December, 2018

This is the ninth in a series about how nine clients, friends, family members and I have transitioned or transformed careers after age 50. This month’s blog will be my story, and how I have been bridging to a portfolio life over the past two years.

Bridging is intentionally moving from one career option to another over time. The past two years I have been laying a foundation for a shift from my full-time solo practice to a more diversified portfolio life that I will begin next month.

The graphic above reveals the degree of difficulty and the economic considerations when seeking a portfolio life. This career alternative involves a redistribution of time committed to work, community and personal activities. 

In my January, February and March blogs, I described each of the nine career alternatives, with corresponding strategies, economic considerations and degrees of difficulty. Please refer back to these three blogs as you prepare for your own career transition or transformation. 

George’s Story
 
Background

I started my professional life on track to becoming a psychologist. My interests, skills, internships and studies all pointed in this direction. After a few years as a mental health counselor at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, however, I found that while the profession was meaningful and the work extremely engaging, it wasn’t a great fit for me for the long run. It was just too mentally and emotionally draining.

While still working on the young adult inpatient unit, I was recruited by a vocational psychologist. My next career move was to a job placement position for a vocational rehabilitation firm that helped injured workers return to work. After a few years in that role, once again feeling the frustrations of the work, I decided it was time for a more significant career change.

I proposed a shift from vocational counseling to a marketing and sales role in the same organization. I decided to stay in the same field, and the same firm, in a different role. I also enrolled in an MBA program. With such a big career change, I had some serious learning to do.

Shortly after completing my MBA, I landed a marketing product management job in a medical equipment rental company, Universal Hospital Services. The organization was great, but the work was boring. Just a year and a half later, I quit that job with no clear plan for what was next. In a matter of a few weeks I decided to pursue a different marketing job as an account manager for an employee assistance program that provided employees free, confidential assessment, counseling and referral services.

The subject matter in this job was much more interesting, and the overall fit was better. Four years into this marketing and sales job I had an epiphany. I missed the purpose, engagement and personal involvement of my original work in mental health and vocational counseling. My next career move would follow a line from an old Beatles tune, “Get back to where you once belonged.”
 
Catalyst for Change 

In 1989 I was approached by the head of a small outplacement firm named Career Dynamics. I had referred two of my employee assistance clients to this firm.

Practice leader Joan Strewler Carter met me for lunch to thank me for those referrals. She and I shared a background in psychology and vocational rehabilitation. When she learned that I also worked in marketing and sales and had and MBA, Joan said I had the perfect background for outplacement career coaching. I agreed with her assessment and joined her firm, thus beginning my 29 years in executive career transition coaching.

Results 

I spent seven years with this small “boutique” firm. My next seven years were spent in a similar role with Right Management, after it acquired Career Dynamics. Seven years later, Manpower acquired Right Management. Can you see a pattern forming here?

After spending another seven years doing similar executive career transition coaching work with Manpower as the parent company, I decided to go solo. I have always preferred creativity and independence in the way I approach my work. Going solo would give me total creative freedom in my next career move.

After 21 years starting in a small, then medium, and finally a large career transition firm, I started my solo practice in November, 2010. This turned out to be a great decision, and for the past eight years, I have loved having a practice that is exactly what I want to do, with the executive career transition clients I am best suited to serve.

The past two years have been bridging years for me. Sixty-four is the age my wife Bonnie and I set to downshift our professional work and broaden the other parts of our life. Thinking ahead, at age 62, I began seriously exploring and experimenting with the five elements of a portfolio life. I have also been shifting my personal and community connections to people who have already crossed over to this way of life and work.

David Corbett’s book, Portfolio life: The New Path to Work, Purpose, and Passion After 50 describes five elements of a portfolio life: Working in the form you want, learning and self-development, giving back, healthy living, and enjoying personal pursuits and leisure.

In September, 2016 I wrote a blog that explained how to bridge to a portfolio life, in which you can see how I have been making this shift, and how you too can build a bridge to a portfolio life. This month I turned 64. Next month, my career transition practice will be reduced to three days a week to make room for a broader, more diversified life.

Reflections, and What is Ahead for My Next Blog Series

I am committed to a portfolio life as an ideal way to live and work for as long as I am able. If you want to learn more about the portfolio life option, read my October, 2014 blog.

In January, I will begin a new monthly blog series titled, “Life and Work After 60.” Each of the five elements of a portfolio life will be detailed during the first half of 2019. Case studies will again be an integral part of this blog series.

I would appreciate learning how your portfolio life has evolved, if this is your second half story. Please respond to this blog if this is the case for you. Let’s help one another navigate our next chapter when we narrow our work, and broaden our world.

October, 2018

This is the seventh in a series about how nine clients and friends successfully transitioned or transformed their careers after age 50. This month I will be describing how a good friend began his transition with a four month sabbatical, then made a successful career transformation just as he was turning 50.

The graphic above reveals the degree of difficulty and the economic considerations for most career alternatives. The sabbatical option has been placed in the lower middle of the model to symbolize that it is not meant to be a sustainable career option, but rather a “between jobs” break. This career alternative involves intentional time off for personal reasons, professional renewal and/or development.

In my January, February and March blogs, I described each of the nine career alternatives, with corresponding strategies, economic considerations and degrees of difficulty. Please refer back to these three blogs as you prepare for your own career transition or transformation.

Bill’s Sabbatical Story

Background

Bill’s background includes an MBA in Finance from the University of Minnesota, and four years of active duty in the US Navy. He spent 25 years in retail information systems (IS) with the US Navy, Deloitte & Touche, Target Stores, TG&Y Stores, National Convenience Stores and Tonka Corporation, with the last three jobs as Vice President.

During his corporate career, Bill lived in seven different cities, six states and spent two years overseas. He owned and sold four houses, and has been married twice, to professional career women. In all he has raised three kids who have five grandchildren.

Catalyst for Change

Bill had become tired of job relocations and family separation. He wanted to settle his home life. His kids had graduated from high school and moved out to attend college. Bill wanted to start building equity and savings, and had an increasing interest in using his experience as a retail Information Systems/Chief Information Officer consultant.

He had a succession of major roles in the management and consolidations of information systems staffs due to mergers. This had happened four times, and he had found the reorganizations and subsequent downsizings depressing. In the last consolidation, Bill received a golden parachute of one year’s compensation. He was free to go, and needed a break before returning to work.

Just prior to Bill’s sabbatical, he engaged executive coach Richard Leider. Leider’s advice was to, “View change as adventure, shock the system and take risks.”

Results

Bill was very adventurous during his sabbatical. He decided to backpack around the world with his wife. Luckily, she was on board from the start. They bought an airline pass that would enable them to visit 14 countries over four months, mostly staying in youth hostels.

They met interesting people of all ages and backgrounds, and experienced incredible, exotic places. This experience eliminated all desire to return to corporate life. He developed a sense of empowerment, independence and entrepreneurial thinking.

Bill researched, and started, a very successful independent consulting business upon his return. His sabbatical turned out to be the catalyst that helped him move from a succession of corporate leadership roles to what would become his next twelve years as an independent retail systems consultant.

Reflections and Lessons Learned

Looking back on the early stages of his consulting practice, Bill learned that startup risks (loss of income) were less than anticipated. Additional household income and support from his wife also helped lower Bill’s anxiety. He learned repeatedly the value of peer and sales rep networks that were instrumental contributors to his success in growing his practice.

Bill finally had stable housing and a healthy income that enabled retirement savings accumulation. He learned to overcome his tendency to undervalue his services, and over time his fees increased and his time away from home decreased. Consulting travel, however, was extensive, occurring weekly for his twelve years until retirement. In the end, Bill preferred this travel to the many relocations in his past, and over time he was able to spend more time working from his home, less on the road.

By age 62, Bill was able to officially retire with comfortable retirement savings. He shifted his focus to volunteering, family, and personal activities that allow him to fully enjoy his life today. From time to time, he ponders what emerged from his four month sabbatical, and has no regrets about leaving his previous corporate identity.

The advice Bill received from his executive coach, Richard Leider, prior to his sabbatical reminds me of these prophetic words, attributed to Mark Twain, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the wind in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

August, 2018

This is the fifth in a series about how nine clients and friends successfully transitioned or transformed their careers after age 50. This month I will be describing how one former client made the transformation to a portfolio life. The graphic above reveals the degree of difficulty and the economic considerations when seeking a portfolio life. This career alternative involves a redistribution of time committed to work, community and personal activities. 

In my January, February and March blogs, I described each of the nine career alternatives, with corresponding strategies, economic considerations and degrees of difficulty. Please refer back to these three blogs as you prepare for your own career transition or transformation. 

Pat’s Portfolio Life Story 

Background
 
“I was a career marketing and consulting professional, with a particular focus in customer experience. I spent the first 13 years of my career on the client side, and the last 30 consulting with clients. As my consulting practice evolved, I realized that what clients valued most in me was the trust they could extend, knowing their interests would be primary. When I started my own practice in 2010, I wrote my 5 core values on Day 1. My foremost value was to always act in the best interest of the client. Always. That governed my approach and helped build several life-long relationships — the legacy of my work that I value most.

Catalyst for Change

As a solo practitioner, I typically maintained 1 or 2 client assignments concurrently. Late last year, I had finished a lengthy, rewarding — and exhausting — client project. It allowed me to produce the sort of signature impact on a major brand that was the ultimate goal of my practice. When I went into my office each morning in the weeks following, I realized my reservoir of energy was sapped – the drive that had been so evident for nearly 45 years was missing.

I was pursuing new business, but just going through the motions. I discussed my feelings with my wife. Our two-career approach had enabled us to achieve our financial objectives, she planned to continue working several more years, and I was just months from turning 65. When she asked, “Why don’t you just retire?”, her support, coupled with my desire to start my portfolio life, made it easy to say “good idea.”

Results

The discipline of writing out a strategic plan for my portfolio life was foundational. I set a goal to have at least 3 projects, or commitments, identified in each ‘slice’ of my portfolio life: Vocation, Avocation, Friends & Family, Self-Development, and Giving Back. As one is completed, the next rises to the top. The ability to become ‘ego-centric’ – in a positive context – enabled me to identify the true passions that I wanted to pursue in every category.

Serving on boards, providing strategic guidance for non-profits, one last effort to salvage my golf game, cooking lessons, time to plan the travel that is our most beloved hobby as a couple, more attention directed to childhood buddies, college classes for the pure joy of learning, etc… Eight months after writing my plan, I am completing consulting deliverables for 3 non-profits, I exercise and golf more than ever, my cooking has improved, I’ve re-connected with friends back home, and I’ve planned a major celebration of our 30th anniversary for 2019.

Reflections and Lessons Learned

‘Retirement’ can be the capstone of your life’s work…rather than a consolation prize. You get to drive the agenda – you do the work you care to do, for the causes you support, all done on your terms. You determine how big each slice of the pie is. The freedom from traditional work/career demands may inspire you to more activity, not less – but it is activity that is so fulfilling because it aligns with your passions! David Corbett, in his Portfolio Life: The New Path to Work, Purpose, and Passion After 50, eloquently defines the opportunity a portfolio life presents: “Where our deep gifts, and our gladness, meet the needs of the world.”

Pat now uses a title/signature of ‘CEO of My Portfolio Life.’ Friends ask what he is running, and he replies, “Me! It’s symbolic, but important to me. It means that this is more than a pastime or a project — it is a second or third career and arguably, the most important one.”

Some Personal Notes, Additional Learning Resources, and What is Ahead for My Next Blog Series

I am committed to the portfolio life option as an ideal way to live and work in my second half, and am preparing for a transformation that begins in January, 2019. My December, 2018 blog will reveal how I have been bridging to this career alternative over the past few years.

If you want to learn more about pursuing a portfolio life, read my October, 2014 blog. To hear my 30 minute podcast on this topic, released this month, click here.

In January, 2019 I will begin a new blog series titled, “Portfolio Life After 60.” I would love to learn how your portfolio life has evolved if this has become your second half story. Please send me updates from time to time. Let’s help one another navigate our next chapter.

June, 2018

This is the Third in a series about nine clients and friends who successfully transitioned or transformed their careers after age 50. This month I will describe how a good friend (and my former eighth grade English teacher) shifted from thirty years as a corporate executive to a small business owner at age 60.

The graphic above illustrates the degree of difficulty and the economic considerations for the new venture option. This career alternative involves starting a consulting practice, buying or starting a business or buying a franchise.

In my January, February and March blogs archived on my website, I described each of the nine career alternatives, with corresponding strategies, economic considerations and degrees of difficulty. Please refer back to these three blogs as you prepare for your own career transition or transformation.

Mike’s New Venture Story Background

Mike describes himself as a “child of the 1960s,” which he says were also his “wilderness years” where lifelong values and beliefs became rooted. After graduating from high school, he first attended Amherst College, then graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1964, majoring in English literature. Mike next taught high school English at Breck School in Minneapolis, and, for one memorable year, at Punahou School in Honolulu, Hawaii.

After marrying in 1968, he and his wife lived for a year in Sydney, Australia, finally completing their around-the-world adventure with a nine-week bus trip from Katmandu, Nepal to London. Returning to Minneapolis, Mike was an advertising copywriter for a few years before receiving his MBA in marketing, and spending 30 years in general management with two Fortune 500 firms, first in marketing roles at General Mills, then as a General Manager at Land O Lakes.

Catalyst for Change

Taking early retirement, Mike bought a small business in 2002, where he remains active. The idea of buying a business came from his 25 year old son who had just completed a computer science degree. Mike’s daughter found the company in the “companies for sale” section of the newspaper.

His company of nine employees provides IT support for small businesses, with 35+ clients, which has grown from two (Mike and his son) to nine employees. During this period, he and his wife have moved from the suburbs to a condo on the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis, remained close to their two children who live in Edina, and become the happy grandparents to three boys ages ten, eleven, and thirteen.

Mike is active in the downtown Minneapolis community, but has been very much challenged by the trials and tribulations of starting and growing his business, where his son is the president and daughter the general manager.

Results

Beginning in the year 2002, no longer surrounded by all the support services that are part and parcel of any Fortune 500 company, Mike found himself, with his son, directly putting on all the hats associated with any business, many of which, he says, didn’t initially fit very well…such as making literally thousands of cold calls to attempt soliciting new customers, consuming enough coffee at networking encounters to fill a small sized swimming pool, and personally chasing down and confronting slow (or no) paying clients.

On the more personal lifestyle side, he has been involved with a downtown men’s group, as one of six founding members that has grown to an organization of over 60 individuals, almost all of whom have moved past their permanent career years.

Some people might describe Mike as an individual who appears to have been driven, compulsively seeking change. He changed colleges, experimented with a variety of vocations before settling on business general management, took on the challenges of not only starting a new business, but doing so with his son and daughter, changed from suburban to urban living, took up an entire new set of friends and acquaintances once moving downtown, spent a year active in a Zen Buddhist community. Mike has also been involved with Zero Population Growth (ZPG), the Sierra Club, and in the last three years, weekly Toastmasters meetings, spent 10 years writing and publishing a novel-again, perhaps almost driven, compulsive behavior.

Reflections and Lessons Learned

Compulsive or not, Mike acknowledges that if there has been arguably one defining characteristic to his life, it has been constant reinvention. He will tell that as decades went by, and he would periodically reconnect with his mother, she would repeatedly say that she “no longer recognized” him. Uncertain as to an explanation, he sometimes simply says he expects that “perhaps it’s because I’m fear based, Darwinian in a way.”

Well into his thirties he battled with family depression and anxiety, with which he for a time successfully coped with, again, compulsive early school achievement. “But it all fell apart when I hit college,” he says. “I was no longer a super star, a big fish in a small pound.” It took almost ten years to rebuild his life, which he did through therapy, medication, his wife’s invaluable help, a series of life “experiments”, and the inevitable hard lessons that come with operating in the everyday real world.

Specifically, during his MBA experience, he was told that if he possessed one important skill, it was the ability to take vast amounts of information and condense it into 25 words or less, bumper sticker style. He says that this allowed him for 30 years to move up the ranks of general management by being able to successfully write endless annual and long-range business plans, sell dozens of very large investment projects to management and the company’s board, and make hundreds of sales and customer presentations.

At age 60, however, he transitioned abruptly from a work centric to a family centric world. All his energy and job dedication now focused on his wife, children, and grandchildren. He says that he is not aware of a single member of his men’s group who does not say that, in one’s final years, nothing is more important than one’s family!

Along with this has been what he calls his goal of engagement. “At age 76, I experience life now as mostly one personal engagement after another. Growing up I was shy and introverted. I think that this is still my default position, but I’m ever mindful of what I sense as a looming Darwinian threat. Thus, I’m now so much more aware of the importance of the tribe. As I grow older, my energy, physical and cerebral capabilities are obviously and inevitably declining. I can no longer go it alone. That’s where my goal of continuing interpersonal engagement comes in. My wife tells me she sees me as no less capable today than in the past. If even true, who knows how much longer that might last. Any way you look at it, the light at the end of the tunnel grows more blindingly bright every day.”

Conclusion

Stories help us understand the realities, struggles and triumphs of life and work. Mike has shared his story in the hope that you will see greater possibilities for yourself and others. Join me next time, as I explore another path of career transition and transformation after 50.

April, 2018

This is the first in a series about how nine clients and friends successfully transitioned or transformed their careers after age 50. This month I will be describing how one former client shifted from corporate to non-profit after age 50. The graphic above reveals the degree of difficulty and the economic considerations when seeking a new work environment. This career alternative involves change of industries, work culture, size or type of firm, but continuing in a similar function.

In my January, February and March blogs, I described each of the nine career alternatives, with corresponding strategies, economic considerations and degrees of difficulty. Please refer back to these three blogs as you prepare for your own career transition or transformation.

Sandy’s “New Environment” Story

While preparing to share her story, I asked Sandy to consider what most readers would like to know about her and her journey. First, I asked about her background, who she is and where she worked before her transition. Second, what was the catalyst for her career change? Third, what were the results of her search, and how and where did she ultimately land? Fourth, I asked Sandy for reflections and lessons learned which could help others who might be considering a similar next step for their career.

Background

Sandy worked in corporate America for over 30 years. Her functional area was information technology leadership, and she had spent 24 years at the same large company, with steadily increasing responsibilities. Sandy was high performing and had consistently been rated as a high potential employee. In her early 50s she had assumed that she had to stay, and there were no options for change at her age.

Catalyst for Change

Sandy began to realize that what had long been considered an asset to the organization was no longer valued. Earlier in her career she found that challenging and bringing new ideas were highly valued. This was not the case in recent years. She noticed that leaders were chosen and advanced because of a similarity in style and profile that did not match hers.

Due to a significant industry downturn, major shifts in top leadership and culture had taken place over the past five years. The scales had tipped dramatically from creativity and innovation to control. The strengths that made Sandy valuable in the past were liabilities now. Because she was no longer a fit, Sandy needed to find an opportunity that better matched her strengths and values.

Sandy also felt strongly that she needed to move to something, not just away from something.  She didn’t have many years left to work, and the opportunity to work for a non-profit was going to something she really wanted.  She had been evaluating this option for some time, and had decided it was definitely her future career destination. She would not leave to go to another corporate type job.

Results

Through networking and some good fortune, Sandy discovered an opportunity to work for a large non-profit. This organization wanted a candidate with IT skills similar to those of her existing job. In spite of what Sandy had heard about the non-profit sector, the pay and benefits for this job were comparable, and in some aspects even better than at her corporate job. She had found an organization that did everything to ensure she had what she needed to work for them.

Sandy was thrilled to find the best of what she had experienced years before at her corporate job, before the economic downturn and subsequent shift in leadership and culture. She now works for an organization that truly appreciates her. Sandy can make a big difference in a great organization whose values match hers.

Reflections and Lessons Learned

When I asked her about the lessons she learned during and after her transition, Sandy said, “I wasn’t too old to change jobs and industries. Your value is not your job. You have a choice – life is too short to not be somewhere that values you and shares your values. You have skills and experiences that other people want and need.”

Sandy’s advice to others is, “Understand what your work “bests” are and what kind of role, culture and circumstances you are looking for – this is important to not end up in a similar place.  Once you understand and insert this into all interactions and conversations – be open to who you are meeting and how those connections can help you get to the right spot.”

Ultimately, each of us desires to use, develop and stretch our talents, in a purposeful way, within an organization that values us and shares our values.

Sandy found that early in her career, she had this. The economy and the culture of her organization, however, changed dramatically. In the end, Sandy could no longer say she satisfied any of these desires, especially when it came to being valued and sharing common values with her company.

We have three healthy choices at our career crossroads. Stay and accept it, stay and change it, or leave it. If we cannot stay and accept it, cannot stay and change it, then leaving becomes the healthiest choice. Congratulations to Sandy for the courage and good fortune she found in leaving her company of 24 years and finding a great fit for her future.

Conclusion

Stories help us understand the realities, struggles and triumphs of life and work. With Sandy’s help, I have told her story in the hope that you will see greater possibilities for yourself and others. Join me next time, as I explore another path of career transition and transformation after 50.

February, 2018

In last month’s blog, I identified nine top choices at career crossroads after age 50. This month I will help you decide which option(s) to pursue first. You will learn the degree of difficulty and finanicial implications for each choice. Next month I will continue to describe the process of moving ahead in your 50s and beyond.

Here again, your nine top choices at the crossroads:

1) New Environment

Change industries, work culture, size or type of firm, but continue in a similar function.

2) New Terms

Change compensation terms, including contract work, part-time, and/or flexible schedule.

3) New Venture

Start a consulting practice, buy or start a business or buy a franchise.

4) Downshift Role

Move from your most recent role to a lower level of responsibility and/or lower title.

5) Portfolio Life

Redistribute time committed to work, community and personal activities.

6) New Work

Significant change in the nature of your work. Use different skills and/or expertise.

7) Sabbatical

Intentional time off for personal reasons, professional renewal and/or development.

8) Continuation

Very similar or identical work, environment and employment terms.

9) Bridging

Move from one option to another over time. Establish timelines and personal, work and financial benchmarks. Build bridges to the next step, while on the current path.

Each of your nine choices are listed on the graphic above, based on degree of difficulty and financial implications. For a better view, click on the photo to enlarge it. Special thanks to Michael Dow Design (my son) for this graphic.

I use a mountain climbing metaphor to explain these nine career alternatives. Start by considering the three choices to your right. As the altitude increases, each new option gets more difficult than the one preceding it.

A new environment is less difficult than new terms, because with new terms you will need to find a new project each time one ends. New venture is the hardest choice, because you need to do so much to get a business started or take it over, and this choice is fraught with risk. It might, however, also be the most rewarding!

If you choose the options to your left, notice what happens with money on the bottom line. If you select options to your left, the money will be less. If you choose options to your right, the money will be less, equal or more.

Downshifting may be easier work than the other two options, but requires a strong sales strategy. You are returning to an earlier stage of your career, know the work well, or can eventually catchup with what you need to learn. This may be a hard sell, as your employer envisions you becoming bored, a flight risk (to better pay and work), or a threat to the boss if you are as capable or more capable than him or her.

To help you overcome these challenges, read my October, 2016, blog. You will find a great success story in this “downshift role” catgory. Remember that I will be doing nine future blogs just like that one. For every challenge I identify in this blog, there is someone who has figured out how to overcome it. Their stories will guide and inspire you.

The next option on the left side is a portfolio life. This is a broad transformation. Even with the fewer hours of paid work in a typical portfolio life, it is difficult to secure meaningful part time, contract, or interim paid work. In addition, this is a reshaping of life and work that takes you outside the working identity you have had for many years. Reinventing your life and work is not an easy task.

The most challenging option on this left side is new work. One has to get down off the career ladder and move that ladder to another wall. In most cases, you will start over from the bottom up, offer less experience than your competition, earn less pay than before, and have a smaller network to leverage. Again, I will have an inspirational and instructive story in a future blog to show you how others have climbed up that new wall successfully.

The middle three options are either about taking a break (sabbatical), continuing in your current or virtually identical path and organization (continuation), or staying in your current role while at the same time taking steps to prepare for a change (bridging). These options offer the same or less income, with similar or lower degrees of difficulty.

You now know your nine future career choices, with the degree of difficulty and financial implications for each. Next month I will describe the sequence of actions for moving forward, for a career transition, or a career transformation. In two months I will begin a series of nine case studies. These stories will reveal how the pursuit of these options looks and feels at age 50 and beyond. Is it time to get ready for what is ahead?