Smarter Midlife Career Change Choices
Why is that midlife career change advice still seems to centre on traditional careers advice? What I mean is, if you want to or are forced to change career in later life why would you want more of the same – a similar career but in a different field? Especially when that’s going to be a tricky move to pull off anyway?
Let’s say you are looking for a midlife career change because you’ve been made redundant or “rightsized”(insert preferred euphemism) There’s a very good chance that it happened as a result of a changing, technology led economy. Wouldn’t it be more sensible, rather than looking for a similar career within the old economy that got you there, to leverage the new, evolving one?
From personal experience, looking for a business development or sales role in a new industry after redundancy is no mean feat in midlife. Whilst your skills may be transferable and well honed, you’re the new, older kid on the block in a different industry. The young guns will have more energy, will work for less, and will be more malleable – at least that’s the theory.
You might be contemplating a midlife career change for entirely different reasons. Maybe its just that time for you. If that’s the case then again, I argue that a complete change, taking into account the way the world itself is changing, makes more sense. Re-training or re-educating yourself for a career in an industry that might not be there in 5,10 or 15 years doesn’t. And that’s a lot of industries.
Top Reasons For A Midlife Career Change
During my research on why people look for a midlife career change (aside from through necessity) the main reasons were:
Financial. To earn more money to pay off accrued debt or to finance a long harboured dream.
Lifestyle. The kids are fending for themselves now and the bucket list is screaming for attention.
Fulfilment. Many baby boomers followed the traditional path through education to a career that was an adequate fit for them in earlier life. Now at 40 or 50 it just isn’t. It pays the bills but that’s really about it.
Disillusionment: Is this really it? What have I really contributed to the world? I always felt there must be more to life. I’m trapped!
So aside from replacing a traditional career with another, what other options are there for a midlife career change? The obvious alternative is to start a business. For the same reason as above though, the kind of business to start needs careful consideration.
Smarter Skills For A Midlife Career Change Now
The Internet has changed and is changing the face of traditional business forever. Its now where most of us go first for information and research and to buy goods and services. It’s largely done away with the need for front-end sales people. It has been the catalyst for disruptive business models like Uber, Itunes, AirBnB, Netflix and Amazon. It has levelled the playing field for anyone who wants to start a business. It’s an ideal place to begin a midlife career change.
Changing from one career to another or from a career to a business will require re-skilling. Isn’t it crucially important then to get the right skills? The skills that will offer you the greatest flexibility, the widest choices and that address the reasons for choosing a midlife career change discussed here?
Again, from personal experience, setting up an online business and acquiring the skills needed to grow it (an ongoing process) has been life changing for me in all the right ways: I’m more fulfilled than I ever was in the old career, the bucket list is dwindling. I’m free from the restraints of exchanging time for money and am location independent.
I couldn’t and didn’t get those skills from traditional education. I got them online from the new breed of digital entrepreneurs themselves. Meet them, and access a free online business start up training bundle on the link below.
