FINDING YOUR ENCORE

HOW DO I FIND MY ENCORE CAREER?

So how do you know what your Encore Career could be? For me, it was this nagging feeling inside myself that there was something else that I was meant to do.  Often it might be an event or situation that forces you to pay attention to that nagging feeling.  In my case, it was when my daughter left for college. There I was an empty nester facing a major change in the biggest role in my life!  The research and recent articles highlight the fact that other external events such a loss of a loved one or loss of a job can also move us closer to finding our Encore Career.  For other people- just knowing that there are resources and support to help you along this journey- can be the best motivation to get started!!!

I want to spend the next couple of blogs focused on key considerations and resources as you begin thinking about your possible Encore Career.  There are a number of excellent books that have been written in the last couple of years that will be extremely helpful for you as you go through these stages of figuring out your next act.  Marci Albhoher’s – “The Encore Career Handbook” does an excellent job of laying out the challenges/ opportunities, tips, tools, and resources to help you find and connect to your Encore Career.  Attached is a great article from USA today that summarizes key takeaways from the Encore Career Handbook.   http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/01/13/encore-career/1821111/.  I would also recommend that you read more about Encore Careers on the www.encore.org website.

Everyone’s “Encore Journey” is different.  What one can expect however is that it often means a slow transition, with lots of ups and downs and real introspection.  It’s not a direct path.  What I know for sure, is that this journey is very different than your typical job search process. In the Encore Career Handbook, Marci talks about two distinct parts in the Encore Journey. The first part is internal, which includes self-reflection, assessments and exploration.  The second part is really about trying it out, or taking a test drive in the real world!

It also means giving yourself permission to:

• Step away from your expected role or the job that you may have spent your life working in.
• Allow some real thinking, reading, and internal reflection.
• Be creative,  think out of the box, consider something you have always been “intrigued” with, to take a risk!

ENCORE READINESS

So how do you know if you are ready to take this journey of exploration, risk, and opportunity?   Marci includes in the Encore Career Handbook- an Encore readiness quiz. (Very helpful!).  So I leave you with a few questions to ponder:

• Do you have ideas about what you might want to do next?
• Is there something you feel drawn to that you can’t stop thinking about?
• Are you in a place right now where you can comfortably move forward without other pressing issues to deal with in your life?

Several weeks ago- another great article appeared in Forbes ,“Time to Reinvent Yourself”, where the author shared personal experiences of what can happen while exploring your Encore possibilities.  http://www.forbes.com/sites/kareanderson/2013/03/13/time-to-reinvent-yourself/

Let’s start the conversation- What are questions that you are asking yourself?  Have you had similar thoughts as those in this article?   I would love to hear them.

Remember to like me on Facebook (Encore Tampa Bay)  and join my Group Linked In discussion.  Continue to spread the word about this exciting stage of development for Boomers!

“Fortune does favor the bold and you’ll never know what you’re capable of if you don’t try.”  ~ Sheryl Sandberg

Bevan Rogel

Encore Tampa Bay