Page 126 - Marky Stein - Fearless Career Change_ The Fast Track to Success in a New Field (2004)

Fearless Career Change

From Vice President of Human Resources to
Career Coach in Six Weeks Using Transferable
Talents

Name: Tom
Former occupation: Vice president, human resources
New occupation: Outplacement consultant and career coach
Primary strategy: Transferable talents
Other strategies: Entrepreneurship, short-term education
Length of time from career decision to a paid position: Six weeks
Cost (if any) of transition: $0.00
At age 55, Tom thought he would be ready for an early retire-
ment in a few years. In the fall of that year, though, there were talks
of a merger in the multinational telecommunications company
where Tom had worked for 17 years. He was afraid, despite his
seniority as a vice president of human resources, that his job might
be impacted if indeed the merger were to take place.
While still working, Tom took some time to do his homework
and went to several interviews with other telecommunications cor-
porations as a backup plan. Tom confided in me later that, despite
his youthful enthusiasm, vast experience, and excellent health, he
was convinced that no job offers were materializing simply because
of his age.
It is disheartening to think that there would be traces of
ageism, especially in the otherwise progressive high-tech industry,
but many of my clients have reported similar observations to me,
and it seems apparent that many people who are over 50 have a
similarly unfair experience.

It can be frightening to even think about
changing occupations in a job market that
devalues your talents and experience because
of an age bias, and this fear was something Tom
had to face in his transition. Fortunately, it didn’t
stop him in his tracks. If this is a concern you
have, don’t let it stop you.

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