The decision to leave a job isn't easy. How do you know when dreading the upcoming workday becomes more than just fatigue? If you quit, will people think you're a job-hopper? And is complete job satisfaction ever a reality?

A recent survey by the University of Phoenix indicated that 58 percent of U.S. workers have changed their careers, and more than half of those have done so more than once.

"It's very normal to have six or eight jobs or careers in a lifetime," said Debra Davenport, a licensed career counselor and employment agent.

Job satisfaction is possible, and we're all entitled to it, said Davenport, 49.

"Job satisfaction is a unique blend of tranquility and excitement at the same time," said Davenport, whose company, DavenportFolio, has offices in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Los Angeles.

"You know you are in the right livelihood when it is a natural extension of who you are as a human being," she said.

Career coaches and other experts say knowing yourself is the first step toward attaining career satisfaction.

Career coach Catherine Ross asks clients to identify core values they believe in, such as collaboration, adventure, risk-taking and security. Clients are then asked to rank those values in relation to their lives.

For example, if you rank adventure high on your list of values and your job has very specific roles and duties without a lot of change, it's obvious you need more adventure in your life, said Ross, president of Start Now Coaching.

"The adventure can come from outside the job, but you need to get that core value somewhere, or you end up unhappy," said Ross, 60.

Looking back on your career also can yield good information. Nancy White, president of Workshop AZ, which provides leadership training, has her clients critique their past performance reviews.

People often discover they received positive feedback for skills they are not using in their present job.

"I also ask people what five to seven significant events, people or situations have shaped their character," said White, 42.

"This exercise really gets to the heart of who you are, which is critical to know first before you can decide what it is you want to do."

If you have no idea what your new career might be, start with an aptitude test.

"Find out what you tend to be good at," said Ronni Anderson, president and founder of Staff One Search and its division, Anderson Philips Associates. "If that matches what's in your heart, then you need to start looking in that direction."

Ross agrees that formal assessments such as the TTI Success Insight Profile or Myers-Briggs Type Indicator provide a wealth of information to anyone in search of a vocation.

"We always ask people if they've talked to their bosses about what they don't like," Anderson said. "Ninety-nine percent of them haven't. Smart employers will do what it takes to keep a good employee."

Julia Winter worked in sales management with IBM and Xerox for 17 years. Nearly constant travel began to drag her down, and she knew something had to change after her first son was born.

Winter had also started designing and marketing jewelry, and when she wanted to have another baby, she negotiated a two-year leave of absence to coincide with the birth of her second son.

At the end of her leave, however, Winter learned her re-entry position at Xerox would require extensive travel and no flexibility.

She decided to concentrate on her jewelry business and motherhood rather than return to the corporate world.

Winter didn't forget her corporate experience and transferred the skills to her new endeavor. "I work really hard to apply that great customer training I got at Xerox to my small jewelry business," Winter said.

Winter's experience illustrates the importance of attitude and perspective. Decades spent in a career should never be viewed as wasted time.

"Every career is a rehearsal for the next step," Davenport said. "You are never throwing away the education or skills. You are simply adding to the phenomenal experience you already have."