What I've Learned in One Year of Reinventing My Career From Corporate Professional to Full-Time Entrepreneur

When I was laid off last year from my corporate role of ten years, I was freakishly excited and scared.  Excited because I was given the opportunity to reinvent my career and terrified because I was given the opportunity to reinvent my career.  You see my dilemma, right? What I’ve learned is that anything is possible with reinvention.

Give Yourself Space.  Rather than jump into finding my next role, I binged on Netflix while packing up my house as I was also in the middle of a move.  It sounds silly but my initial reaction to this life-altering change was shock and so Parenthood provided me an outlet to cry and laugh.  In essence, it allowed me to both grieve and celebrate what my former career was to me.  I gave myself space to be with my feelings and to process all the changes.  In his book, Let Your Life Speak, author, Parker Palmer says, “Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am”.   Not doing anything allowed me to be in a time of introspection and self-discovery.  It allowed me to just be.  Be with myself. My feelings. My thoughts. My heart. My dreams. Being (not doing) gave me access to connecting to the career and life experiences I really desired for myself and my family.  The most important thing to me was to do meaningful work where I could use my gifts, talents and strengths to make a difference and impact lives.  Once I became clear on the experience I wanted for my career, I explored all of the possible avenues including finding another corporate role, working for a non-profit, applying to a PhD program and being an entrepreneur.  I listened to what my life said and I chose to pursue my coaching career full-time.

 Find Your People  While I have a great network of family and friends, very few could relate to my endeavor as an entrepreneur.  In fact, most of them, while filled with good intentions advised me to just “get a job that paid the bills”.   As a single mom, I understand the importance of being able to provide for my family and I also believe in modeling to my kids that they can have a career they love and get compensated for it.  Thankfully, I have a strong coaching community locally that holds me accountable to what I say I want to create in my career.  I work with a coach 1:1 to support me in shifting my mindset and creating breakthroughs when I’m stuck.  In addition, I joined a mastermind designed for female entrepreneurs.  I not only get access to the other entrepreneurs but have access to my mastermind coach and her team. By far, these have been the best investments I have made.  “My people” allow me to reach out when I need support.  They provide me perspective, give me insight, tell me the truth, share best practices, let me bounce ideas off them, hold me accountable and help me in more ways than I could list.  Whether you work in a corporate environment or are an aspiring entrepreneur, find people who will support you in your vision.  Find mentors, sponsors and/or accountability partners.  Join a mastermind or hire a coach. If you're making a transition to being an entrepreneur, look into small business development centers, workforce centers or franchise consultants.  Even local colleges have resources. Many services are free or charge nominal fees.  Create a community that wants to see you succeed. 

Keep Learning  I know how to be with people. I know how to coach. I even have experience in sales and project management but I’ve never run my own business.  When I first started, I didn’t know how to create a sales funnel, a compelling branding message or a 90-day strategic plan from an entrepreneurial perspective.  I’ve had to learn along the way.  In the last 6 months, my knowledge has more than doubled.  I’ve been learning from those around me, from online courses, podcasts, books, conferences and mostly from my own experiences.  I’ve tried things with my business – some things worked, some things didn’t.  This goes with coaching too.  I’m mastering my craft and I can’t imagine a time will come that I will say I know it all.  Things are always changing.  Just look at how social media has changed the game.  Wherever you are in your career, keep learning. If you’re not moving forwards, you’re falling backwards.   If you don't believe me, ask Kodak.

Zig Ziglar said, “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great”.  There’s nothing perfect and absolute about reinvention or career transition.  It’s not picture perfect with a straight line leading to however you’ve defined success and happiness.  It’s more like one of those crazy roller coaster rides from Great America.  Sometimes you are trucking along slowly, making progress and enjoying the ride.  Sometimes you are holding on for dear life and screaming the whole ride.  Wherever you are in the journey is okay.  Accept it.  Celebrate your wins. Learn from your mistakes. Be open to the experience.  Learn as you go.  Not just about your business but about yourself.   Reinvention is an exhilarating process! Enjoy it! There will always be the next ride.