“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”
— Motivational speaker Les Brown
The concept of the traditional career path is changing. With more than 108 million people who are now age 50 or older — and with one in five Americans will be 65 or older by 2030 — the idea of an upwards career path culminating in retirement at age 65 or 67 is evolving to “second act” and even “third act” careers. Moving into a new career at midlife is becoming more common.
There are countless stories of successful midlife career changes:
- Colonel Sanders (of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame) held many jobs — as farmer, fireman, insurance salesman, and streetcar conductor — before operating a Kentucky service station at age 40, where he also sold fried chicken. His chicken became famous, and so did he! Sanders sold his first KFC franchise in 1952, at the age of 62.
- Ray Kroc was 50 when he met Dick and Mac McDonald and convinced them to franchise their local, self-service burger restaurant. Kroc, a salesman then selling five-spindle milkshake mixers, saw the potential in the quick-service concept. By the time Kroc reached age 63, McDonalds had more than 400 locations in 44 states.
- Laura Ingalls Wilder was in her early 40s when she began writing for her local newspaper. During the Depression, she filled six notebooks with her family’s pioneer experience. But it wasn’t until she was 65 that those stories were published as her first book, “Little House in the Big Woods.”
- Julia Child was a longtime government employee when she took a cooking class at Le Cordon Bleu. She was 49 when she published “Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume One,” in 1961. She got her own TV show, “The French Chef,” at the age of 51.
- Duncan Hines was a traveling office supply salesman who assembled a list of quality restaurants across the United States, which he sent out with his Christmas cards in 1935. (He was 55.) The following year, he self-published a book, “Adventures in Good Eating,” which he sold for $1 a copy. In 1952, at the age of 72, he partnered with Roy H. Park to create Hines-Park, allowing his name to appear on a branded line of foods and products, including baked goods.
- Momofuku Ando invented instant noodles (ramen noodles). A serial entrepreneur, he was convicted of tax evasion in 1948 and served two years in jail. (In his biography, Ando said he provided scholarships for students, which — at the time — was a form of tax evasion.) In 1958, at the age of 48, Ando became an inventor and pioneered the first package of precooked instant noodles to address a post-war food shortage in Japan.
There are also numerous examples of musicians and actors who have reinvented themselves over the years to appeal to new generations of fans. Among them: David Bowie, Phil Collins, Tony Bennett, Henry Winkler, Robert Downey Jr., and Drew Barrymore.
These people are reminders that you always have the power to make a change and become the person you always wanted to be — the person you were meant to be.
The years between 40-60 are generally considered to be “peak earning years,” as full-time workers with bachelor’s degrees generally tend to make the most money during those two decades. As a result, your 50s are the decade in which your income-earning potential can be its highest.
But many people feel stuck or uncertain about their future when they turn 50. They may have worked in the same job for many years and are feeling frustrated or bored. They may no longer be challenged by the work they are doing. Or they may have hit a “pay ceiling” — maxing out their salary compensation for the type of work they are doing, without the opportunity for further significant growth.
They may have experienced personal changes that are causing them to re-evaluate their professional career. They may have gotten divorced, or experienced the death of a spouse, parent, or loved one. Or their children may have left for college, leaving them with an empty nest.
Some are convinced it’s too late to start something new. Some are worried about age discrimination in the job search.
None of these are reasons not to reinvent yourself after age 50.
Career reinvention at this stage often means finding the intersection of:
- What you love
- What you’re good at
- What you can be paid for
- What the world needs
Over the course of the next month, we will look at the steps to take to maximize your value.
