Want to Have a Second Act Career 3 Big Tips - Career Pivot

Want to Have a Second Act Career 3 Big Tips - Career Pivot Career Tips for Your Second Act Have you thought of doing something different in your “second act?” I have made six career changes, and three of those were after I passed the forty years barrier. I’ve made just about every mistake possible. My goal is to give you some tips as you prepare for your second act career. Let’s get started. Tip #1 â€" Know Thyself Most of us who have worked for 20 to 30 years have remade ourselves into the image of the employee that companies desire. For example, I am a closet introvert. I was a very shy kid. However, I was trained to present and be social during my 22-year tenure at IBM. I became really good at it. I even convinced myself that I am an extrovert. However, when I pursued a dream jobâ€"teaching high school math at an inner-city high schoolâ€"being on stage all of the time was one of the factors that wore me out and caused me to quit after two years. I did not know who I really was and what I needed in a job. Before you choose a second act, reflect back on your career and when you were the happiest. Who was your best boss and why was he/she your favorite? What was the makeup of your favorite team to work with? When did you feel valued at work? What made you feel this way? When did you have the right level of activity? This is much more important than you think! How do you deal with rules and who creates those rules? (I do not like rules! Schools generally want teachers who are very compliant.) How do you like to be treated on a one-on-one basis? Do you like people to be direct with you? How do you recharge yourself? Are you energized by being around people or by yourself? When I went to teach high school, most of my needs were not met. I was exhausted at the end of my first year. Tip #2 â€" Talents and Skills Can you tell someone about your natural talents? Notice I said natural talents and not skills. In the marketplace, we are paid for our skills. We develop skills because our employers want us to use specific skills. Can you differentiate between your talents and skills? Burnout usually comes from overusing a skill that is not tied to a natural talent. Have you ever thought to yourself, “I just do not want to do this job anymore.” I bet you were overusing a skill not tied to a natural talent. Think about it. When I told people that I wanted to leave a high-paying tech training position to teach high school, I heard the following responses: Listen to the most recent episode Why would you want to leave? You are so good at it. Why would you want to leave? You are paid so well. I just didn’t want to do it anymore! What skills do you want to carry forward into your second act career? What skills do you want to leave behind? Tip #3 â€" Be Prepared In Case You Fail This concept is very foreign to most of us who grew up with the space program. The mantra offailure is not an optionwas beat into us. What I am telling you is that failure ISan option, as long as you fail fast, learn from your mistakes, and have a Plan B. In my post Recovering from My 3 Biggest Career Mistakes, I wrote that I did best when I failed fast (six months), learned multiple lessons about myself and what I needed in the workplace, and had a Plan B already in place. The world is changing too fast for you to be successful every time. You must mitigate risk both financially and emotionally. It is alright to fail! Wow…ain’t that a new concept?! Silicon Valley has embraced the mantra Fail Fast, Fail Often, Fail Everywhere.So can you. Take stock of who you are, what skills you want to continue to use, and be prepared to fail. Get up and try again and again and… Are you ready for your second act? This post first appeared on FlexJobs.com. Marc Miller Like what you just read? Share it with your friends using the buttons above. Like What You Read? Get Career Pivot Insights! Check out the Repurpose Your Career Podcast Do You Need Help With ...