If you're a Baby Boomer, is it too late to change careers? Many Baby Boomers either can't retire or don't want to, but they want a change. Maybe a career they've always dreamed of or just something more fulfilling.
Repurpose Your Career: A Practical Guide for Baby Boomers shows that change is possible. It requires a strategy and a series of practical steps including:
- Study yourself to understand your core needs in a way you probably never did with your first career. Like what kinds of rewards do you prefer? What kind of boss do you work best with? How much physical activity do you need? How do you like to make decisions? What are your needs not only for money but for time and freedom?
- Strategically network with people in the field you're interested in to find out what the job is really like.
- Develop a statement about what kind of job you're looking that covers all your core needs.
- Build a tribe of people who can help you make your transition, including introducing you to others connected in the field.
- Work on your skill set including using LinkedIn and other social media effectively.
- Negotiate for what you want, beginning with items that have more to do with your quality of life than money.
Repurpose Your Career not only gives practical, step-by-step advice for how to make a successful transition, but deals with the challenging issues of having to ask for help from others and having to become the novice again after years of working to become an expert. If you're looking to find a career that meets your needs and you can grow into for the next 20 years, this book is the roadmap you're looking for.
Marc Miller's career journey included 22 years at IBM, several thriving tech startups, a painful stint as a high school teacher, a gig raising funds for the Jewish Community Association of Austin and a near fatal bicycle accident that changed his perspective forever. Thirty years of wandering the proverbial career desert, often repeating the same mistakes over and over, taught him his most crucial lesson: Most people don't really know what makes them happy at their core, what fulfills them. They pursue money, status, a skill set, all of which provide some level of satisfaction, but not contentment. They wind up feeling frustrated and trapped. Others have figured out what they need, but don't know how to chart a course to get there. An active member of the Launch Pad Job Club, Marc found himself counseling friends and associates on their career journeys and finally realized he'd found his vocation. He would use his extensive training experience to help others-especially Baby Boomers-find careers that they could grow into for the decades that lie ahead. Marc is passionate about his work and the clients he serves. He's taught in more than 35 countries and helped clients from many industries. Susan Lahey has always been passionate about words-as a medium-and story. Especially true stories about ordinary people plucking up the courage to do something new and overcome obstacles, which describes Marc Miller and the clients he serves. She grew up in the newsroom of The Kansas City Star and worked as a business reporter, then worked as associate editor of a business/lifestyle magazine. Her long freelance career has included writing about everything from art to banking to sustainable building techniques for national and regional publications. In Austin, she reports on startups and emerging technologies, non-profits and other topics in addition to running her own content marketing company: Fishpond Content.
