Changing careers at 9 years into a job, is it realistic? - any advice?

After 9 years as a recruiter I am thinking about moving into a different field. It has been a long 2 weeks. I have a little time and a small budget for training. Did you take a pay cut?

I began with informational chats, then a short online course, then a related entry-level role. It took about 6 months.