From episode: REinvention REvisited
REinvention begins with the end. The very process of reinvention beings to happen when we, as living, breathing human beings start to have the urge to make a change...to pursue new things...to completely close one door and open another. To turn our backs on what was and explore what could be, and... ::holy gasp:: Is this...even allowed?? In my father's generation it was considered 'flaky' if you moved around in business, stayed for less than 10 years in one place, or - heaven forbid -
pursued something that had nothing to do with your college degree. Fortunately, for most of us (especially we creative-types), this is no longer the case. It's considered absolutely normal to bump around in the dark until you find a place where you feel you can stay awhile and use your education, skills, and talents to contribute to the greater good. But, to quote the late great singer, Peggy Lee, "...is that all there is, my friend?" I'm sure it will shock you when I tell you that human beings are not one-dimensional. We are more than the sum of our chosen career. We have many different interests, hobbies, and dreams..we are as multi-faceted as a beautiful gemstone; changing color and sparkle with every different angle or movement. Therefore it stands to reason that we would desire to dream new dreams, pursue new passions, and cut new paths after many years of feeling boxed in by our life choices. I guess I've never understood why people desiring to make a change are so AFRAID to do so...to step out, to dare to close the aforementioned door and to reach for another to open. What are we afraid of? Maybe we're afraid of the ole 'what-will-people-think' thing, or maybe we're afraid that we'll discover that the grass truly ISN'T greener on the other side of the fence and face disappointment. And maybe...just maybe...we're afraid that when we cut ties and forge ahead bravely into The Great Unknown, that we will...fail.
Peeshaw. I say that's a load o' bunk. We were created with brains in our heads, souls in our bodies, and a healthy curiosity about many, many things in our hearts. This is no accident. We all know instinctively that there's sometimes a "sell by" date on our chosen careers. And while that may look a little different, depending on the culture and climate of your particular industry, it's just the truth. Coming from a 30 year fitness-career background I knew very well that my body was gonna start pushing back after years of putting it through all of the physical paces and pushing it to the limit, day after day. Or maybe there's no sell by date, but you just feel done...fried. You know, the feeling you have when you wake up each day and you begin to dread going to work. Even getting ready is an effort. You lose your spark, your desire, your motivation to do 'that thing' anymore. And you've gone to conferences, meetups, business workshops, et cetera, et cetera, yada, yada, yada, to see if it's just a phase and it'll go away. But when you've done all of that and you realize that you're just finished...finito.. and you're ready to walk away, in comes that fear - you start to think that it's too late to start a new thing or pursue a new passion. So sometimes you stay. Feeling trapped. And you know what, when you do that, you're doing a disservice, not only to your company or your industry, but to yourself. I'm here to tell you that it is never, ever, ever, ever times infinity, too late to start something new. It's never too late to learn new things...strive for new heights...make new waves in a completely different ocean. It can be done and it should be done as long as you have breath in your lungs and strength in your body. This life, my friend is a gift - and you're only promised today. So my advice (for what it's worth) is to begin with the end. As soon as you've made that step away from what you've always done, then it's time to take the first step into what you've always wanted to do. Don't look back, dive in with both feet, head, hands and heart into the new frontier of the heretofore unknown. Before you know it, you're going to be running circles around the old you, having a blast building the new one. So go on ahead. REinvent yourself. Because you CAN.