Today’s Wall Street Journal includes an article, A Real Estate Career With Wall Street Cred. The story describes people who quit their jobs to become high-end real estate agents. For anyone seeking a midlife career change, this article offers some strong examples.
For instance, Daniela Sassoun was a private banker in Switzerland. Jack Drapacz has MBA nd JD degrees plus fourteen years on Wall Street, working in hedge funds.
What does this mean for you?
Often your credentials from a previous career will strengthen your new career, especially if you choose an entrepreneurial path. You can leverage your previous life, even if you’re in a whole different field. For instance, these brokers got clients from their previous colleagues, who trusted them.
Even more, they were able to work with their new clients as equals. People like to work with professionals who relate on their own levels. It’s like you’re saying, “I’ve walked on the red carpet and you have too.” Snobbery? Maybe … but the key is you share values, experiences and context.
What this means is that if you go into business in a field where you might seem overqualified, you will actually attract clients your competitors can’t. For example:
– A dog walker with a graduate degree builds an empire based on business acumen and ability to connect with professional clients.
– A massage therapist builds an upscale practice and expands to health coaching, based on his degrees, independent study, and previous careers.
– A personal trainer keeps his practice full in a competitive marketplace, after graduating from an elite US degree program and serving in an elite military unit in an allied country’s army.
These folks are more educated than their peers and relate to their clients – especially their professional clients – in a special way. They keep clients for years and usually have a waiting list.
So … what can you bring to your next entrepreneurial venture? We can brainstorm during a Career Session.
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