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Can a woman professional, or any professional for that matter, actually invest in training for 1 career and then having spent what feels like a lifetime in that career actually move into a completely different second innings career with success?

I was asked that question sometime back by a fellow Chartered Accountant who understood going into finance services based business for oneself but was curious about the 180 degree turn.

My answer was an emphatic yes.

I detail my own journey in Meet Your Coach where I share my Ideal Statement as well as my journey following not one but two wake up calls.

It’s not easy to chuck up a well-paying job to pursue a different career path.

More often than not it isn’t even job dissatisfaction that prompts a professional to take what can only be described as a leap of faith into the unknown into the world of self-employment, business or even a completely different industry!

Yet it can be done.

That’s why I always recommend prospective clients and even existing ones to take my quiz on Job or Career Change to determine where they are on their journey to achieving Self Realization.

Most people go to college to do what they believe they have wanted to do all their lives. The first several years are rewarding.

Then they start to realize this is something they are going to do until they retire. They are quickly disillusioned, and they get into a rut.

Some continue doing what they do out of fear there is nothing else, or they are getting a steady pay check. The lucky few, however, break away and find their true passion in life.

Even when we choose a completely different career or vocation path, you must remember 1 thing. You never lose the wealth of knowledge or experience that you have gained in your previous career.

The person you are today is the sum total of all your experiences – the good, the bad and the ugly.

Sometimes the trigger is a small event. Or it’s knowing that something is missing that compels us to listen to our Inner Voice. This leads to our embarking on our Hero or Heroine Journey to correct that misalignment.

As George Eliot eloquently said, “It is never too late to be what you might have been”.

On that note, I’m sharing the stories of 4 remarkable women professionals who’ve experienced successful careers. They’ve then created a second innings career to fulfil their Soul Purpose while being of service to others.

Each of these ladies is known to me personally and when I asked them to share their story and a success secret tip, they not only agreed but also graciously offered a gift to the reader.

May their stories inspire you the way they inspire me!

Reba Linker – From Dance Dream to Healer

I’m actually into my 3rd inning (at least)! I joke that I’m trying to squeeze six lifetimes into one, and that is probably the best way to explain my life.

I had a career working for non-profit organizations, moving from one position to another, first working with an internationally renowned dance company, and then with a cultural and educational exchange program between the U.S. and India.

It was glamorous and exciting, but I wanted to follow my ‘dance dream’ and open my own dance studio in Manhattan, and that’s what I did for my 2nd inning.

I was a ‘boss’ for the first time, and created a colorful space for people, music, dance, and parties. However, after 5 years, my lease was up and I was pregnant with my first child, so it was the right time for another change.

My 3rd inning came about while writing my first book, Follow the Yarn. 

It started as a light-hearted project to collect my knitting teacher’s sayings and knitting tips. Instead, the process catalyzed huge ‘aha moments’ for me. I started to face and understand my past in ways I never had before, and to understand the spiritual wisdom I had studied in a deeper way.

For many years I had studied meditation and metaphysics with a great spiritual teacher, Shanta. Now it started coming together in a way that meant putting that knowledge into practice –embodying what I knew to be true – and sharing it with others.

That’s how I became a healer/lightworker, empowering others to live their best lives, and know their true worth.

My tip for your readers, Vatsala is: Live your dreams! The rewards you seek are not at the end of the journey, but in the flowers you pick along the way. Your dreams hold many gifts for you. Take the journey and receive!

I would like to offer your readers a free 20-minute private consultation.

They can use this link to schedule:
https://my.timetrade.com/book/C2B5R

Andrea Feinberg – From Award winning Product Developer at S & P to Coach and Jeweler

I’ve been very fortunate to enjoy several completely different careers, all of which grew out of each other. When I moved into NYC, looking for a life’s direction, I found the best and last job I had: manager of a department with world-renown Standard & Poor’s Corporation, the debt-rating agency; I had a very happy career there, winning awards in product development 3 times.

However, after 10 years, I discovered the other side of my brain was calling and I did a very major ‘180’ to become a crafts artist, selling my hand-crafted merchandise to museums, zoos, botanical gardens.

In 2001 I sold that business, having discovered several years prior that, as much as I was proud of the product I made, it didn’t fully engage my brain and excitement daily; I had heard of ‘coaching’ in the late ’90’s and, after a brief exploration, enrolled in Coach U where I trained for 3 years with Thomas Leonard, founder of what has become a worldwide phenomenon, to become the business coach I am today.

Through my current business, Coaching Insight LLC, I partner with ambitious, independence-driven business owners to accelerate revenue and happier quality of life. We do it through implementation of strategic planning, targeted marketing and awareness of new ways to approach problems and opportunities.

Does this appeal to you? You can find 9 Breakthrough Ideas on my home page, www.bossonthebeach.com

And yet, despite my love for my current business, my ability to learn new ways to relate to clients and enjoy the success of those clients who follow through on their commitments, I still so enjoy working with my hands!

That’s why I also have pursued a completely different endeavor with jewelry; you can see some of my work here: www.facebook.com/AndreaBeadazzles

Tip for readers: Ultimately, each experience guides us to what’s next and, whatever is current, has been nourished out of our past. We simply have to listen for the cues to guide us to necessary change and opportunity.

However, if what is calling you is your own business, make sure it responds to a real need in a well-defined, easily reachable market.

Passion for your endeavor without connecting to a market that seeks your product/services is a hobby, not a business!

Kim Julen – From the world of Insurance Claims to Feng Shui Expert

My history includes working in insurance claims for nearly 17 years handling litigation and negotiation. My commercial claims background involved significant injuries and exposures including liquor liability, physical/sexual abuse, death and paraplegia, construction defects and real estate.

After leaving the corporate world, I ran my own jewelry business for 10 years and was an independent gold buyer. There many weekends where I purchased over $10,000 in gold! I knew, however, that gold buying was not a forever business because as the economy improved, the price of gold dropped.

I felt a calling to do more spiritually based work and launched my business, Finding Your Fiji, in 2013.

Shortly thereafter, I was in California for a Wayne Dyer/Abraham Hicks event. The vibration at the event was extremely high, to the point where I could barely stay awake during the session.

The next morning, I had an awakening moment of being able to hear my Spiritual Team of angels and guides very clearly, as if they were sitting right next to me. They shared that channeling guidance was part of my life’s work as well.

My business, Finding Your Fiji, is now 5 years old. My mission is helping others find and live their Fiji (aka dream life). I’m living my own dream, having moved from Minnesota to Maui, sight unseen, a year and a half ago and continuing to do the work that I love!

I am a life and business coach – bringing harmony to your head. I am an Intuitive – bringing harmony to your heart by providing guidance for business and life through Angel Readings. And, I am a Feng Shui expert – bringing harmony to your home.

Tip for Readers: Do what you love and follow the flow of what feels easy and light!

Website link: http://www.findingyourfiji.com/

Vidushi Maan – From Headhunter to Educationist

I am Vidushi Maan, mother of two, manager by training and educator by profession in that order. Like most middle class Indian women, my career has been a direct result of motherhood, proximity of workplace, travel etc.

After I gave birth to my son, I also gave birth to frustrations. I had always put motherhood on a pedestal of sacrifice, love and eternal bliss, these notions were fed in part by society and in part by attempting to be a better person that what I thought myself capable of.

I am a Karma person and have always believed in being proactive and positive.

I started running a recruitment consultancy at home. Now, this was also born from necessity. A recruitment setup was something one could run from the house and required minimal investment. The client interaction was primarily over the phone.

Surprise, surprise, I started doing well, although that’s an entirely subjective term, a better way to put it would be that I became sustainable. I hired some people and fed a small cottage office.

After three years, I had my daughter. No surprises there, I took another break. To cut 6 years short, we managed an office, some steady clients and a firm.

Fast forward 3 years and some complexities later, I decided that now I needed to get out of my house and guess what’s the other profession that you could be a part of and “take care” of your family. Of course, that’s a teacher.

I became a teacher in a school that was 400 meters from my house and to my surprise I really enjoyed it. Yes, I was bound by a schedule unlike self-employment and literally had every minute of the day mapped. The salary was paltry yet I was happy.

I did well and within a year was hired to be the in-charge of the Junior Wing of another school. While I was a teacher I attended a phonic training and immediately I could sense that I could turn it into an employment opportunity.

I have become a resource person for content and ELT trainings with two leading publishing MNCs. I have also revised seven books for a leading publishing house.   Now, that’s a leap for a person who could only go to work at a place less than a kilometer away.

This may sound like a success story; trust me I am far from it. Having said that, I am at a happy place in my mind and heart. I know that I am open to opportunities and I am confident that more will come my way.

I have met some fantastic people along the way and I shall remain forever grateful to them. Let me just end with my favorite quote by an awesome guy “You don’t get anywhere without saying yes” – Joel Stein.

Tip for readers: Say yes to opportunities no matter how small they seem to be.

Parting Advice for Success in Second Inning Careers

There is a thread in the stories of these amazing ladies who accepted their Call to Adventure. They found fulfilling Second Inning careers (sometimes even 3^rd and 4^th inning) at the end of their Hero Journey.

When we believe in ourselves and our willing to invest in getting the required skills and training for our dream career, the sky is the limit.

We may even chose to change career tracks instead of a job. Some professionals may decide to escape the rat race and start up their own business. This will help transform your life in ways that you never imagined.

Choosing a business you are passionate about gives you a purpose you may not have gained by staying in your current situation.

This is not to say that starting and running a business is easy. It takes a lot of work and quite a bit of discipline. You become your own boss and have no one to answer to but yourself.

While many view this as a good situation to have, it is a double-edged sword.

You need to have a good plan in place to help guide you towards success.

More people are discovering that having their own business is the only way to go. They love the challenge and find the work fulfilling, all things being equal. In all honesty, not everyone is suited to being an entrepreneur. But for those who are, they are in it for the long haul with no intention of ever looking back.

Sometimes it’s a case of finding a way to keep a career or vocation that facilitates work life balance.

Either way, a shift is required and I go into detail about the shift and change required in my post Can Moving Cheese Positively Improve Career Life Balance.

Have you also made a shift into a second innings career? 

What 1 thing would you say to other women professionals to help them achieve their dreams?

Update 27 April 2022

Dear Reader,

I’m pleased to share with you that this blog post was referenced in a paper in Shodh Sarita in 2021. The paper was also shared in March 2022 in Researchgate.

The topic was Women Entrepreneurship and Second Inning at Career. The paper tries to highlight challenges arising for women in a second inning career and with women entrepreneurship.

The objective of this research paper was to understand the factors affecting on women Entrepreneurs during their second inning career. It also highlighted the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs during their second inning at Career.

You can read it here – Women Entrepreneurship and Second Inning at Career.

Vatsala Shukla

Karmic Ally Coaching