| Down-sized? Outsourced? Burned-out? Wizened | | | | your inner critic shows up, and this is the place |
| up? That's what I said. Wizened up! Now is not | | | | they usually do, tell them to go take a coffee |
| the time to be depressed. Now, is the perfect | | | | break. This is your time to only listen to your soul |
| time to assess your life and what you want to do | | | | talking. Finish up the list by adding any careers |
| with the rest of it. One easy way is to explore | | | | from comments that people have made to you |
| career options that are complementary to you. | | | | over the years, such as, "You would have made |
| Whether you are leaving by choice or have been | | | | a great teacher. You really know your history." |
| asked to leave, you probably have more courses | | | | Take a moment and look over your four sheets |
| of action then you think. | | | | of paper. You did a lot of hard work. Congratulate |
| Give yourself several, uninterrupted hours to | | | | yourself with a stretch and go get yourself a |
| perform this task. Find a quiet, comfortable place | | | | favorite beverage. But, don't let too much time |
| to sit. Have paper, at least five sheets, and pen | | | | go by, no more than ten minutes. You're on a roll |
| ready. Do not use a pencil for this. You want to | | | | and you don't want your bored inner critic to find |
| put down everything that comes to your head. | | | | you hanging out at the water cooler, if you know |
| No erasing or changing allowed. Relax, take a deep | | | | what I mean. |
| breath, and begin. | | | | Lay your four pages side by side across a table. |
| Think about the job you just had. List all the | | | | Take your fifth and last sheet. List any |
| types of businesses you or your company | | | | combinations or connections from your four lists |
| worked with while you were there. Include | | | | that could go together or would be fun to have |
| customers, vendors, suppliers, buyers, and | | | | go together. Your list may look something like this: |
| strategic partners. | | | | IT person - tutors senior citizens about |
| Go to the second sheet. Make a list of all the skills | | | | computers and email. |
| you gained from your education and employment | | | | Boat captain - runs ecotourism tours for the |
| experiences. Don't forget to include your first | | | | visually disadvantaged. |
| paper route or babysitting jobs. If nothing else, it | | | | Nurse - owns a wellness spa. |
| will bring a smile to your face and keep you | | | | Pilot - is an aviation school owner and expert |
| relaxed. | | | | witness. |
| On the third page, itemize your hobbies, interests, | | | | Your complementary career options are only |
| and favorite leisure activities. You can make these | | | | limited by your creativity. This is the time to be |
| subcategories on the page or put into the same | | | | open to all ideas and daring in your resolve to |
| list. | | | | consider them seriously. Seek out others who |
| Finally, write down on the fourth page the careers | | | | have blended careers or made career transitions |
| you considered before going in the direction you | | | | successfully. Study the biographies of people like |
| did. Also, put down ones that you would consider | | | | stars, sports personalities, and even military |
| dream jobs. Don't let anything stand in your way | | | | personnel. Many have made transitions out of |
| here. Remember the operative word, dream. | | | | necessity or desire. Soon, you'll find yourself |
| Disregard your monetary situation, your | | | | moving into a life you had never before dreamed |
| education, your appearance, age, or gender. If | | | | possible. |