Ideally, a person chooses a career that he or she loves and is easily able to succeed in. However, in reality, employees often become dissatisfied with their jobs and thus seek to change their careers. Career change is far more common today than it was in the past, when company loyalty was much stronger. The increase in career change is due to the fact that there are more job opportunities available today than there ever were before. In addition, these career opportunities are available from a greater variety of companies than ever before. In the past, great risks were involved whenever an employee decided to change careers. Things have changed, however, and "the once threatening prospect of changing careers can be full of promise, especially in today's rapidly changing job market." (Edmond, 1989, p. 100).
There are many reasons why employees may seek to change careers. For example, some workers may decide to change occupations because they are experiencing stress or burnout in their present careers. Nivens (1990) has pointed out that many employees change occupations when their careers are stalled or management is in serious financial trouble (p. 112). Some employees seek career change as a result of job discrimination. In this regard, members of minorities are often neglected when company promotions are given out. Women employees, for example, have often encountered a "glass ceiling" which makes it impossible for them to rise into the higher ranks of management (Kirkpatrick, 1990, p. 44). There is little doubt that long-term failure to receive promotions is a contributing factor in many career changes. Some employees seek career change not because they are dissatisfied with their jobs but rather because they need to make changes in their personal lives. Thus, many career changes take place in order to "cope with changes in lifestyle that cause adjustments in professional goals that conflict with your current occupa...