In Response to: New York Times Article “The Restless Soul In the Bathroom Mirror”

In a recent article in the New York Times by Lee Weinstein, he stated, “My bathroom-mirror moment came one morning more than three years ago. I was 47, and it dawned on me that my 15th anniversary of working in public relations at Nike was fast approaching. Do I want to stay at Nike for five more years? The unequivocal answer from the man in the mirror was, “No!” I knew then that I had accomplished everything I wanted to do at Nike, and that it was time for me to get out and do something new. Thus began a two-year process of introspection and redirecting my career.”  To read the rest of Weinstein’s article, click here: nytimes.com

My Response:  My PR gal asked me to read this article, because the story was so similar to what I just wrote about in my book How to Reinvent Your Career: Make Money Doing What You Love. I had been in my pharmaceutical job 15 years (20 in the company) when I had the same epiphany . . .  I could no longer continue that job.  I too, am a type A personality.  It was a frightening thing to leave a job that offered such security.  The New York Times author discussed Myers-Briggs.  I wrote about personality assessment in my book, as I am a qualified Myers-Briggs instructor.  He mentioned being an ENFJ.  I am an ESTJ.  I think our “J” part of our personality makes us very structured and therefore it can be hard for us to make a big change.  I’m glad he wrote about developing goals because that is a big part of making the change and I discuss that in my book (available this month) as well.   I am very close to that author’s age and I think there are a lot of us out there in the “golden handcuffs”, afraid to leave what others see as the “perfect job”.  I have learned through all of my growth and transformations, that what is a “perfect job” for one may definitely not be so perfect for someone else.  Throughout life, we change our interests and we must also reassess our goals.  It sounds like he has made a change in a direction that works for him.  I feel I have done the same.  My hope is that my book will help others learn that it is possible to do the job that really makes them happy and make the money they feel they deserve.

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50 Famous People Who Failed Before Becoming Successful

In my book, How to Reinvent Your Career, I write about how some things we see as failures may actually lead us to something better.  The following is a list of 50 famous people compiled by Katrina Solomon from onlinecollege.org who failed before they became successes:

1.  Henry Ford
2.  R. H. Macy
3.  F. W. Woolworth
4.  Soichiro Honda
5.  Akio Morita (Sony)
6.  Bill Gates
7.  Harland David Sanders (KFC)
8.  Walt Disney
9.  Albert Einstein
10.  Charles Darwin
11.  Robert Goddard (rocket researcher)
12.  Isaac Newton
13.  Socrates
14.  Robert Sternberg (President of APA)
15.  Thomas Edison
16.  Orville and Wilbur Wright
17.  Winston Churchill
18.  Abraham Lincoln
19.  Oprah Winfrey
20.  Harry S. Truman
21.  Dick Cheney
22.  Jerry Seinfeld
23.  Fred Astaire
24.  Sidney Poitier
25.  Jeanne Moreau (actress)
26.  Charlie Chaplin
27.  Lucille Ball
28.  Harrison Ford
29.  Marilyn Monroe
30.  Oliver Stone
31.  Vincent Van Gogh
32.  Emily Dickinson
33.  Theodore Seuss Giesel (Dr. Seuss)
34.  Charles Schulz
35.  Steven Spielberg
36.  Stephen King
37.  Zane Grey
38.  J. K. Rowling
39.  Monet
40.  Jack London
41.  Louisa May Alcott
42.  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
43.  Elvis Presley
44.  Ludwig van Beethoven
45.  Igor Stravinsky
46.  The Beatles
47.  Michael Jordan
48.  Stan Smith
49.  Babe Ruth
50.  Tom Landry

What I’d Say to My 16-Year-Old Self

When you have children, get the epidural the minute you get to the hospital! I think the “why” is pretty self-explanatory! But seriously . . . I wouldn’t say anything because I think that any mistakes I have made in the past were worth making . . . to teach me things in life. I wrote about that in my book. I don’t see too many things in life as mistakes . . . just lessons learned.