Archive for month: June, 2022

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How to Know If It’s Too Late for a Career Change (Hint: It’s Not About Age)

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When one of my clients shared this humorous graph with me, I laughed.
Then I paused. And I kept thinking.

Is there really an age limit for changing careers?

According to the unwritten corporate rulebook, the answer seems to be yes. The moment a high-performing professional subtly transitions — almost without noticing — from “high potential” to “senior,” the options appear to shrink at dizzying speed.

You can’t control corporate culture. In many environments, everything pushes you to hold on tightly to your position, hoping you won’t be pushed out prematurely. But while you may not control the system, you are still in the driver’s seat when it comes to the limits you impose on yourself.

And that’s where things get interesting.

The Fear-Based Questions

When the idea of a career change surfaces, it rarely arrives alone. It brings an entire committee of doubts with it:

Is it worth it?

How much effort will it take to start over?

If I start now, how many active years do I realistically have left?

What if it doesn’t work out? Will I regret it?

What will people think?

Am I being irresponsible… or foolish?

What does it mean financially?

All these questions are valid. They deserve to be explored with courage and integrity. They protect you. They ensure you don’t act impulsively.

But if you only listen to fear-based questions, you will only get fear-based answers.

So let me add another set.

The Vision-Based Questions

What are you craving? What truly makes you tick?

What kind of life do you want — beyond the job title?

Are you prepared to say “no” to certain benefits so you can say “yes” to something more aligned?

What is the best-case scenario?

Who do you become if everything unfolds beautifully?

What would your everyday life look like?

How would you feel — physically, emotionally, mentally?

On the contrary, what is the realistic worst-case scenario?

What would the objective consequences truly be?

And finally: what is the price of letting life decide for you by default?

That last question is often the most confronting.

Because staying where you are is not neutral. It is a decision.
Not choosing is choosing.

The Real Question

Is it too late for a career change?

The better question might be:
Is it too late to live the next chapter consciously?

You are not the same person you were at 30. Your priorities have evolved. Your intelligence has deepened. Your “crystallized” experience — the wisdom accumulated over decades — is an extraordinary asset.

The graph may suggest that options narrow with age. Reality is more nuanced. Traditional paths may narrow. But unconventional, purpose-driven, portfolio, advisory, entrepreneurial, and hybrid careers often expand.

The key is not to jump blindly.
The key is to question honestly.

A career change after 45, 50, or 60 is not about starting from scratch. It is about starting from experience.

And sometimes, the riskiest decision is not to change — but to stay stuck in a story that no longer fits.

Self-Confidence Is Overrated: What Truly Drives Bold Career Move

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In the space of personal growth — especially when it relates to women — the expression self-confidence is omnipresent. Or rather, the lack of it. The need for more of it. The pursuit of it.

The Self-Confidence Paradox

And yet, many of the women I work with are high achievers. Brilliant. Respected. Proven. They lead teams, close complex deals, run companies, manage demanding environments — and still, they confess quietly: “I wish I were more self-confident.”

One of them, whom I’ll call Katie, once told me: “I am good at what I do. I kick ass. So why do I struggle? Why don’t I take credit, once and for all, for my achievements?”

Redefining What Self-Confidence Really Means

Instead of trying to “build” her confidence, we slowed down and became curious about what self-confidence actually meant to her. How did she recognize it in her body? What did it allow her to do? How did it influence her decisions? What expanded when she felt it? We also explored what was happening when she didn’t feel confident. What was the fear underneath? What felt at risk? What would become possible if confidence were no longer an issue?

The Shift: From Emotion to Clarity

Something shifted. Self-confidence stopped being a magical emotional state she had to reach before acting. It lost its power as a prerequisite. What emerged instead was deeper and more stable: a stronger connection to her values, her ambition, and the impact she genuinely wanted to create. From there, confidence was no longer something to chase — it became a by-product.

On that foundation, she was able to build clear strategies and access her inner resources intentionally. She stopped waiting to feel confident before making decisions. She acted from clarity rather than from emotional certainty. In the end, self-confidence became almost irrelevant — a middleman she no longer needed.

She chose the faster route.

And you? Are you craving more self-confidence? Or are you ready to explore what truly sits beneath it?

The Quiet Crisis of Successful Professionals—and the Opportunity Inside It

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“In the first half of life, ambitious strivers embrace a simple formula for success in work and life: focus single-mindedly, work tirelessly, sacrifice personally, and climb the ladder relentlessly. It works. Until it doesn’t.”
— Arthur C. Brooks, bestselling author and columnist behind The Atlantic’s “How to Build a Life”

The momentum that drives you through the first part of adult life fuels your motivation to gain expertise, power, financial security, mastery, leadership, learning, excitement, and social recognition. Hard work pays off. Challenge makes you grow. Experience sharpens your skills to excellence. Your peers respect you. You belong to a league of successful professionals.

And then something shifts.

It may start quietly: a subtle loss of interest in work you’ve pursued with drive and perseverance for decades. A vague craving for something else. Before you know it, you, a corporate leader, a respected expert, or a successful entrepreneur—admired, even envied— are now questioning the meaning of the story you’ve been telling about yourself.

What changes, exactly? And is decline inevitable?

In Breaking the Age Code, Dr. Becca Levy challenges deeply rooted age stereotypes. She shows that several forms of cognition actually improve later in life, including metacognition (thinking about thinking), the ability to integrate multiple perspectives, skill in resolving interpersonal and intergroup conflicts, and semantic memory.

Arthur C. Brooks builds on this idea by describing what he calls crystallized intelligence: a form of wisdom made of accumulated knowledge and lived experience. This intelligence excels at teaching, mentoring, connecting people, and creating value through the cross-fertilization of ideas. It favors meaning over momentum, contribution over competition.

Which raises an important question:

Do you even realize how good you are at managing transitions?

If you did, you would feel less fear. Think of how many transitions you’ve already navigated. From student to professional. From role to role. From corporate to entrepreneurial paths. From independence to partnership, to parenthood, to caring for ageing parents. Some transitions were deliberate; others simply happened. Either way, your transition muscle is well-trained.

What makes this one different is its insidious nature. It comes from within, carrying a message you may not yet understand—and may not want to hear.

Change, however, is inevitable. If you ignore what your inner signals are trying to tell you, change will still unfold, often in ways you wouldn’t choose. Some people double down, pushing harder to stay in the game at all costs. Others experience a slow erosion of motivation—or both. Sometimes the wake-up call arrives sideways: a job loss, a dip in performance, or concern voiced by those close to you.

So what now?

This is the moment for a profound and authentic reset. Not necessarily a dramatic upheaval, but an honest reassessment. Question your current situation, your beliefs, your identity, and what you think defines you. Explore what still makes you feel alive, what you want more of, and what no longer serves you. This step can feel destabilizing—but it is also deeply rewarding. It shapes the contours of your future self.

From there, resonant choices become possible. Choices grounded in connection to your values, your heart, your inner wisdom. They often require saying NO to habits and beliefs that once supported you but now hold you back. And they invite you to say YES to what truly matters: relationships, meaningful work, self-care, and new avenues of personal and professional growth.

Action follows naturally. And this kind of action feels different—lighter, clearer, more energizing—because it comes from alignment. Fueled by renewed purpose, you’re ready to surprise yourself and others.

Don’t wait for the unwanted wake-up call.
Take the lead.

Alexandra Humbel
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