Coaching Model / Phase 5
Phase 5 - Reinvention
This page lays out a sequence of tasks required for career reinvention.
Career reinvention is the launching of a new beginning and a new chapter in your life towards the long-term plan. But rather than a big jump into a career reinvention - which would likely cause the emotional brain to put the anchors on. We need to appeal to the emotional brain. So, it’s a case of slicing reinvention really thin. It consists of “gradually exposing” the emotional brain to the unknown, unfamiliarity and uncertainty of a potential new career.
The “gradual exposure” works by a slow, methodical staggered, step-by-step approach. It begins with smaller, easier tasks, then progresses to bigger more challenging tasks. At every step, emotional brain can slowly adjust, get familiar, get comfortable and “get used to” the idea of the new career. This will make change feel “less scary.”
The first task begins with exploring new career ideas & interests, but first it would help you to give you an idea of the kinds of career reinventions blokes normally go through and to introduce omens.
What Kinds of Midlife Career Reinventions Do Blokes Normally Go Through?
Generally, midlife career reinvention follows one of four pathways.
First, a Streamlined Reinvention of Their Current Career: For some men this is enough. In phase 2, recalibration gives them time and space. In phase 3, they plan for retirement. In phase 4, they let go of “trying to keep up with the Joneses.” Combine this with the security of a regular paycheck and they have the perfect soil to plant and nurture seeds for a side hustle or to explore their creative side. For example, they do their job during the day - and in the evenings they run wood working groups - or do-up and sell cars at the weekends - or run weekend scout camps.
Second, a Reinvention to an Adjacent Field: For example project management to management consulting - working direct or contracting / freelance.
Third, Starting a Business in a Similar Field: For example working for a large property developer, then starting a business property developing.
Fourth, a ‘Full’ Reinvention to a Different Field: This is constructing a new career from scratch. For example, general manager turned basketball coach – or the consultant turned aged care worker – or town planner turned kindergarten teacher.
“Second-Act Careers”
The second, third and fourth pathways, could be called “second-act careers.” Although they may have changed jobs and careers before, the term “second-act” refers to making a clear-cut shift from their “big” career in the first half of their lives to a more meaningful ‘second’ career in the second half of their lives.
While the fourth pathway is a big second act into something completely new, the second and third pathway, in some way, shape or form is related to what they did before. For the second and third pathways, they recycle their skills and talents. They figure out which parts of their old career they most enjoyed (skills, people, companies, places, industry) and then blend the ‘old’ pieces with ‘new’ interests, causes and purpose. By doing so, they leverage their “career capital” “body of work” and “years of experience” into a new career.
Phases of Coaching Model Still Apply
Even though the four pathways are different, the 5 phases of the midlife coaching model still apply.
Multiple Career Reinventions
A man might go through the second reinvention pathway, move to an adjacent field, then four years later, take reinvention pathway four, and go through a ‘full’ reinvention to a different field. Alternatively, he might go through pathway four, do a full reinvention, and then return to a modified version of his previous career.
The Goal of Each Pathway
While the midlife career reinvention pathways are different, they each contain, in some way shape or form, the same goal - to discover a different relationship to themselves, to nature, to “the simple things” and create a meaningful humble lifestyle friendly career that expresses who they really are. In other words, a career where they can be themselves.
Now, I’ll introduce omens.
Following Omens to The Unlived Life
When you put energy out there to the world that you’re open to change, the world provides feedback through what I call “omens.” Omens are the worlds way of supporting you, telling you that you’re okay and giving you direction. In phase 3, you may have begun assessing the unlived life within you. Well, while we have half an idea of what that could look like, it’s omens that show us the way.
Generally, we plan for our future life based on what we’ve done in the first half of life. We’ve got tunnel vision. We can’t see a life that could be far outside of what we already know. In other words, we can’t see the unlived life within us. Therefore, we need to allow the world to show it to us. It does that through omens. Omens are signals or signposts from the world that shine a light on the path to the unlived life within you. Omens will show up in your life as coincidence, chance meetings, random encounters, twists of fate or unplanned conversations. Omens may look like this: At 42, a bloke went from being an electrician to being a music teacher. He used to play the guitar as a hobby. But in a chance meeting someone said to him “you should go into teaching.” So, he did. When the omens happen, they will “light you up” or “produce a spark” in you. They are signs that the world sees something in you that you don’t see in yourself. These ‘seemingly’ random events open the door for you to see parts or aspects of yourself that you haven’t seen before, show you a different side of yourself that you didn’t know existed or show you a new path.
So, throughout phase 5 reinvention, be open and flexible to allowing the world to show you a life you can’t yet see. Be open to going in a different direction than you had planned. The unlived life may closer than you think. It could be standing just outside the door of your everyday awareness, waiting for you to pay attention and invite it in. So, pay attention to when these omens occur, and they will occur. Let go of the fixed plan and follow the signals the world gives you. See what the world invites you to see. And then respond by following the trail of breadcrumbs. Let life steer you where it wants you to go, and you will find the unlived life.
For my own Omen example, I met my life coach of 4 years, when I booked accommodation for a weekend away. She then opened the door for me to leave construction and go back to school to study counselling and psychology. That one chance random accommodation booking changed the course of the rest of my life. It showed me the unlived life.
Task 1 - Brainstorming New Career Ideas & Interests
This involves a systematic survey of your own experience by asking yourself a series of questions:
What are you interested in?
What ideas do you have about an new career?
How could you use your professional expertise?
Could you monetize your hobby?
Could you package and sell your natural gifts and talents?
What were you interested in when you were younger?
What expresses you in some significant way?
What skills do you have, and how could they be useful to others?
Could you turn your passion into a profit?
Did you want to do a degree in something you liked, but took a more ‘sensible’ path?
Would you like to explore something unfinished?
When are you in a flow state?
What qualities do people say you have naturally?
Who is encouraging you to follow your interests?
Second-act Careers and So Good They Cant Ignore You are both useful books to read here.
Task 2 - Incubating New Career Ideas & Interests
An idea is a thought or suggestion as to a possible course of action. A decision is when you’ve reached a conclusion about what action to take. Between an idea and a decision lies incubation. So, after you’ve done the brainstorming and come up with a bunch of ideas & interests, you let them sit for a while. This is incubation.
This is where seeds are planted and given time to grow. You’re not quite ready to make any decisions, but you’re giving yourself time to think them over. Incubation is worthwhile because it allows you to come back to ideas & interests with a fresh perspective, look at things more objectively and make more level-headed decisions.
Task 3 - Researching New Career Options
Following the incubation stage, you make the decision to move forward with a handful of new career reinvention options. The next step is research. I help you research and explore these different options of reinvention. This may include: opportunities in a desired field, researching your target industry, a career that could be exciting, how to turn a skill into a side gig, a business you’d like to start, how you’d like to help the community or the kind of company you’d like to work for.
Task 4 - Find “Role Models” In The New Career Options
After research, I then help you identify or locate people who are already in the career you want to move into or who are already living the life you want to live. These people are beneficial in four ways:
First, they are real life examples that you can see, feel and hear what it’s like to work in that career. You see in them, what you could be; what is in reach. You see yourself in their shoes; doing what they do. In other words, you see in them, your future self. They are like a mirror reflecting your future self back at you. “I could do that” you say to yourself. On top of that, you can see their lifestyle and anticipate career earning potential.
Second, they act as “mentors” or “role models” of whats required in that career. You find out how they do what they do, “distil their formulae” or “find their blueprint,” uncover their successful features, and identify your skills gaps. Then you apply the lessons and skills in your life.
Third, they may see skills, attributes and talents in you that you don’t see in yourself. They may say, “with your skills, you could specialise in…”
Fourth, they act as a “guide” to give you direction into the new career and tell you what steps to take to bridge the gap from where you are to where they are. You can ask them: “What do I need to do to become a ….” “I want to do what you do. Where do I start? Then what do I do next?”
Decoding Greatness is a useful read for how to decode the success of others.
Task 5 - Find People Who Have Already Made Big Midlife Career Changes
Whats also useful is to identify or locate people who have previously made big career changes in midlife. These people could be friends, family members, colleagues or friends of friends. Instead of career direction, these folks provide change direction. They are examples of how to make change in midlife. Similar to the people above, you find out how they did what they did and apply the lessons to your life. Both of these people stimulate feelings of motivation and inspiration.
Task 6 - “Try Before You Buy” - Testing New Career Options
The next step is to take the research you’ve done and advice from the “role models” and look at a range of low-risk ways that you can test, experiment and “try new things on for size” or “try before you buy” to see whether you will like the new career. The goal is to literally see, touch, taste, hear and feel yourself in the new career. You begin doing things you never thought you’d do.
This includes:
Taking a workshop or short course in the new career
Freelancing, consulting or contract work to gain experience in the new career
Test the waters with a side hustle
Share your expertise as a lecturer, writer or speaker
Investigating how to start your own business
Spend a week pretending to be in a new role
Finding evidence other people are willing to pay for the skills you have
Visiting potential new workplaces
Sampling work in your potential field
Trying out the career via volunteering.
Some of this can be done in the evenings, weekends or by taking annual leave days. During this step you may ask yourself: “why do what I’m doing, when I can do this?”
Task 7 - Interviews
After the testing, and you’re interested in a career option, the next step would be to apply and try and get an interview. But during the interviews we’re shifting attention away from the ‘end goal’ to a ‘process’ of investigation. Instead of seeing interviews as shots at a target (damn, missed again!). Each interview is there to teach you something or create a new contact or deepen your understanding of yourself. The goal is to search and learn, rather than not finding what you’re after. The process is about detecting the inner signals of “rightness” and listening into that for direction. In other words, we don’t know what we want until we go looking.
Task 8 - Leverage Existing Career Skills To New Career
The role models, testing and interviews will generate awareness that your existing career skills like leadership, client management, problem solving, organisation, negotiation, time management and communication can be leveraged and transferred into the new career. You will see that your career capital and body of work from over the last 15-20 years is looked upon as rare and valuable.
Task 9 - New Career Opportunities & Pathway
The role models, testing and interviews will open up new opportunities and new conversations. You will begin to see a pathway to a new career. This typically looks like someone offers you full-time or part-time work or starting a business feels the right move. Whatever it is, it “feels right” or “clicks into place.” The change stimulates feelings of growth, empowerment and aliveness.
Task 10 - Exit Strategy, Accept the offer and Hand In Notice
(If taken Option 1 Parallel - moving into reinvention while you’re still in your current job)
Now comes the transition into the new career. Up to now, you’re still in your current role / career. Nothing has changed yet. It’s just exploration of options, experiments and planning. But now you’re ready to make the move. It starts with an exit strategy. I help you with an exit strategy and exit conversation. We look back on our work together to clarify if you are 100% making the right call. If it feels right, you accept the offer of your new career role. Then you have the exit conversation, hand in your notice, complete your notice period, and exit.
Keeping You On Track
In your new role, I “keep you on track” and “steer you in the right direction” by continuously investigating and exploring whether the new career direction aligns with you and gets you closer to your vision. Including refocusing goals, examine priorities, solidifying concepts and asking the question “are the actions you’re taking getting you closer or further away from your vision?”
Remodelling Life Economically
Your life in some way, shape or form may need to be remodelled economically. It might mean different investments, budgeting, selling a car, a smaller house or a new loan to finish paying off the kids tuition.
It’s a Temporary Move
A good way to think about reinvention is that “it’s a temporary move.” None of it is permanent. It’s is all low risk. If it doesn’t “feel right” if you need to, you can always go back to your previous career, life, knowledge, connections, network, experience, salary and lifestyle.
What have you got to lose?
There is always a job to go back to.
