers can have a tendency to guide our happiness. You might tell yourself that you won’t let your life be dictated by the office, but when hometime rolls around and you’re still working on a report that mantra goes out of the window. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. You have a right to explore opportunities that give you a greater work-life balance and a happier mental state. So, let’s take a look at some the options open to you if you want to improve your career outlook or you’re just in need of a change.

Education

The first place for a lot of us to start is with education. You might already have qualifications and or you might not, that isn’t necessarily the point here. The aim when it comes to changing your career for the better is to look forward, not backwards. That means you should be projecting into the future what you want to get out of your working life and figure out what education that requires you to have.

One of the great things about living in the day and age that we do is that there are far greater options when it comes to improving our qualifications and skills than ever before. If you want to learn a new language so that you can broaden your working horizons to other countries, then simply by logging onto the internet you can find hundreds of courses ranging from online degrees to local tutors. The same applies for most of the qualifications that the workplace is going to ask from you.

Something that a lot of employers appreciate seeing on your CV, or even just inform your current employer to open up new opportunities, is that you are continually developing skills. Using qualifications from the likes of Google and LinkedIn you will be able to demonstrate to employers that you have the initiative they are looking for.

Freelance

Skipping job to job isn’t for everyone, and in fact can be something that a lot of people actively dislike. There will be those of you reading who have dreams and desires of using skills like writing and drawing to pay the bills. Well, one of the ways you can that is by making the most of the gig economy and sites like Fiverr and Upwork. You can advertise your skills on these websites and field offers for work based on your own pricing plan.

One of the popular options on these websites is for people who have knowledge of digital marketing techniques. While companies are able to use websites that offer Fast and easy Adwords automation, individuals running blogs and at-home business can prefer to use the expertise of a freelancer for a more personal touch. That means people who have experience in things like SEO and social media marketing will be able to sell their skills in the same way as a copywriter or graphic designer.

This post has been contributed by Ryan Gatt, it may contain affiliate links