Considering a significant shift in your career – whether it involves transitioning to a different employer within your current field or moving into an entirely new profession – can be incredibly exciting and rewarding. However, this process may also induce anxiety, particularly concerning the financial implications of such a shift.
Mercer Advisors has extensive experience in assisting clients like you through major job or career transitions. Our seasoned team will collaborate with you to develop a financial plan that aligns with your professional objectives, so you can feel confident and driven when taking the next step.
Having a solid financial plan creates margin to invest in building essential skills, pivoting your career, and unlocking the potential for financial growth and personal fulfillment.
Most Common Barriers to Changing Careers
Approximately 57% of surveyed employees said that their top barrier for making a career change is a lack of financial security.
Source: Zippia. “21 Crucial Career Change Statistics (2023): How Often Do People Change Jobs?”, Feb. 9, 2023.
Make a Smooth Transition into Your New Position
The first and most important step in planning a career change is identifying your goals. Our process helps you define these goals and work towards them, while also guiding you through the financial and lifestyle implications that accompany career transitions.
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Defining your goals
Here are some sample questions we will discuss with you to help identify your motivation for change and your ultimate goals, both financial and professional:
- Are you leaving an employer or career because you aren’t happy? If so, why aren’t you happy and what will make you feel more fulfilled?
- What income level do you need to achieve your financial goals?
- Do you want to change your lifestyle, but your current situation doesn’t accommodate it?
- Do you want to advance, but you don’t have the opportunity in your current role or company?
- What is your time horizon for finding a new role?
- What trade-offs do a new career path entail financially?
Adapting to changes
Switching careers can be incredibly rewarding on a personal and financial level. However, changing your career path may also alter your lifestyle; it takes confidence and flexibility to navigate these changes. There might be necessary financial adjustments that come with a reduction in income, such as selling your house or setting a new retirement age. The transition may also have impacts on your family, such as delaying having kids or giving up some employer benefits. This entire process could take months or years, especially if you need to learn new skills.
Although these considerations can be daunting, our team is here to support you and give you the clarity you need to help navigate your financial situation. When collaborating with you on a plan, we will consider all the implications of your transition and its potential impacts to your career trajectory and, by extension, financial security, so that you will be able to focus on taking the next steps to accomplish your professional goals. Our team will work with you to update your long-term financial plan, considering any changes or gaps in income and aligning on a strategy to cover these gaps. We can also review impacts on your 401k, health coverage, and taxes, and develop strategies to optimize benefits in your current and future roles.
As always, we consider the whole person in our role as your trusted advisor, and we are mindful of the emotional and mental toll such a transition can take. We are alongside you every step of the way to offer the support, guidance, and confidence you need.
Connecting the dots
In this time of transition, we would start by ensuring your budget is in line with your goals. That means looking at your cash flow (income vs. expenses), taxes, insurance, and investments. Perhaps there is an opportunity to refinance your mortgage and take advantage of a lower interest rate to reduce your costs. Maybe it makes sense to accelerate payments on your student loans while you are still at your original employer. Which are the essential needs, and which are discretionary? We will track your financial situation to help ensure you can enjoy your life and accomplish your goals.
As we continue to learn more about your aspirations and needs, we will gain greater clarity around the right plan for you. That’s one of our goals – that you are completely clear about how to reach your North Star. We want to set you up for a successful job career transition, no matter how long it takes.
Re-launching your career
Our advisors can help you close out one chapter and re-launch with a financial plan that is right for your new role. When transitioning careers, it’s important to have clear, long-term goals as your focus. Those can change over time, as will the path along the way, but you need to have a target as a reminder for when things get challenging. We’ll provide guidance to help ensure you feel financially secure as you transition to reaching your goal.
What is Your Motivation? What are Your Goals?
There are many reasons why you may decide to change jobs or careers. In our almost 40 years working with clients like you, these are the main reasons we’ve encountered.
