At the midlife career stage, it’s important to be able to answer this question. There are always a number of considerations – some in our control, others not. Midlife is a time of change, choices, uncertainty, loss and opportunity. These are natural and normal influences on the next chapter of our life. These are some of the actual words (see image) said to me in conversation about midlife careers. When a discussion starts around work, it can take time to work out exactly what’s going on, whether you need to do something and what the next step should be Here’s a simple and useful framework to ..read more

If you didn't have to worry about money, what work would you do? Without the pressure of money, we often would do very different things. These are typically reflected in our hobbies, interests and volunteering. It's not necessarily a problem to have that difference as long as you like your paid work and you're learning and thriving. If not, you need to find somewhere/something where you flourish and thrive. Often this is through volunteering. Here are some thoughts as to why volunteering matters: Volunteering can shine a brighter light on who you are and show more clearly your strengt ..read more

Photo by Mohamed Nohassi on Unsplash If you’ve never done one, here are some starter questions which will help you decide if you need a career review. How actively are you talking to people about a future role? What are you good at? To what extent are you building on your strengths? What are your learning goals? What are you really interested in? How do you feel about work right now? If you’re struggling to answer these initial questions in enough detail, then it might be time for a career review. A midlife career review takes you through a professionally managed process tailore ..read more

Are you still talking about career ladders? If you’re in your 40s or 50s, that’s what your parents said to you. Right? I want to persuade you to change how you look at your working life particularly if you’re at the midlife stage. It will help when you start to navigate the next phase:  The simple career path of a ‘job for life’ has lost its currency. The employment market, employer behaviour and working needs have changed. Forces at work are multi-facetted; not least driven by our longevity.    Instead of a career ladder, career experts now talk about our working lives as bein ..read more

2021 has been a big year and a really interesting year for midlife career coaching. I’ve had many coaching conversations around our working lives. With clients, this has led to planned choices being made as we naturally transition through the midlife stage. Whilst we humans like to cling to the status quo, what continues to be important, more than ever, is to take charge of our careers. Here are eight ‘takeaways’ from my working year as a midlife career coach in 2021: Making a planned choice around your working life is the best way forward. No knee jerks! Stagnation at work must not be ig ..read more

Do you feel in charge of your career? At the midlife stage, with the push and pull of life, it’s often harder to get all the pieces to fit together harmoniously. And if you’re not in charge of your working life, it probably means you’re not in charge of everything else given the knock on it will have. Here’s a checklist that will help you answer the question, do you feel in charge of your career. The checklist centres on knowing yourself; learning and development; having a sustainable career path; having support and a network; the right mindset and the importance of making a planned choice. Y ..read more

Midlife is a pivotal time in our lives, like adolescence.  In our 40’s and 50’s, it’s not unusual to find ourselves at a crossroad.  Midlife is a time of change, choices, uncertainty, loss and opportunities.  These are natural and normal influences on the next chapters of our life.  It’s also typically a watershed where aspects of our multi-facetted lives can collide and create emotional turbulence.  You may have been feeling emotional turbulence bubbling away below the surface for a while or a sudden life event has caused a wake-up call.  You may be approaching ..read more

If you’re in your 40s or 50s and thinking about a new role, a new company or exploring a brand new career path, it’s not a chat you need, it’s a series of informational interviews. An informational interview is a conversation in a safe environment where you can find out more about a role, a company and a sector. It takes work to prepare ahead of the conversation. It’s an opportunity to make a positive impression, start to be known in the hidden job market and build a relationship that will endure after the informational interview. What do you need to do? Prepare thoroughly. Do desk research i ..read more

Change is part and parcel of our working lives.  According to The Hundred Year Life, the sequenced pathway of education, work, retirement is out of date.  Our working lives are much more multi-staged as well as extended.  We now have much more autonomy around our careers.  Employers are changing too.   All this means, we need to be flexible, curious, persistent and positive in our mindsets around change in our working lives.  We also need to take charge of our careers. As a career coach, I like to describe our working lives as a climbing wall.  I think ..read more

At the midlife career stage, it’s important to be able to answer this question. There are always a number of considerations – some in our control, others not. Midlife is a time of change, choices, uncertainty, loss and opportunity. These are natural and normal influences on the next chapter of our life. These are some of the actual words (see image) said to me in conversation about midlife careers. When a discussion starts around work, it can take time to work out exactly what’s going on, whether you need to do something and what the next step should be Here’s a simple and useful framework to ..read more