Midlife Career

85 Mid-life
Career
Change Tips
Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

www.positionignition.com
Hello!
When we reach the mid point in our lives, it can feel like a watershed. Many of us may feel stuck or frustrated in our
current careers or maybe we havent even decided what we want to be when we grow up yet! We tell ourselves that if
we were younger, we would be changing careers. But why not change careers in mid-life? It may seem impossible,
given employers attitudes towards older workers and the commitments we find ourselves with in this stage of life
but many successful mid-life career changers have proven that it is actually very possible indeed. Some of those
inspirational figures with successful experience of mid-life career change in fact work with Position Ignition as
Career Guides. Our Guides give our clients insights that can only be gained through real life experienceand a lot
of the time this involves career changes at a variety of life stages.
This eBook focuses specifically on mid-life career change and is packed full of tips from our Career Guides on:
Pinpointing what it is you want from the latter part of your working life
Overcoming the fear of a mid-life career switch
Fitting a career shift around your current circumstances, constraints and criteria
Planning your career change
Getting up to date and up to speed in the job market
Marketing your wisdom and experience to get the career you want
Successfully adapting to a new career and new role.

What Do You Want?

Before you even begin the career change process, you should get clear on what you want from your working life. You have
plenty of time to do this, even if it feels like youre at that stage in life where time is running out. Instead of rushing things
along, follow these tips in order to gain the clarity youll need to get to where you need to be.
1. Make sure that you want to change careers in the first place. If your main reason for considering a change is that you
feel youre working in the wrong place, have you talked about that to your employer? Many of us are scared of doing
this, thinking itll mean that we will get fired or be seen in a negative light at work. With good employers, this has
never been true and its certainly not the case now, as the lifting of the Default Retirement Age has given the best
employer organisations a new vision of how to get value from their older workers. Instead of dismissing you because
youre approaching the former magic number of 65, your boss is more likely to think about the long game and find
you work within the organisation that suits you better.
2. Apart from talking to your boss, there are several ways to find out about new career openings within your current
organisation. Go to company presentations, as these will give you the chance to meet new people and help you
understand whats going on in terms of potential areas of new business development.
3. Even if you want a new career, that doesnt necessarily mean you have to leave your current company in order to get
it. Open your mind to the possibility of the new career of choice being available right in the same building in which
youre currently based. Opportunities to find new jobs and careers within your organisation are more common than
you might think.

Your boss, if shes a good one, will know your strengths and passions better than almost anyone else in your work
life and if you talk to her about it, she may have some ideas of where within the business you can shift to.
4. If you definitely want a change of both career and organisation, target a career that is aligned with your qualities,
skills, background and experiences. Not only will you be happier in such a career and able to excel in it, employers
are more likely to give an older candidate a chance if they can prove through who they are that they are just as
capable of doing the same job as a younger worker, if not more so.
5. If youre not clear on what your strengths and preferences are, take the time to work them out. Itll be worth sitting
and reflecting on what you enjoy doing, what youre good at doing and what youve done a lot of. Think about these
things not only in terms of your current job, but in the context of all your previous roles too. Treat it as a brainstorm
and make notes on what you come up with.
6. Also look at what you did outside of work. What skills did you gain from all of what you have done so far? What
were you good at? What did you enjoy? How do these relate to what you are looking to do now?
7. Do not dismiss any strength or hobby as irrelevant, no matter how obscure or irrelevant it seems. For example, you
may be interested in Malaysian history but you want to be a banker. Look deeply for points of relevance between the
two. Take this example - Malaysia is a pioneer of Islamic banking, which is growing as a sector in Britain. A
conventional British bank may be interested in your understanding of Malaysian heritage if its looking to launch
sharia-compliant financial products.

8. If you find this kind of self-reflection challenging, consider working alongside a good Career Guide to explore who
you are. At Position Ignition, our Guides use your life story to help you construct a detailed picture of your values
and beliefs. We use a range of technical tools and processes to establish your passion and excellence. Youll also
have discussions with your Guide about a wide range of subjects and your life experiences. This will help you to
become more aware of the type of career youre suited to.
Overcoming the Fear Barrier

Think of that inner voice (that tells us we cant do something) as a
gremlin. Your internal gremlins might be stopping you from
getting what you want career wise. Although we may make the
excuse that no one wants to employ us in a new career area at our
age, it may be that were actually too afraid to test the water. Here
are some tips for dipping your toe in
9. Acknowledge your inner fear instead of ignoring it. This is
the first step to dealing with it. Theres no shame in
admitting that were scared, however old and battle-worn
we are.

10. The older we get, the more achievements we have under our belt. Even someone who feels theyve achieved nothing
in their life is able to write a long list of achievements if they think about it honestly enough. Going through the
different stages of your life-starting from childhood-make a list of everything youve achieved at school/work, with
your friends, as a member of your family, in relation to parenthood, in your relationships and whilst pursuing your
hobbies or charity work. Look at this list whenever you need reminding that you need not be scared of change-your
achievements show you are more than capable of succeeding on this new adventure.
11. If youre afraid of going into this adventure without knowing whats best for yourself, all you need to do is to think
about it. By the time you are in your mid-life, you have accumulated a mass of invaluable data about yourself as a
professional. By looking back over your work life, you can discover what works for you. With this knowledge, you
need not be scared of making mistakes in your career change.
12. Even if you make mistakes, or dont do something in the job application process that you should have, its not the end
of the world. Learn from mistakes and remember that youre still evolving as a human, never mind as a job seeker,
whatever your age. If youre frightened of moving forward, youll never move forward!
13. Doing something that others have successfully done makes the prospect less scary. For inspiration from people
whove been there and done that in terms of career change, have a look at some of the client stories on our website. A
lot of them involve mid-life career changes.

14. Perhaps youre scared of what others will think of you if you change
careers at your age. Do whats right for you instead of being put off
by what you imagine peoples opinions to be. Its unlikely that anyone
will think a mid-life career change is strange, given the increasing
fluidity of todays labour market.
15. Finally, dont be scared of doing something totally different. Just
because youve worked in the private sector for 30 years, for example,
doesnt mean you cant shift to the public sector. You can teach old dog
new tricks. Dont be boxed in by where you think the boundaries are.
Your age is not a boundary but a benefit as you have the experience and
maturity you need to make and cope with major changes in your life.

Fitting a Career Change around Your Life

In mid-life, the prospect of fitting a career change around other aspects of your life is more frightening than it was when you
were younger. You have dependants and responsibilities, and a growing panic, or despair that if you take the leap and leave
your current work, youll end up in limbo and unable to meet commitments such as mortgages and to provide for your
children. This is no reason for staying in a career you hate, however. If youre passionate and determined enough about the
career you want to change to, youll find a way to accommodate the process into your present life.
16. Make a list of your preferences and constraints, as these will influence the type of career you opt for and how you go
about getting it. For instance, you may prefer to work near your elderly parents if you like to check up on them
regularly. You may be constrained to working certain hours because of the timing of your childrens school runs.
Once you understand what you need to consider when getting a new career, you begin to make plans to make it all
work out.
17. Looking for a new career in itself is a full-time job. Even if youre not currently employed, youll still need to fit the
job search around your family and other responsibilities. Get organised by making a list of long-term job search
goals, a list of shorter-term goals and, finally, a list of daily tasks related to your job search. This will help you stay
on course during the career change and will give you an idea of what youll need to do every day.
18. Once you know what youre doing each day, you can prioritise. Put more time into the things that will give you the
most benefit. Make a timetable, including both career change tasks and other tasks and appointments.

19. If you do have a current job, dont overstretch yourself. Career change or no career change, you shouldnt be burning
yourself out at work anyway. Balance your current work with your job search by being realistic and not by trying to
be a superhero.
20. Get into the habit of keeping your emails organised. Not
only do you have to keep on top of work and personal
emails, you now have replies to your job applications to
contend with. Deal with anything urgent immediately and
create folders for important emails youll need to come back
to. Your email provider will probably allow you to tag
messages with colour coded flags so you wont forget to
follow them up. Finally, delete anything you dont need to
keep your inbox as clutter free as possible.
21. Are you most alert in the morning or the afternoon? Decide
when you do your best work and then plan your day around
this. A career change is life-changing so youll want to be
managing the most important aspects of it when youre most
alert.

Knowing Your Key Challenges

When you are in mid-career, it is vital that you understand the parameters that you are working within. These will probably
include:
22. Family: How much manoeuvrability do you have in terms of your professional working life when it comes to
considering your spouse and any children you have? Childrens education is a common reason why people do not, or
cannot, make mid-career shifts, particularly when the youngsters are hitting key points in their educational journey,
such as GCSEs or A-levels. Increasingly, as households need a second income earner within the families, the
spouses economic working is a key consideration, even more so if the life partner has taken time off from their
professional work - perhaps to raise the children when theyre young.
23. Financial situation: An analysis of your financial situation will help you understand just what scope for flexibility you
may have as you think through the challenges of a mid-career change. What are the minimum earnings that your
household needs? This is a different question to how much you or you and your partner earns. This is about setting a
minimum level of earning your household requires, because that might change your view of whats possible in terms
of your career. Your financial situation may also dictate your choices about where you want to live; both in terms of
location and type of dwelling.
24. Time: This journey is important so give yourself the time to work it all out. You will need a significant amount of
thought, consideration, time and investment in order to make this change smoothly and to make it the right career
change. There are many key stages and turning points to consider so take the time to do it.

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25. Flexibility: How much scope and how much flexibility do you actually have? For example, how many opportunities
do you have to alter your professional working life within the organisation you currently work for? Are you in danger
of walking away from it to explore where the grass is
greener without checking home base first? If youre
good at what you do, you may find your current
employer far more flexible then maybe you had even
realised. You may wish to adjust your working life
from full-time to part-time as an initial step to changing
your professional contribution in the economy and the
longer term. For example, moving from five days
working a week to three days may be the best way to
make time for training, obtaining qualifications or
embarking upon a second career that you plan to build
up in parallel with your first.
26. Clarity about what you want to do now: Often the
biggest challenge is translating your experience and
capability into an effective mid-career change. Its not a
skill that we are able to practice since the provision of the skill through our schools and universities, and indeed in our
professional careers, tends to be underdeveloped. Neither is it something that is easy to do for oneself. However you
pursue this challenge, it is absolutely paramount that you do get clear, as one of the biggest mid-career issues is the
frustration from an individual in their current state and an inability to understand how to break out and do things
differently.

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Planning Your New Career

To ensure you choose the right career for you, it's important to do some planning. Choosing a career can't be done
overnight, it takes time to think things through and work out the best options for you.
27. Be prepared to be patient. A career change can take any amount of time, be it 6 weeks or 3 years, so be sure youre in
this for the long haul before you commit anymore time to changing careers. If you skip the planning stage just
because youre in a rush, itll take longer to find the right career because you havent done the groundwork.
28. . A career change can be a tough and tiresome task. Be efficient in terms of where you target your energy and effort
in order to get the outcome you want without completely burning out. Were not as young as we were when we were
looking for our first job, so we must learn to manage our lower energy levels shrewdly.
29. By now you should have a clearer idea about who you are and what you want. To identify a career thats right for
you, write down all the possible careers that align with your strengths, preferences and constraints. If youre unsure of
which careers align with you in this way, talk it through with a Position Ignition Career Guide, who will help you
come up with career ideas once theyve spent time getting to know you by discussing your life with you.
30. You can also get a quick idea about some potential fields that may be suited to you by doing a few online career
personality tests. These psychometric tests wont give you a definitive answer on your ideal career, but they may give
you a few ideas you may not have thought of yet. Dont rely on these for an answer but instead, use them to fuel new
thoughts, suggestions and alternative ideas.

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31. Research different careers by reading about them-take a look online, take relevant books out from your local library,
or read up about career ideas through newspapers and magazines.
32. Get experimenting. The best way to find out what a particular type of work or role is really like is to try it out. You
can do this through voluntary work, work shadowing or offering to do pro bono work for people you know. There
may also be an opportunity for learning via secondments as well depending on your role and organisation.
33. Go to conferences and seminars within the career fields you're interested in. These can be really valuable as a source
of learning, understanding, and exploration and also as a way to engage with new, potentially very helpful people.
34. If you want to get a regular feel for your target area of work,
join a club or group that will allow you to participate in relevant
activities. E.g. The Executive Network (TEN) or Women in
Technology are both organisations for specific people with
specific interests. Seek out groups that are most relevant and
helpful to you.
35. Once youve identified which career youre going to target,
research different organisations that offer roles relevant to that
career. Employers have wildly varied approaches to managing
older employees so research each companys policy and
attitude towards mature workers to help you find a good fit.

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Negotiating todays Job Market

If you dont want to be seen as an old fogey, dont act like one in the job market. Get up to speed with todays job search
culture, as well as technology, services and other tools you can use as weapons in your career-switching arsenal.
36. Build upon your technological knowledge. Technology is such a big part of work and recruitment now that its worth
investing the time in learning I.T. skills, including social media and video technology.
37. One social media site that you should make particular effort to get to grips with is LinkedIn, as this is a social
networking site specifically targeted towards professionals. As well as providing job listings, LinkedIn is also
populated by employer organisations, recruitment professionals and recruiting managers. By mingling on LinkedIn,
you never know where it could lead. Check out our eBook called 100 Ways to Use LinkedIn Effectively in Your Job
Search for more help on this.
38. Use what you know once you know it. If, for instance, youve learnt how to make your own video and can upload it
to YouTube, consider making a video to announce the fact that youre looking for work. On the Position Ignition
career blog is an example of an experienced professional who did just this, (Peter the great job searcher video blog)
39. Its not just I.T skills you may want to learn. Youre never too old to learn new skills and you may need to learn
specific skills to break into the career of your choice. This might include anything from bookkeeping to public
speaking. Contact your local further education college to see what courses they have on offer.

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40. You may be able to train up in new skills on the job. Ask any potential new employers if they offer in-house training
opportunities. This shows that youre willing to learn, in spite of all the experience you already have. More growth,
development and learning means continual added value to the organisation.
41. Alternatively, if you want one-to-one support in acquiring competencies, speak to us at Position Ignition. Our guides
help clients build their confidence in areas such as presentations, negotiation and public speaking.
42. Dont get so caught up in social networking-and offline networking-that you forget about your existing contacts. The
best way to find out about the current labour market is to ask people who you already know are in the know. You
might be surprised by which of your close contacts can give you some interesting inside information on your chosen
career area.
43. Thats not to say that meeting new people doesnt have its merits. By making connections with people in the world
you want to get into, youre giving yourself scope for discovering how the sector or industry works, where your target
role fits into it and which organisations are the most relevant currently. As well as using LinkedIn and other social
media, attend business networking events within the industry you want to tap into.
44. Networking, however, can be easier said than doneespecially face-to-face networking. Youve had time to grow
comfortable in your current life and it may have been decades since youve gone out and made new work
connections. Before you start a new phase of networking be clear on what you're going to tell people. Plan
beforehand what you would say if you had two or three minutes to tell someone what you want to do. Check out our
Networking eBook to be at the top of this game.
45. Finding new connections isnt about turning up to an event and handing out as many business cards as possible. Take
the time to talk to each person you meet. Really listen to what they have to say and if you find them interesting,

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believe they could be beneficial for you, or even that you could be beneficial to them-give them your business card
and be sure to get theirs.
46. Once back at home, dont count on the fact that new connections will follow you up. Also dont fall into the trap of
thinking that because someone doesnt follow you up means they dont want to hear from you. If youve clicked with
someone and they gave you their business card, they will want to hear from you, even if theyre too disorganised or
shy to contact you first
47. If youre currently employed and dont have time to attend a college in person, consider doing an online courses.
With most of these, you can choose which times you do your studying and can work through the curriculum at your
own pace, within reason.
48. Use current language as well as learning current skills. Ensure
CVs use the latest jargon and drop anything that has lost
currency. In some industries the lingo moves on quickly so its
pointless to use old terminology which is long gone. Research
the technical terms relevant to your target career if you dont
know much about it yet.
49. Dont think all the hard work is done after youve edited your
CV to make sure its relevant: Always, always proofread and
spellcheck it before sending it off, paying particular attention to
technical jargon words that arent easy to spell.

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50. Telephone potential leads first so as not to send a CV cold.

51. Make your job applications about quality, not quantity. Being in the same role or company for several decades makes
it easy for us to lose touch with effective job application strategies. Remember that frenetic activity does not equate to
career openings. We can be tempted to spray our CVs around but this is not the most productive method.
52. Although it may be tempting to use recruitment agencies or headhunters if you already have a senior career and dont
have much job seeking time, you cant rely on them to magic up a job for you. Your CV is just one of hundreds to
them. Given they have so many fellow candidates to choose from you cannot depend on this as your only route to
finding a new career. See our eBook called How to Get the Job You Want to understand the most effective process
and strategies for this.
53. Only about 30% of jobs are actually advertised so research other ways in to potential employers. Receptionists are
only a phone call away and theyre usually very willing to provide information and help, including about upcoming
vacancies.

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Use What Youve Got

Instead of seeing you as past it or over the hill, appreciate that youve accumulated a lot of wisdom and experience over
the years that many employers would be foolish not to value. Heres how to convince potential bosses that your age will add
value to their organisation, not hinder it.
54. It may have been a while since you had to go to a job interview but remember that you want to do yourself justice by
presenting yourself as the mature, responsible and experienced worker you are. Dont make schoolboy errors such as
turning up late or leaving your Blackberry on.
55. Be specific about what youre offering. Yes, you can bring the wisdom of your years to a new career, but your
potential new employer will also want to know what youre
offering in terms of your talents, qualities and background. In
job interviews, back up claims of what you can do with
examples of times youve used your skills set or dealt with a
situation using your specific qualities.
56. Dont be shy in promoting what youre best at. In an
interview, even if none of the panels questions allow you to
talk about the thing you are best at or most passionate about;
you can still bring it up when the interviewers ask if you have
any questions. Reply, Can I take this opportunity to talk
about my skill in taking the stage for a presentation/my
ability to make people feel good about themselves/my

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passion for animal rights/etc?. Check out our Interview eBooks for complete confidence in your interviews.
57. Make it clear that you are able to transfer your skills to a new career. When networking, on your applications and in
your interviews, stress that you understand what skills you would need to transfer to which aspects of the new type of
work. Give examples of times when youve transferred a skill from one part of your life to another. For instance, you
may have transferred the ability to multi-task as a young office junior to parenthood.
58. Get Passionate - Without real passion for a role it will be difficult to get. Even if you do get it you will find it
difficult to maintain and grow within and beyond it. What you want here is the right role. This means something
that you are truly passionate about. It might take a bit of experimenting to find what floats your boat but it will be
worth it when you have found it.
59. Get clear about your boundaries. Being clear about what works and what doesnt work for you in order to be happy
can be groundbreaking. It sounds simple but so many of us do not actually take the time to work it out. In each
different work situation we may have different boundaries. By being clear about what they are and then
communicating this clearly to others and staying true to what is important will make a huge difference. This
impacts work and your personal settings.
60. Use the relationships you already have to your advantage. This is important from all aspects. If you learn to manage
your relationships effectively you will be able to control the process and transition. You will be able to manage your
exit smoothly from your current or old role. Understanding where your old boss is coming from and the impact you
have on him/her and how you interact could really influence how you leave a job. How you get your next job and
keep it may also rely heavily on your ability to manage relationships well.

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Keeping Up the Momentum

As you move through your career change its easy to lose momentum, so look at the following suggestions as ways to keep
the motivation and energy going.
61. Act smart - It is so important that we dont exhaust ourselves in the career change transition. Why? There are two
reasons, at least. One is - whenever you meet anybody who is influential to your career change, and particularly when
you are being interviewed and assessed, you need to be on your best form. When you start your new job, its a time of
excitement and acceleration, and also stress. Again, you need to be rested and you need to be on your best form.
Acting smart is about good habits and taking care of yourself.
62. Dont be distracted - Its so easy to pick up newspapers, to login to online recruitment boards and to get driven along
by the seduction of a job that looks just right for us. The thing is, therell be hundreds of other people who think its
just right for them too. If you havent followed steps 1 and 2 above, the propensity for you to waste time by being
distracted in this way is high. When some people call the recruitment game for a candidate a lottery, its because the
candidate puts themselves in a position where theyre not in control. When youre distracted, you lose control.
63. Set a routine -The most effective way of keeping yourself motivated during a career change is to have a clear routine
for each day. Whilst some of this will be around the mechanics of your job searchi.e. researching organisations and
background reading around the sector your planning to be interviewed by--your routine should also involve other
things that keep you fit for the changing process, such as exercising (it could be gentle exercise such as yoga or

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walking), eating welland drinking less! Whatever routinely you establish for yourself needs to be as well thought
through and balanced as if you were preparing for a marathon.
64. Keep your connections up to speed - Its highly probable that as you make your career change, youll be connecting
to some key people in your network. These people are not only important to you in the process of making a shift; they
are also important sources of energy and motivation for you. By keeping them in the loop and letting them know what
it is youre doing and where you are in the process, you also give them the opportunity to view how things are in the
market and to also keep tabs on you throughout a
potentially challenging time.
65. Think about the reasons why youre making this career
change and the benefits that will come from it.
Sometimes its easy to lose focus and to forget the
reason why were doing this as things become tough.
Create a list outlining why youre doing this and what
you are trying to achieve.
66. Think back to the other times in your life when youre
achieved something massive. Remember the energy it
gave you and how it boosted your confidence, acting as
a launch pad for other achievements and milestones in
your life. Dont underestimate what a huge

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achievement changing careers also is. Yes, its a challenging process, which is why we find it hard, but once youve
successfully moved to your new career, think of how much more satisfying itll be because of the obstacles youve
had to overcome. Keep this feeling of achievement in your line of sight.
67. A new life is exciting. Remember this. Leaving your old world for a completely new one can be scary, but itll also
be exciting. In your new career, youll be learning new skills, doing a different type of work, meeting new people,
working in a new environment and even travelling to work via a different route. Enjoying the newness of it all will
revitalise you and leave you with an energy that endures long after the initial novelty has worn off. This is what you
have to look forward to.

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Adapting to Your New Life

Starting all over again is a challenge but it can also be very exciting. The key to launching your new career successfully is to
be fully prepared and to keep an open mind.
68. Dont leave your current job on bad terms. Give proper notice and dont get angry or insult your boss on the last day.
You never know when you might need something from this employer again, even if you believe yourself to be
nearing the end of your working life.
69. It may sound obvious, but be sure you have all the material things youll need for your new career.
70. You may have reached the top in your previous career, but you might need to start nearer the bottom in a brand new
career area. See this as a positive-a chance to build a second career by learning new things every day and getting
excited about work again.
71. Starting at a more junior level than youve grown accustomed to may also involve taking a pay cut. Again, dont let
this put you off. If you really, really want this particular career, youll adapt to cutting your cloth to suit temporarily,
until you start moving up the ranks.
72. Its one thing to talk about transferring skills in the job interview, but when you actually have the job; its a whole
other ball game to use those transferable skills in a real world situation. Prepare yourself to do so by making a list of
your transferable skills and looking at where they fit in in terms of your new career.
73. Its always a pain to orientate yourself to a new organisational universe when youre starting a new job, let alone a
new career. It is important not to feel overwhelmed by the challenge but to take the time to read all the relevant

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introductory material, company guidelines and policies. Giving yourself a foundation like this will make things easier
in the long run.
74. Dont feel like because youre older youre expected to
already know all the answers. When your new boss says feel
free to ask questions, they really do mean that. Even if they
dont say this, ask questions anyway. Ask if you dont know
how to do something, if you want to check how a procedure
works, or if you want to know where something is. Dont be
shy about asking questions to do with other departments or
business areas. All youre doing is immersing yourself in the
new companys culture.
75. Build a few key relationships with people who you feel you
can trust. Even if thats only one person at the moment, they
can help you find your feet and get acquainted with whats
what.
76. Dont take everything at face value. There are a lot of hidden networks within many organisations. Identify the real
players and influencers within the organisation by building upon your key relationships day-by-day and asking the
right people the right questions. Dont feel restricted to interacting with people within your own age range. Younger
workers can often be the most clued up, as line managers and supervisors are increasingly young these days.
77. Subtle ways of getting clued into whats really going on include listening to whats happening around you and
following email trails.

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78. However good your reputation was at your old place, it counts for nothing. People wont assume youre wise because
youre older, you have to show your wisdom. Remember that your performance is being judged constantly. Even if
youre new, youre still being paid to do a job. Show something tangible that correlates with your time in the office.
79. If youre unclear as to whats expected of you in terms of performance, its important to get clear. Be sure your
perception of the expectations and aspirations surrounding you are aligned with line bosses, peers, and subordinates.
80. The only way to do this is to communicate! Open up discussions right from the start. Get clear on shared
understanding of aims, potential obstacles and timeframes.
81. This doesnt mean you should just go in there on the first day and ask whats expected of you without any prior
inkling of what the answer might be. Before your first day, write down as much as you can about what your
understanding of objectives, expectations, and possible barriers is.
82. Once youre well underway in your new role, dont forget to get feedback from bosses and peers. This will give you
an idea of what youre doing right and what you can improve on.
83. Stretch yourself! When embarking on a new career, it may be tempting not to challenge yourself. Im new to this; I
shouldnt push myself too hard-Im retiring in a few years anyway. Whilst this is true, this doesnt mean you
shouldnt push yourself at all. Professional Development can start-or continue-from Day 1 of a new career!
84. Even though youve been careful to choose a new career thats enjoyable and suited to you-be sure not to overwork:
you cant escape the fact that youre older than when you started your first career, so you wont have the same energy
levels as you did then. Be realistic about what you can and cant do.

25
85. Finally, give yourself a big pat on the back-youve done it and proven that mid-life career change is not only possible
but can be done successfully. Celebrate this. Pamper yourself at the weekend or buy a new novel to read on the
commute to and from your new job. Every milestone is worth marking and a career change is no exception.

26
More Position Ignition eBooks

(Visit our website to download: www.positionignition.com)
o 100 Essential Career Change Tips
o 135 Networking Career Tips
o 125 LinkedIn Job Search Tips
o 125 Twitter Job Search Tips
o How to Get the Job You Want
o Getting Started with Interviews: Quick Guide
o How to Ace the Interview
o Up Your Game, Up Your Pay! (85 Tips in Salary
Negotiation)
o Moving into Retirement in the 21st Century

27
Contact Us
Position Ignition Ltd is one of the UKs leading career consulting and career management companies. Founded
towards the end of 2009 by Simon North and Nisa Chitakasem, they have brought together some of the best
career guides in the industry, providing much needed high quality career support and guidance to professional
working men and women. Position Ignition helps working professionals to identify where they would like to go
next, what roles they will find fulfilling and how to go about getting it. Their focus is on helping people to make
successful career changes, establish smart job search strategies, find focus and direction in their careers and
take control of their own career development.
Position Ignition offers support through a variety of ways including one on one career support, programmes,
workshops, career courses, seminars, webinars, ebooks and through their popular Career Advice Blog. They
regularly offer expert advice in the media, press and in places like the Guardian Careers Clinics. They offer a
free initial phone consultation via their website if youd like to find out more or explore how they can help you.
Find out more at: www.positionignition.com or Email: enquiries@positionignition.com
Visit the Position Ignition Career Blog: www.positionignition.com/blog
Follow Position Ignition on Twitter: http://twitter.com/posignition
Like Position Ignition on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/PositionIgnition
We hope that you have found this eBook useful! For comments, feedback or suggestions email us at:
enquiries@positionignition.com

28

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85 Mid-life

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

What Do You Want?

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Overcoming the Fear Barrier

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Fitting a Career Change around Your Life

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Knowing Your Key Challenges

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Planning Your New Career

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Negotiating todays Job Market

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

50. Telephone potential leads first so as not to send a CV cold.

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Use What Youve Got

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Keeping Up the Momentum

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

Adapting to Your New Life

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

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Copyright 2011 Position Ignition - 85 Mid-Life Career Change Tips

More Position Ignition eBooks

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