The topic of career reinvention is one we know intimately. We are two professionals, with completely different career paths, who have reinvented ourselves more than once. We’ve both been forced into career reinvention because of circumstances beyond our control. And, we’ve both voluntarily reinvented ourselves in order to pursue our vision as trainers and coaches.
Involuntary reinvention is common for older professionals who are downsized as companies target experienced higher wage employees in order to reduce costs. Forced or involuntary reinvention is especially challenging for those who have had long and successful careers. Losing the security of a steady paycheck and a corporate infrastructure is especially difficult for people who aren’t real risk takers.
Voluntary reinvention occurs for a variety of reasons. You might feel stuck or unfulfilled in your current position, report to a bad boss, or work for a company whose culture and values aren’t aligned with your own. You might decide to go back to school to study a completely new area of interest or you might choose to turn a hobby into a business.
Whether reinvention is involuntary or voluntary, the process forces you to think deeply about who you are and what talents you bring to the table.
In order to successfully execute a reinvention plan you must believe in your power to reinvent.
Your power will come from understanding the two key drivers of successful career reinvention. The first is leveraging your core natural strengths. When you understand what you are naturally good at and place yourself in a position to leverage your strengths, you have a much higher probability of being successful. The second is that your work must be intrinsically motivating – you enjoy engaging in the behavior and activities required.
Here, the difference between what you do and who you are overlaps. You are, at your core, happy. And happiness creates the energy, optimism, emotional resilience and determination to overcome obstacles.
The correct pathway to reinvention depends upon many factors such as your industry, market environment, risk tolerance, financial flexibility and business ecosystem.
We will now look at five career reinvention strategies to help you think accurately about what type of reinvention is best suited for you.
- Whole Change. You are a chief marketing officer who has always secretly had an interest in the hospitality business. You are socially bold and comfortable in all types of interpersonal dynamics. You are also highly imaginative and naturally creative. You quit and buy a (potentially) trendy bed and breakfast. You liked the fact that it is located in an up and coming resort town. Based upon your research and passion for running this type of business, you feel certain there is unmet demand in this area for a chic boutique hotel. You plan to redesign the property, target successful professionals and market through a robust website and your LinkedIn network. People enjoyed doing business with you as a CMO, and you are certain that many will welcome the opportunity to travel to this destination to support your new venture. The decision is based upon your values, interests and strengths and is, to an extent, a leap of faith.
Whole Change Reinvention implies a holistic change. This type of change impacts both career and lifestyle – you are all in. - Existing Skill Development. You are an accountant but you always remark that this is just your day job. Your real passion is gourmet French cooking. Your mother was French and you joyously helped her as a young child while she created fabulous dinners. You love to hold dinner parties and amaze friends with your culinary creations. You have developed a bit of a following and cater parties at least once a month. You’ve gained confidence but are conservative. So, you start a private dinner company on the side that creates turnkey gourmet dinner parties. Your second year shows real promise and you decide to go for it. You quit your job and open a premier Parisian-focused catering company. Even though this is a departure from what you are currently doing, this is clearly a less risky strategy than whole change. Here you already possess skills you believe are marketable and aren’t starting from scratch to learn something completely new.
Existing Skill Development Reinvention implies leveraging skills you already possess into a new career. - Leveraging Present Career Into a Related Field. You are an up-and-coming business banker but are tired of the bureaucracy and corporate politics that comes with working for a large bank. You begin taking classes, study hard and pass the exam to become a Certified Financial Planner. Your current position involves spending a lot of time with entrepreneurs. You understand their psyche and how to help people realize their entrepreneurial dream through prudent financial and risk management. On your own time and at no charge, you sit on the board of three entrepreneurial companies. You add value and are credible – these entrepreneurs like and trust you. You open a financial consulting firm and these three companies become your first clients.
Leveraging Present Career Into a Related Field Reinvention implies leveraging your resume and current professional skills – then creating a new ecosystem, driven by you. - Reposition Skills Internally. You are an IT professional but you are a great presenter and natural teacher. You know how to take technical material and make it simple. You have a dry wit and genuinely encourage people to ask questions. So, you create a job description and propose the creation of a new position as IT Training Director. The position would allow you to develop and deliver new technical training programs to all employees. Your seminars will provide employees with a real understanding of the problems that computers can solve. As importantly, participants will believe that management is committed to helping employees gain knowledge and improve skills. Management agrees and the new position of IT Training Director is created for you.
Reposition Skills Internally Reinvention implies that you leverage your strengths, gain recognition and reposition yourself with your present employer. - Take on a Stretch Assignment. You are a top producing salesperson but you know your strength lies in creating great marketing strategies. You have a passion for marketing and have studied positioning and effective marketing campaigns your entire career. You freelance on the side and know that you are very effective in creatively designing marketing strategies. You speak to a headhunter and present your qualifications for a Director of Marketing position. Your resume doesn’t necessarily reflect your qualifications but you are determined. You knock on doors and network. Eventually, this activity leads to results and you get a real offer. You quit your present job to become the Director of Marketing for a new firm.
Take on a Stretch Assignment Reinvention implies that you get a new and bigger job that leverages your strengths – this new job can be internal or external.
Reinvention involves asking yourself the difficult questions.
Where are you?
How did you get here?
What path do you need to take?
What are your areas of strength and what weaknesses do you have that can derail you?
Do you need to make a big all in whole change?
Can you take an existing talent and create a successful commercial enterprise?
Can you use your resume as social proof and open your own company?
Can you take your skill set and apply it in a unique way within your present company to create your own position?
Can you mold your present job so that it includes more of what you love to do?
Can you take on a stretch assignment and move up the ladder?
Your biggest challenge in this process might just be your own psyche. This is where TLT Coaching and our individual coaching options can help. Don’t be afraid to obtain coaching to help you sift through your own mental blockages, connect with your core strengths and help you to plan for your own success.
Go…reinvent yourself!