From My Inbox: Pick Your Timeline

I was fed a formidable diet of conventional career wisdom growing up.

One bit of wisdom seemed reasonable for the time - pick your career path early, remain committed to one craft, stick to that track, climb steadily... I say this advice was "reasonable" because when I was at the impressionable "what are you going to be?" stage of life, the economic outlook was highly unpredictable. Yes, I have the dubious honor of graduating from high school then university (2x) during significant downturns in the job market.

So assuming you had a job to go to, picking your path and sticking to it, was rather reasonable advice.

Reasonable advice but you have to admit, a bit lackluster.

Then project forward along the career timeline, what if you had "what if's" career doubts? Or what if you followed the conventional advice to the "T" and things didn't turn out? What then? Is it too late to make a u-turn or dial back to an earlier career dream? When staying the course is presented as the only choice, it doesn't leave you with much maneuverability.

What crap.

And I’m not saying this simply because I personally feel my own career began to “blossom” after several fits & starts, attempts & dead-ends, long after I'd entered my 40's, after I'd finally stopped following the conventional career wisdom I'd swallowed earlier in my life.

The Compound Effect

Those who make a career shift or switch possess "compound competence"— the ability to draw upon varied career experiences leads to exponential growth in understanding and expertise. Synthesizing experiences and insights gained from working across industries, functions, and contexts, you have to admit it's a pretty potent career advantage, a unique value proposition that can't necessarily be replicated by staying in one lane.

This I know – deeply.

Back to the conventional career wisdom I followed diligently.

I was a corporate attorney for 12 years. To advance in the profession, to attain entry to the coveted club of partnership, I needed to pick a lane. To double down in one area of the law. And as my career advanced, my expertise and network narrowed, and narrowed, to snuggly fit in the narrow little career lane I’d chosen. That expertise and those networks would have continued to serve me very well – if – big if - I continued to be driven to focus my career energies solely on that area of law.

When I finally had the nerve to act on the itch to bust out of that increasingly narrow lane, a funny thing happened: more of the career results I was seeking materialized. As I dropped my ego and stepped into new experiences, flexed forgotten skill sets, ditched notions of corporate hierarchy, and continuously expanded my network, more of what I wanted for my career, materialized.

Shifting or switching careers IMHO, offers a richness of varied relationships due to the compounding of networks. Each career iteration doesn't replace your previous connections—it multiplies them.

Let me give you an example.

At a retreat for women entrepreneurs, I met a marketing and sales executive, formerly employed by Big Pharma. She was a later career switcher who had exited the c-suite to become an executive coach to those clambering to get in the c-suite. That decision to switch careers now positions her at the intersection of corporate networks and entrepreneurial communities. She’s optimally placed between two sectors that could benefit from knowing each other.

This positioning is powerful.

Many people only deepen vertically within their industry (as my legal career illustrates). When you choose to change careers, you expand horizontally across multiple domains, and in the process of pivoting, you gain connections across previously disconnected communities, groups and networks - and this is indeed a rather powerful place to be situated in any network.

Best Practice Network Strategy for Career Pivots and Shifts

Here's what I learned about networking through career pivots:

🗝️ Keep past networks alive. Those "old" networks can become invaluable in the future, say when you decide you want to coach executives in your former industry. So don't abandon previous connections—find light ways to stay in-touch (for example, it can be as simply as remembering a work anniversary or milestone) - because as they say, you never know...

🗝️ Become a connector. Career switchers naturally occupy unique positions between industries – and insights. Use this positioning strategically. For example, the former pharma executive turned leadership coach could broker introductions between her industry contacts and other entrepreneurs in the new community of business owners she finds herself in.

🗝️ Reframe your narrative. Instead of explaining what you're leaving behind, articulate what you're bringing into your future endeavors. "I use my c-suite experience to guide clients through their leadership transformations" resonates more powerfully than "I used to work in Pharma but I decided to leave that to..."

The networks spanning various career incarnations are a big part of the success toolkit of career switchers. So I'll drop a strong word of networking advice: find ways to maintain these ties rather than abandoning your previous “I’m no longer in that field” connections.

The Timeline Audit

Here's something else I realized after I ditched the conventional career path, took a few chances on myself, and tasted a bit of the career accomplishment I'd always craved: ambition doesn’t have to have an expiry date.

Obvious however, I mention this in case you're feeling compelled to make a change or do something else with your ambitions...yet...and yet, in spite of that pull, you find yourself hesitating.

Mary McKenna, MBE is an entrepreneur turned investor turned founder (again) – ok, she’s done way more than that and you can blow your mind reading all she has accomplished (34+ professional experiences and counting) on her LinkedIn profile. Mary is one of the founders of AwakenHub, the first all-Ireland community supporting women entrepreneurs. Alongside scaling AwakenHub, Mary continues to directly invest in startups (investments which may come to fruition long after she can benefit from the exit), to mentor founders outside of AwakenHub and well, the list goes on (back to the list of 34+ experiences on her LinkedIn profile).

Then there’s Monica Parker, WSJ best-selling author of The Power of Wonder. Monica has pursued anything but a linear career. Here are just a few of her past-career hits: opera singer, head of a chamber of commerce, homicide investigator, museum exhibit designer, founder of a global human analytics and change consultancy - a consultancy she successfully exited earlier in 2025, freeing her to pivot again to a PhD exploring the ways wonder can make leaders more empathetic.

At a time when many would suggest slowing down, choosing something less demanding, reclining in the comfort of the success they have achieved with a glass of Rosé, these two women provide an encouraging alternative option. Both Mary and Monica demonstrate that ambition doesn't diminish—oh, heck no! Far more inspiring  - and motivating – is when it keeps becoming bigger, grander and even more impactful.

If you’re feeling the time for making a career switch has passed…challenge the myth by conducting a career timeline audit:

🚀 Plot the pivots, pauses, and accelerations that have occurred in your career. Ok, you may not have a resume as unexpected as Monica’s or as illustrious as Mary’s, but within each role you’ve held there is likely richness in detail you’re overlooking.

🚀 Notice how the "detours" – such as special projects, side hacks, committee assignments, mentoring obligations and volunteer commitments - often led to your most significant personal breakthroughs. Consider the detours you chose -  along with those thrust upon you and those you turned your back on, too.

🚀 Identify patterns and themes. What consistent thread runs through your diverse experiences? This becomes your unique value proposition.

🚀 Spot bridge opportunities. Where could your varied experience create unexpected connections or solutions in other markets or sectors?

🚀 Project forward. Tap into a career dream. Yes, you’ll have to push aside the very real fears you may have about starting over—loss of status, financial risk, imposter syndrome in a new field – but try for a few moments to immerse yourself fully in the feeling of pursuing something your heart has long desired. What would you pursue? Holding onto that feeling, redesign your next five years.

The Strategic Pivot

The women who achieve the most aren't those who necessarily followed the prescribed path. They're the ones who step into their own – whether in a traditional field or in one that zigs and zags in unexpected and delightful ways.

My bottomline?

The conventional wisdom is conventional for a reason—it's safe, predictable, and frankly, boring.

Ditch the timeline police. Ignore due by and expiry dates. Your career timeline is yours to write.

The question isn't whether you're "on track"—it's whether you're on your track, aligned with your values and leveraging your unique combination of experiences, knowledge and networks.

Need more?

Women leaders indicate that they built their careers by developing strong internal and external networks...

💡 Women Leaders: How Far Have We Come? (Spencer Stuart)

💡 Choose your fuel wisely (Seth's Blog)

💡 Ditch The Pressure: How To Build A Personalized Career Timeline (Forbes)