Our guest is Dorie Clark, the bestselling author of The Long Game, Entrepreneurial You, Reinventing You and Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of the Year by Inc. magazine. Dorie helps people of all ages reimagine their careers, but she’s specifically answering EIF listener questions —and advising us on work post-40 — today. Do check it out, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.
So first of all congratulations on your positive health news! May I ask what kind of cancer they were doing the biopsy for? I’ve been dealing with cancer since right before the pandemic, and made the monumentally catastrophic decision to go off antidepressants about six months ago. I’m an absolute wreck, and that’s an understatement. I’m starting back on but they take several weeks to work, meanwhile I’m anxiously counting down the days until my next PET scan in October to see if I remain in remission. Would you consider doing a podcast on psychomeds? I’d love to hear about how you feel they’ve impacted you in positive and negative ways (since you’ve mentioned you take meds before).
Really helpful, practical podcast this week – I appreciate. Have you ever pitched yourselves as podcast guests to Bethany Frankle’s Just B Podcast, she has 2.7 million followers? Best Wishes.
Congratulations on your good health news, Kim! Jenn’s response was touching and sweet.
Not every work path is a career. Even though I worked in a particular niche of the banking world for 35 years, it was a series of demanding jobs that provided steady paychecks, not a pre-planned career that I trained specifically for (as, say, a doctor or attorney or teacher does). I never had “a calling”, I just happened into a particular area of finance (I started out as a secretary at age 23) and learned on the fly. I got my MBA at age 39, when it became clear that I’d maxed out my earning potential without one. Did I make more money with an MBA? Yes. Did it lead to my becoming CEO of anything? No. It was only a tool I used to juice my paycheck. My husband and I built a small side business during our corporate years that now pays the bills in our retirement (we’re not super-rich, but we have financial freedom). Not having to show up somewhere every day from 9-to-5 is nice, don’t get me wrong, but it’s a whole new ballgame when thinking about doing future work. I always worked for money, now what am I going to work for — my own entertainment? That’s interesting to think about, but 1) I don’t want to take a job for “fun” when someone else might really need that job to survive; and 2) it’s not fun to be 63 years old and have other people running you. Dorie Clark’s suggestion that I probably have another 30 years to live, and I should meander through interesting learning experiences, small and large, is practical advice. Reminds me of Jane Fonda’s talk (TED?) about the “last third” of life. Almost anything is achievable when you break it down into small steps, even when your body is aging. Patch it up and keep going!
Great podcast. I’m a big fan of Dorie’s (her last book, “The Long Game”, is a favorite) and you guys asked such smart questions. Also, congrats on the biopsy result. Must be such a relief.
Great episode! So happy for your excellent news, Kim
This was a fantastic episode! Dorie is so positive and energetic: she is inspiring!
I loved this week’s episode, especially the nuggets “the most adaptable wins” and “optimize for interesting” – I’d add to the latter “choose the option that brings more joy.” It’s so easy to feel old and like time has gotten away until you realize there’s still a lot more living to do. Love love loved this.