I've changed career paths several times. A short disastrous stint in door-to-door sales, a stint in journalism, then all kinds of experiments for a couple of years, then advertising for 10, consulting on communication and freelancing as a writer for eight, then another 10 fullt-ime in journalism. Doesn't quite fit Alok's query, because all of them (except that sales bit) were in some way related to writing and ideas, so transitions were easier, but still scary. In the last journalism stint, I moved in in a senior role; it required a lot of quick learning on the job, and because I wasn't starting at the bottom, I had juniors who had built networks and had some kinds of experience I didn't. I've had to deal with knowing that contemporaries and juniors in the professions I quit were doing very well indeed (especially financially: advertising pays well!) but overall the experience was positive. And here I am now experimenting with several different ways forward, knowing only that what I do will have some connection with writing and creative thinking, and that I want to be able to keep time aside for personal projects and pro bono work.
On Mon, Jul 26, 2021 at 11:16 AM Mohit <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Alok > > I worked for 13 years in corporate finance, primarily handling financial > planning, budgeting & MIS (called FP&A). > Then, launched my own firm planning to do the same but for multiple clients > - fate took a turn, and I ended up doing a number of things besides for > almost 4.5 years. It involved running FP&A for a couple of clients, mergers > for another, audits & controls, and then cash management for yet another. > After my most successful year ever, I shut that down to rejoin the > corporate world for 5 years as Controller & CFO. > And next week, I am joining a software firm as a Product Manager. > > Each of my moves has been scary when I thought about it. And yet I did that > because something pulled me & wouldn't let go. I think the fact that I have > a really really small boredom threshold has something to do with that. And > yes, each move has been rewarding & fun ultimately, but never without pain. > > Regards, > Mohit > > > > On Sun, Jul 25, 2021 at 1:48 AM Alok Prasanna Kumar <[email protected] > > > wrote: > > > Read this fascinating piece on the Guardian > > > > > https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/jul/14/leaving-burnout-behind-the-pain-and-pleasure-of-starting-a-new-career-in-my-50s > > ? > > > > ...and wondered if any of you have switched careers later in life (say > 20+ > > years after one) and what was the experience like. > > > > Alok > > > > -- > > Alok Prasanna Kumar > > Advocate > > Ph: +919560065577 > > >
