“Whatever fate befalls you, do not give way to great rejoicings or great lamentation; partly because all things are full of change, and your fortune may turn at any moment; partly because men are so apt to be deceived in their judgment as to what is good or bad for them.”-- Arthur Schopenhauer, Counsels and Maxims
Not sure where this is going. That's kind of my life at the moment. Having recently faced and experienced the disorienting and humiliating experience of being laid off (a whole other story by the way!) I find myself at a crossroads. One of those American 4 way stops (or a mini-roundabout in the UK) that you come across in the middle of nowhere. And that if you were not paying attention, or not wanting to pay attention, you would blow through (or over). Typically people blow through this particular intersection/cross roads. A wake up call of sorts, and most people roll over and go back to sleep.
I know that many people do experience a mid-life crisis. Often when they get laid off in their 40s or 50s, or empty nest in a marriage once the kids have flown the coup, or some other major life transition occurs. I suppose I am actually in that category! Of course the crisis comes when a way of life ends that no longer works or continues to be available to you, and since you are defined by what you do and the experience you have, this can be terrifying and maddening. In my case, I work in IT (information technology) as a program or team manager. Or at least, I did. I got laid off, unexpectedly and for no real reason, other than that my management position was clearly more valuable than me. However, I took the transition gracefully, and as an opportunity to move on to the next level and adventure. I have been in transition before. I know that it takes time, perseverance, doggedness to find something in a competitive job market. Before I was forty, now I am fifty. This time I am certainly more self aware, and less at the effect of things.
I had a conversation with by brother in law over the Thanksgiving holiday where he challenged me to "get out of my head" about what I should do next. He recommended to throw out the past, and what I think I should be able to do, and look freshly at what I would actually love to do. Life is too short to be doing things we do not love. This of course seems crazy to my brain. I am a left-brained, analytical thinker type. And I simply get very focused on doing all the "right" things we you are looking for work. Take a step back. Brush off the resume, update your experience and skills list, post it online via the main job boards, sign up for job alerts with all the necessary keywords, cull the morning email alerts for good matches, respond to recruiters who send you jobs that match your profile, submit online applications and draft cover letters describing your interest and relevant experience, signup for networking events, and show up to pitch yourself to others. It's exhausting just describing all this. And not very effective. So far (3 months), I have had one set of productive interviews, where I got down to the finalists and got pipped at the post. But I know that this is a longer game than most expect. I just have to keep focused.
Or do I? It's unfortunate that your resume sets you up for more of the same jobs you have done before. There is generally no assessment of transferable skills, and invitation to try out other new and exciting areas. I say "generally" because I received one invitation to interview with a local marketing company based on my management experience. I will check it out just because they seem to be thinking outside the box. And then I think I need to take another step backwards. Consider those bucket list of things that I have set myself to experience in this lifetime. And then figure out how to do them with a different or modified career. More to come... [Thinking outside the career box]
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