A career is a time-bound thing
My sweet spots of expertise are relationships and money.
I believe mastering your understanding of yourself leads to stronger relationships and greater financial success.
I’ve worked hard over the past several years to develop a program that delivers just that to my coaching clients.
The 3 Career Journey Stages
A career is a time-bound thing. None of us get to live outside the reality of the clock and the calendar. Most of us hit our peak earning years between the ages of 35 and 54. It’s been said that the days go slowly but the years go fast. Nowhere in life is this more evident than in the workplace.
Competition demands that we be energetic
Change demands that we be flexible
Time constraints demand that we be wise
Like most things in life professional careers have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Check out the descriptions below and reflect on which best describes where you are in the journey that is your professional career.
Early 20’s to mid 30’s
Take-off Mode – you are relatively young with most of your journey ahead of you. You want to build something, and you have something to prove. But you also have an intention to be sure you’re headed in the right direction. There is an opportunity for this to be a period of experimentation and discovery. Your first job out of college provides you with an experiential path between the world of school and the world of work. But there are many forks in this path and there is no map. In the area of personal relationships your focus may have shifted from college friends to work friends. But that can be disorienting, since priorities don’t change at the same rate of speed for everyone. Parents may no longer be the central authority figures in your life; now your authority figures are bosses, clients, and customers. The goal of homeownership may seem to be challenged by school debt, not to mention the expense of attending friends’ weddings. The sheer number of options at this stage of life can be paralyzing.
Mid 30’s to late 50’s
Mid-flight Mode – you have some experience under your belt and a desire to continue to learn and grow, but you may be contemplating a course correction to optimize productivity and to better align your work with your values. Very often it will be your slowing metabolism that serves as a reminder that you are now in a different phase of life. Clothes that fit a bit more tightly may remind you that it’s time to get more serious about diet and exercise. Not only in the fitness arena but also in the other domains of your life, simply staying even seems to demand more focus and discipline. Thriving in a competitive economy requires initiative and hard work. Relationships with committed partners, kids, and friends require attention and effort. Time for yourself to just think and plan for the future can seem in short supply.
Late 50’s and beyond
Final Approach Mode – the budding awareness of the inevitable need to gracefully wind down your career creates a sense of urgency. Issues of personal finance are critical, as well as the needs of the other important people in your life. A long and happy life with good health is a universal goal, and by your 50’s the realization that you have “more yesterdays than tomorrow’s” starts to work its way into your approach to life and work. The natural desire to slow things down a bit comes up against the reality of having to compete with younger, more energetic people in the workplace. Your understandable desire to minimize drama may come up against the reality of your aging parents and/or a kid that just hasn’t quite launched yet. There may be a sense that your future financial security has already been largely determined by your past spending and saving decisions.