It can be hard enough to figure out what to make for dinner every night or how to find a decent job sometimes, let alone how to change your career. Most of the stories we hear about career changers make it seem easy, or focus on people who have no other responsibilities and burn the midnight oil 24/7. How can someone successfully change the path they’re on and still have time for self-care and a life? In this talk you’ll hear about: - Methods for figuring out what you want and how to get there - A case study of how I transitioned roles and careers multiple times - Why and how we need to redefine career success

1. How to Change Careers
(without losing your mind)

2. Hello! Lauren Galanter
Web Polymath
• 10 years in video/web industry
• UX Analyst @ Phase2
• 3x career-changer
• Philly native; lives in Passyunk Sq. with
boyfriend and kitty. <3 bikes, books, sci-fi,
comics, interior design, tea.

3. What about
you?

4. • Sanity
• My story
• Soul-searching
• Methods
We’ll Cover

5. • No fetishizing hyperwork
• Sleep, exercise, down time
• Go at your own pace
Sanity
Image by kroszk@ via CC Attribution license

6. My Story

7. 2005 2008 2009 2013 2014
Film / Video
BA, Film & Media Arts, Temple
University. Filmmaking, video
production, editing, graphics.
Web Video / Design
Videoblogging leads to
managing video website.
Web Video
Comcast era! Video Ops team
for 4+ years. Two promotions.
Left as Product Lead.
Web Development
Transitioned internally to Engineering
role. Down in level, up in pay.
User Experience
Left Comcast Dec 2014 for
UX Analyst job at Phase2.
video / design / web dev / process / education / customer experience

8. Ops to Dev
• Education, events
• Connecting; sharing desires
• One “lucky” occurrence; one
chance email

9. Dev to UX
• More education
• More events and connecting
• Another chance email

10. Soul-
Searching

11. • Be your own compass
• Find your path…for
now.
• Find alternative paths
• No “wrong” path

12. • Structure vs
Freedom?
• Alone vs Group?
Motivation

13. Courage

14. Ingenuity

15. Methods

16. Hopscotch
>
Leapfrog

17. Venn Diagram
of Career Transition
Current
Job
Next
Job
Next
Job
Goal
Job*
* subject to change!
Skills

18. One
Small
Step

19. Internal
v.
External

20. Internal
+ -
• Reputation
• Network
• Knowledge
• Reputation
• Red tape

21. How?
• Make friends
• Tell people
• Meetings
• Job shadow
• Education
• Extra projects
Your manager = Your ally

22. External
+ -
• Reinvention
• Less barriers
• Negotiation
• Lack of rep
• Bigger leap

23. How?
• Research
• Make
connections
• Tell People
• Meetings
• Education
• Side Projects
• Apprentice

24. Either Way
• Don’t wait to apply
• Don’t wait to “be”
• Don’t belittle your experience
• Don’t stop
• Do get (un)comfortable

25. Redefining
Success

26. Not
Moving
Up

27. Moving Forward

28. “Whether
you think
you can or
you think
you can’t,
you’re
right” -
Henry Ford
“It does not
matter how
slowly you
go as long
as you do
not stop” -
Confucius
“It is never
to late to be
what you
might have
been” -
George
Eliot

29. Thanks!
laurengalanter.com
@laurengalanter
lgalanter@gmail.com