Book Review “Navigating Career Crossroads” by Jane Jackson

How to thrive when changing direction

Our careers are often not linear as intended. Gone are the days when we worked for the same company for decades. The need for change and adaption is obvious, especially in the ever changing world of employment opportunities. Given the disruptive pandemic, Sydney based career coach Jane Jackson reworked her best-selling guidebook “Navigating Career Crossroads” to encourage professionals on their transition from survive to thrive — and to reform their relationship with change.

Jane Jackson is one of the most well-known and highly respected career management coaches in Australia. Beyond the technical elements of supporting jobseekers, her specialty is the guidance during a career transition and corporate redundancy. Worth to note that Jane took her power to help others from her own process out of a divorce in Singapore to a new life in Sydney. Her coaching style uncovers clarity towards the confidence to get on the mission together. Jane is also a sought-after public speaker, the co-host of #LinkedInLocal Sydney and runs her own career podcast in addition to her advisory.

Her book describes the career transition journey on seven chapters whose first letters form the word CAREERS as overarching umbrella. They cover the topics confidence, assessment, resumes, express a professional image, explore job search, relate values and strategies for career success. The real value of the book is the discovery process, the inner journey to prepare for the transition, paired with the confidence to follow through the change curve. The practical elements include resume and cover letter tips as well as an improved LinkedIn guide — the showcase into the world of personal branding.

Some quotes stand out during the flow of the book, especially when the compress a complex scenario in a short sentence such as “Change is an external event leading to internal transition”. The next one might be a shocking wake-up call for many: “When looking for a job, remember: you are now in sales.” One of my favourites is “I believe that anyone who lacks confidence, passion and direction is capable of rediscovering the person they forgot they are.”