Tips for making a career change

Hey Taylor - I think I’m ready to change career paths after working as an assistant at a small firm for the last few years How I’ll make money is a concern, but I’m just as worried about falling into another job that isn’t fulfilling I guess my question is: how do I put enough time into finding a cool job without running out of money first? - Will

Hey Will - It’s sort of a catch 22, isn’t it? You can’t find the right job unless you really look for it, but you can’t make a living if you spend all your time looking for the right job

There isn’t an easy answer to this question since so much depends on the career you’re hoping to start One thing I would definitely recommend is that you do some intense budgeting to figure out how much you realistically need to earn each month in order to support yourself People frequently turn down jobs because they think the pay is too low, when in reality they’re just too accustomed to overspending It’s important to remember that you want to change careers because you’d like to lead a more fulfilling life, and a high salary doesn’t always equate to personal fulfillment

It might seem crazy, but I’ve seen a lot of people go back to school in their 20s, 30s and even 40s, and more often than not they’re glad they made the decision Reentering academia can seem like a step backward, but you should view it as an investment in your future As long as you can afford tuition and can make the schedule work, it can really pay off down the road

Now, let’s say going back to school isn’t an option and you aren’t entirely sure what career you

Living with children

want to pursue If thi scenario, don’t lose h Instead, get creative approach this potenti change Thanks to th part-time work and s available to almost e Without leaving you you can start to dabb areas of interest and you gravitate toward Gaining clarity as to what you really want is incredibly important for anyone considering a change in profession If you act impulsively, you could end up leaving a good job for a situation that turns out to be much worse Working a few hours a week in another field can help you identify what kind of change you’re really looking for

Above all, keep in mind that finding a job is hard work If you’re waiting for a fun gig with great pay to fall into your lap, you’ll probably be waiting all your life However, if you spend your weekends and evenings putting in the effort to start a new career, you’ll have a lot more success. Keep at it and best of luck, Will!

The Wall Street Journal recently (3/16/2019) printed a letterto-the-editor in which Upland, California psychiatrist /psychoanalyst

Charlene Moskovitz promotes the alleged benefits of medication and psychotherapy for children diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and ADHD (and, presumably, other emotional and behavioral issues) According to Moskovitz, children who exhibit the behaviors in question may be dealing with “biochemical abnormalities ”

She asks, rhetorically, “Would such a child not benefit from having his or her biochemical issues helped with medication and thus build further strengths and coping mechanisms to deal with the other difficult aspects of his life? Does such a child not benefit more fully from the psychotherapy a skilled therapist provides?”

“How is it useful?” one may ask To sell the public on the unproved notion that psychiatric drugs are the answer to problems of emotion and cognition, that’s how After all, it makes sense to assume that a biologically-based condition requires an intervention that targets the biological fault or dysfunction The problem is, no one has ever established beyond reasonable doubt that psychiatric disorders are biologically-based And yes, that includes schizophrenia and manicdepression The current state of evidence strongly suggests that the term “mental illness” is a misnomer Moskovitz’s fundamental premise – that many of the kids in question have “biochemical abnormalities” – is one that neither she nor anyone else can prove concerning any given child

Disclaimer: Information presented is for educational purposes only and is not an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein To submit a question to be answered in this column, please send it via email to Question@GoFarWithKovar com, or via USPS to Taylor Kovar, 415 S 1st St, Suite 300, Lufkin, TX 75901

In all fairness to her, Moskovitz is only acting as a spokesperson for the mental health and pharmaceutical industries that have built up around the practice of diagnosing children as young as two with various mental disorders Said practitioners routinely explain the behaviors in question – depression, anxiety, inattention, impulsivity, defiance, frequent and extreme tantrums, sudden mood swings – in terms of “biochemical imbalances” and prescribe medication as well as various forms of therapy

In 2009, I published a book on this subject: The Diseasing of America’s Children My co-author –pediatrician Bose Ravenel of Greensboro, North Carolina – and I put forth evidence that these brainbased explanations and therapies have no scientific validity

Concerning the oft-referenced “biochemical imbalance,” for example, since no one has ever quantified biochemical “balance” in the human central nervous system, it is nothing short of disingenuous for medical scientists to lead the public to believe they know what they’re talking about when they refer to a CNS imbalance A leading psychiatrist, well-known in his professional community, has said that the term biochemical imbalance is “nothing but a useful metaphor”

Furthermore, the medications in question, although approved by the FDA, have not reliably outperformed placebos in doubleblind clinical trials. Unlike placebos, however, they have often-dangerous and even lifethreatening side effects In other words, the question of whether these drugs truly “work” is not fully resolved

As for psychotherapy with children, and with all due respect to folks like Moskovitz, no study done by an objective third party has conclusively verified the reliable efficacy of any form of child therapy Over the course of my 40-plus year career, hundreds of parents have told me that putting their kids in talking or play therapy made matters considerably worse

Several psychiatrists have confirmed to me that what I’ve written in this column concerning medication and child therapy is known by many of their colleagues - the band plays on That just might qualify as a mental illness

Family psychologist John Rosemond: johnrosemond com, parentguru com

John Rosemond has worked with families, children, and parents since 1971 in the field of family psychology In 1971, John earned his masters in psychology from Western Illinois University and was elected to the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society