Working For Yourself In Midlife With A Career Change

The trend for boomers leaving the corporate world and starting their own business started in the late 1990s and gradually grew for the next ten years

. This economy has pushed the trend to a new level.

In the early movement for midlife entrepreneurship the questions were:

Is this all there is? Now what? These were particularly difficult questions for women who became empty nesters. Many of them started their own business because they did not want to retire in five years. Others took this time as their opportunity to start a business that focused on their long time passion whether it was opening a yoga studio, coaching others in business, or selling affiliate products on the internet. Whatever the business, there was a passion and a commitment to it that was no longer present in their current job and the clock kept ticking.

True, not all boomers want a second career because they have no choice about whether or not to work. Even so they still can take this time to, at the very least explore their passion and discover the options they have for making it their business. It is a strange phenomenon but when people work at something they truly love, the successes seem to be more frequent and greater.

Chances are if you are in your late forties and early fifties you are at the peak of your income producing years and very close to the highest ranking in your company or school district or college. Making a career change is not easy regardless of your age. Here are 4 tips that may make that transition a bit easier.

First build on the skills you already have. What do you already know how to do something and do it very well. For instance, you may be currently working as a technical writer. Could you put those skills to good use as a fund raiser or grant writer for a non profit organization?

Go back to school and get current for a particular skill or learn a new skill. For instance, you may be doing graphic design work. Could you apply some of those skills as a photographer, as a publisher, or open a small sign making company?

Start a parallel career doing exactly what you do now for the company but working for yourself. If at all possible it would be best to begin this option while you are still working for a company. Moonlighting was the word used that previously described this opportunity. As long as you are not blatantly competing with the company you work for, such as finding your own clients, this may be a great option for you.

This fourth option has the most risk but if you want out of your company, have no clue what you would like to do, and can afford to not bring in an income for several months, find a friend or relative that has started their business and help them get off the ground. You may just get your expenses reimbursed or take a minimum salary. At least this will give you time to think outside of your company box.

by: Ruthan Brodsky

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