“How’s your retirement?”
Ha! I laughed out loud at being requested such a query.
“Trust me, I have not retired.”
No, I used to be too younger to retire.
I had simply left my twenty-eight-year profession in tv to launch my very own enterprise. But the irony is that when you had mentioned to me ten years in the past that I’d be an entrepreneur, operating my very own enterprise, I’d have snickered at such a preposterous concept. Me, run my very own enterprise? I had no curiosity in anyway in operating a enterprise! And but, right here I’m, now eight years into it, and doing so. It was most likely among the finest choices I’ve ever made to create my subsequent chapter. And I did it in my mid-50’s.
I had re-created myself but once more, versus re-inventing myself.
To me, re-invention is doing one thing utterly new, completely studying all new expertise, whereas re-creation is taking the abilities you’ve, what you’re innately good at, and transferring them to one thing new. Yes, you may additionally be studying new expertise to add to your talents and experience. But you’re knitting all of them collectively to create one thing thrilling.
Our life experiences are useful items of who we’re. And, from my perspective, essential parts to success in our future endeavors. Take them with you as you develop, be taught from them, remodel them.
In some respects, I’ve merely come full circle, that is, when you rely that, as a baby, I used to be promoting my artfully hand adorned stationery for 5 cents a web page to my neighbors at our summer season trip rental home. My younger enterprise ventures additionally included lemonade stands, babysitting gigs, and what Brownie or Girl Scout didn’t promote cookies for her troop? So, I suppose I used to be an entrepreneur at coronary heart. I simply didn’t comprehend it till I grew to become one as an grownup.
It’s an enormous threat to turn into an entrepreneur, and it is not for the faint of coronary heart. And but, I notice in hindsight I’ve taken many profession dangers—knowledgeable, calculated, and clever dangers—to create my subsequent chapters.
“No knowledge is ever wasted.”
That is a quote from my grandmother, and my mom who shared it with my three brothers and me rising up. What’s extraordinary to me is how these profound phrases has been the glue that has linked each single one among my subsequent chapters.
Many ladies have discovered success and re-created subsequent chapters “later in life.” (Notice I didn’t say previous!) After beginning out as a determine skater after which a journalist, it wasn’t till age forty that Vera Wang opened her first profitable bridal boutique.
Martha Stewart didn’t publish her first cookbook till age forty-three. She’d been a stockbroker on Wall Street.
Chef Julia Child was fifty when she launched her first cookbook. Before that, she was a copywriter and a spy throughout World War II. Talk a few subsequent chapter!
How are you able to re-create your self on your subsequent chapter? Whether you’re able to make the leap, or it’s nonetheless years away, it’s price contemplating the place your expertise can lend themselves to the long run.
Who knew once I started my skilled grownup life that I’d have so many various chapters? Certainly not me! I didn’t have the mindset that I do now—creatively excited about what else I’d do.
Growing up, music, notably singing, was an enormous a part of my life. When contemplating profession decisions, it by no means occurred to me to review something apart from music. Little did I notice all of that vocal coaching would have a profound affect on my future profession chapters.
Upon graduating from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music, I taught highschool choral music, however as a lot as I loved educating, and performing with a semi-professional chorale group that toured Europe, I felt deep down that one thing was lacking. So, after two years within the classroom, I left and labored in retail gross sales whereas I found out what I’d do subsequent.
Television at all times fascinated me. All these world occasions coming proper into our lounge on our black and white TV. During my reign as Miss Illinois 1979 within the Miss America Scholarship Pageant, I had the chance to do one TV business. I puzzled; might I get a job in TV or did I would like to return to highschool and get one other diploma?
Searching for solutions to these questions, I bravely and blindly reached out to 2 tv stations within the Champaign-Urbana, IL space the place I used to be dwelling on the time to get informational interviews. After six months of discussions, a place was created for me at WCIA-TV, the CBS affiliate. Whatever they requested me to do, I mentioned sure, even to being a climate individual. I discovered every thing on the job. It was my very own graduate college.
Was I afraid of failure? Absolutely! But my philosophy then and nonetheless is at this time that simply since you don’t know how you can do one thing, it doesn’t imply you’ll be able to’t. You simply must attempt.
I used to be at WCIA for 3 years, and rapidly obtained a beautiful alternative to maneuver to Tampa, FL to a different CBS affiliate, WTVT, because the Director of Community Relations. I used to be the primary and solely feminine in higher administration. It wasn’t lengthy earlier than they tapped me to even be the morning information anchor. I wore two hats and labored about 80 hours every week. With fatigue and exhaustion the principle elements, I requested to come back off the air believing that if God needed me again on the air, it could occur. About a 12 months later, out of the blue, it did. I obtained the decision from WCVB, the ABC TV station in Boston, MA to be a correspondent for Chronicle, a nightly information journal present.
Within a 12 months, once more, I used to be requested to tackle a second position and turn into the EyeOpener information anchor. This was huge market TV. I used to be working with so many award-winning journalists on either side of the digicam and it was daunting and terrifying at instances, however I liked all of it. However, as a result of I didn’t put on the “Big J” (J for journalist) on my chest—I used to be a music main—I felt ostracized. I used to be decided to not fail. And, though I did have my moments of what felt like failure, I discovered and I grew.
I’m pleased with the work I did in my 20 years at WCVB, which led to many unique main tales—together with interviewing President Barack Obama—and lots of honors and awards; Emmys, Gracies and an Edward R. Murrow award.
However, because the trade started to alter, an previous acquainted feeling arose. There was one thing deep inside me that knew there was extra for me to do on this world. But what do you do subsequent when leaving a really defining profession and trade?
After two years of considering what that calling was, I left the tv trade and launched my subsequent chapter. I’m now an government communications coach working with folks to seek out their voice, to ship their message—their story—with presence and confidence, to develop management and sure, grasp media coaching too. In addition, I host a podcast, Live Your Best Life with Liz Brunner, with company sharing their very own subsequent chapter transformations. I’ve launched my on-line studying platform, BrunnerAcademy.com. And now, have printed my first ebook, a best-seller, Dare to Own You: Taking Your Authenticity and Dreams into Your Next Chapter. The impetus for the ebook was my grandmother’s quote, “no knowledge is ever wasted.”
I’m so grateful to my grandmother and my mom for at all times reminding me that no data is ever wasted as a result of this has been a relentless theme all through my life. I hope it offers you a second of pause to mirror as effectively.
When you’ll be able to join the themes and patterns of your life, your whole data—experiences, good and dangerous—you can also create a subsequent chapter, it doesn’t matter what your age. And that’s the primary place to begin when considering a subsequent chapter.
I additionally suggest making a listing of ten folks whom you respect, and admire. Spend time speaking with every of them actually and authentically, asking every of them what they see as your talent set and what different careers might they envision you doing?
We usually don’t see our worth and price, what expertise we convey to the desk, as clearly as others. Getting an out of doors perspective from somebody to assist us assume outdoors the field could open our eyes to prospects. Some of them we’d by no means have considered if it weren’t for these conversations.
Once you’ve a great connection and genuine relationship with these people, it’s essential to ask them them two questions:
Who else ought to I be speaking to?
And, will you join me?
In many situations, the “will they connect you” is essential to getting your foot within the door to somebody who would possibly in any other case “not have time” for you. These informational interviews could make the distinction between staying caught and creating your subsequent chapter.
Remember, no data is ever wasted! And age is only a quantity. If I can create my fourth “next” chapter, I consider anybody can!
This visitor publish was authored by Liz Brunner
Best-selling writer, Executive Communications Coach, Motivational Speaker, Podcast Host, and Emmy award-winning journalist. Liz Brunner’s tv profession spanned 28 years and featured many memorable highlights. Along with co-anchoring the #1 rated 6pm newscast at ABC-TV, WCVB NewsCenter 5 in Boston, she performed unique one-on-one interviews with distinguished figures starting from skilled athletes to international political leaders together with President Barack Obama in addition to cultural icons corresponding to Oprah Winfrey.
Connect with Liz Brunner on: Instagram @lizbrunner . Facebook @OfficialLizBrunner .
Twitter @LizBrunner . LinkedIn . Official web site: LizBrunner.com
