Are you passionate about something? Have you ever wished you could turn your hobby into a dream job or career, but felt reluctant to let go of your ‘day job’?

The good news is, there are practical ways you can turn your passion or interest into a dream job or new career path, no matter how young or old you are.

1. Know what you want to do

Some people know exactly what they enjoy doing, others only know what they don’t like doing (and that’s often what they have to do for 8 hours a day, 5-6 days a week, while at work!).

Take the time to explore what you’re good at, and what you enjoy. Your dream job could be something creative, like photography or cooking. Or it could be working with children, training at the gym, or gardening.

2. Identify opportunities for a dream job

There are a number of ways you can combine your interests with your career. You may want to utilise your current skills and work experience in a new capacity – for example, if you’re an administration officer but love working with children, your dream job may be in a new role in administration in a child care centre or school. If you’re a nurse but like to travel and don’t like being in a hospital environment all day, your dream job might be in a nursing job where you visit patients in their homes.

Alternately, you may want to get out there in a brand new career, not just a change of scenery. This is a huge commitment, but it can be done. Decide what sort of dream job role you would like, and what type of organisations you’d like to work for.

3. Experience, experience, and more experience

On the job experience is a key component of your resume. Think outside the box when you want to change careers and move on to your dream job. Spend some time working in a voluntary role in the area you’re interested.

4. Up skilling and training

You may not need to go back to university for four years and get a new degree to change your career and move on to your dream job, but vocational training, online education and short courses are all great ways to develop new skills to make you more employable for your dream job. Just some of the options available include Open Universities, your local TAFE or college, and the Centre for Adult Education. Studying doesn’t have to be a full time commitment – you can even take up a class one night each week after work.

5. Develop and focus on your transferrable skill set

There are skills, especially soft skills that transfer well when looking to move on to your dream job. The key is to ensure that your resume explains how you use those skills, so that a new employer will recognise how you will be able to add value to their business.

6. Don’t be afraid to sell yourself for your dream job

Be confident, and remember that someone who is passionate about what they do is often far more interesting to a potential employer compared with someone who’s been doing the job for 20 years but doesn’t really care about it. Demonstrate that this is more than just a pay cheque for you, and your dream job is something you care about. Because a job you care about is a job well done.

This blog post was written by Tanaz Byramji, Branch Principal of Successful Resumes North West Metropolitan Melbourne