Re-inventing Oneself

Re-inventing oneself seems to be the latest "in" thing to do. It mostly applies to those of us in the middle years who find ourselves out of a job because of the bad economy or tired of our present job and are searching for our true passion. I have read many success stories about individuals who change career paths and are doing quite well in their new choices. But re-inventing yourself is not as easy as some would have you believe.

I have a good friend who is a professional but was laid off over a year ago. He has decided to try to get licenced in another state as well as New York to widen his job search. Preparing and passing a difficult exam in your later years is not an easy task to accomplish. Although he has over 20 years of experience in his profession, there are many other just-as-qualified applicants competing with him at each interview. He now waits to see if he passed the exam and keeps applying for positions.

A family member, with a college degree, lost his job over two years ago because of cutbacks in his company. He decided to take a seven month technical course in the health field. He is in his 50s and has not been able to find a job. He is competing with young people in their 20s who are applying for these technician positions.

My friend's daughter graduated with a Master's degree in education several years ago. She has not been able to find a full-time position but works as a substitute teacher in various schools. Should she re-invent herself before she has even invented herself the first time?

I have hired many aides over the past several years for my mom who is in her 90s. I have met women who were retired and looking for a supplement income, and some that were let go from their jobs and needed to find new work. As the population ages, home health workers are a very much needed resource and a good opportunity for employment.

My dad worked for over 30 years for the New York City Transit Authority as a subway motorman. He retired at age 55 and enjoyed many years living on his pension. But that is not the case for most of us today. Our career path is not a straight road but has many winding paths. Retirement comes much later in life,  if at all.

For many people it has become necessary to re-invent yourself. Or to put it another way, when one door closes another one opens. One day we might find ourselves stepping carefully through that other door.