THE ONLY THING career changers in their 40 or 50s want
In a recent article, you saw the second most popular trigger for successful career change at our age. Now, let’s explore the most popular trigger for career change.
But before we do, did you do the task at the end of the last article?
I suggested you write down the 3 things that you want less of in your future work.
Go on, do it now on a piece of paper…we’ll wait for you…
I would be surprised if you found the exercise difficult.
Figuring out what the problems are takes no time. If you are reading this, you may have been thinking about what you don’t want in your work for some time?
But somehow, very little has changed?
One major cause for that is, that by continuing to focus on “the problem of work”, you are allowing your brain to remain problem-focused.
How the brain keeps you stuck
Your brain only does what it thinks you want it to do. It is not aware that you are open to seeking out a range of possible solutions to your problem. When you spend lots of time thinking and talking about the problem of work, it gets confused. So, it thinks it is helping you by keeping the problem of work front and centre. Resulting in you staying exactly where you are.
In your brain, focussing on the problem is like telling yourself that you want to lose weight. That you want to get rid of those flabby bingo wings, or the belly that has more jelly than it used to. Frankly, that sort of thinking keeps you stuck in the very place that you want to leave!
How to get your brain on side
You need your brain in solution-focussed mode instead.
What I noticed during my interviews with over 120 successful career changers (so far), is that only when they got really clear on what they wanted instead of their current situation, did they get their brains into the right place to be open enough to seek out some alternative solutions.
They got their brains solutions-focussed, rather than problem-focussed. That seemingly minor shift had a major impact.
What all successful career changers in their 40s, 50, 60s seem to crave
In short, every single one of these successful midlife career changers wanted the same thing. Actually, they didn’t just want it, they craved it.
THEY ALL CRAVED “MORE”
They each had their own very personal type of “more”. But broadly speaking, according to my research, their “MORE” fell into the following 4 categories:
Is it time to get really clear on what your very personal ideas about your “More” look like?
A deceptively simple question.
Here are some direct quotes from career changers that give an indication of what they wanted in their future work.
Perhaps some resonate with you?
MORE…Learning
“I realised I hadn’t learned anything new for such a long time, and somehow, that somehow became very important.” (Lindsay Cornelissen, banking industry to wine entrepreneur)
“I woke up to realise that I wanted to learn more. Not more to make me better at my job – more of something totally and utterly different, that would allow me to have a bigger impact on the world.” (Me! Corporate head-hunter to midlife career change coach)
“I’m happy where I am – for now. But, I worry that I am not challenging myself, just coasting. I worry that I am deskilling. I feel valued for the job I do, but I’ve done it well. They won’t need me at some point. I want a great plan, ready to roll out, when the time is right.” (Client, legal, 50s)
“I heard this voice telling me to find something different, but I had invested so much time and life energy in this industry I wasn’t sure. But in the end, I knew needed to do something different.” (Elizabeth Draper, film industry executive to gluten-free baker)
MORE…Time with loved ones
“I got frustrated having to ask permission to have a half-day off to watch kids school plays or attend parent meetings. I just couldn’t hack the five weeks of freedom, time off for good behaviour. I wanted more freedom.” (David James, senior finance executive to flexible contractor)
“I’d fallen out of love with sales a few years ago, around the time when I filed for divorce. I know that any day I spend with my children is infinitely more enjoyable than any day I spent working in my sales job. So I decided to retrain to make sure I can spend more time with them.” (Gareth Jenkins, sales now retraining as a self-employed electrician)
“For so many years I left before the kids went to school, and I’d return when they were in bed. Or, I would travel the world for 2 weeks at a time. A major difference is that I see my kids more. I’m just not grumpy at the weekend anymore.” (Andy Eaton, international FD to owning his own accounting firm)
“I just couldn’t accept the long-haul travel and didn’t want to miss out on weekends with the family”. (Sally Smy, international buyer to personal stylist)
“I spent much of the school summer holidays this year with my 13-year old daughter diving, paddle boarding, surfing.” (Stephen Wright, architect's technician to flexible working with an incredible coastal lifestyle.)
MORE…Appreciation
“After 20 years of fee earning, I still loved helping people. But I realised I wanted to help more on the emotional side.” (Client, law, 50s)
“I felt under-valued, as if the wind had been taken out of my sails. I felt that my decision to work part-time since the arrival of my first child had been taken advantage of.” (Louise Brogan, NHS IT Manager to Social Media entrepreneur)
“I feel that no one is looking out for me anymore. As I’ve become more senior, my sponsors have moved on. I don’t feel as valuable to the company.” (Client, FMCG, 40s)
“After 20 years of working my socks off for the benefit of others I reflected on, and realised, that I was being neither valued, nor appreciated.” (Duncan Haddrell, senior finance career to distribution business owner)
“I felt like a commodity in the end.” (Kelly-Ann Grimes, hospitality IT COO to owner of franchise PA business.)
“I had had enough. I didn’t feel at all respected. I asked myself the question - If I die tomorrow would I die happy? No, not while I was in my old role. If you asked me that question today, I would say yes, because I would die feeling truer to myself, feeling valued, and definitely feeling respected.” (Jennifer Corcoran, executive PA to Social Media trainer)
MORE…fulfilling work
“I wanted to do wonderful creative things like I used to I wanted to be my own person again.” (Client, Media, 50s)
“I felt creatively stifled as I no longer had a real say in campaign development.” (Charlotte Moore, Social Media editor to foodie PR specialist)
“As a woman in senior leadership, I felt shrunk-to-fit, forced to specialise in something that I didn’t love, and being edged out of a successful, cut-throat world of advertising.” (Client, media, 50s)
“I’d grown tired of trying to motivate people to change when they didn’t want to. I realised later in life, after running lots of change projects, that I am not all that good with people. I needed to become a specialist.” (Client, 50s, technology)
Try this:
Take a piece of paper and write down a long list of all things that you’d like more of in your future work. Then write down all the things that you would have more of if you did more fulfilling, satisfying work every day.
Take a photo of this list, save it as your screen saver, or print it out and put it in in your coat pocket, your purse or wallet or laptop case. Talk about it with friends and family over the next few weeks. If you read it a couple of times every day for the next week or so, I promise you, a tiny little bit of magic will happen in your brain…dots will begin to connect.
I’d love to know if you hit upon any ideas.
Join my private community of successful professionals who are interested in designing more joy into their career. Tell me what you came up with. I reply to every email personally. I can’t wait to hear how this mini-experiment goes for you.
Book in for a free 30 minute Light at the end of the tunnel call to have any of your questions answered. I look forward to hearing from you very soon.
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