When her longtime boss passed away in 2022, Lisa Pollione found herself at a crossroads with her career—in her 60s. 

In this episode, Lisa shares how she reinvented her professional life after two decades as a trusted chief of staff and executive assistant to a pharmaceutical advertising executive.

Lisa recalls the actions she took: signing up with temp agencies, exploring new paths, and staying open to opportunities. After trying out a few different roles as a temp, she’s now thriving in a new career as a compliance officer.

If you're wondering, "what's next for me?", maybe temping is the way to go. Lisa offers honesty, humor, and practical advice for all career changers, especially those over 60.

Episode Highlights:

• Having a stressful job as the right hand to a busy executive

• Facing a crossroads after losing a longtime employer

• Why temp agencies can help you explore different paths

• Learning new skills while working as a temp

• Taking on responsibilities beyond the job description 

• Why being proactive and flexible wins out over credentials  

• What to look for in company culture before committing full-time

• What to tell temp agencies when you’re not sure what you want

Resources:

Top 10 U.S. Temp Staffing Firms:

Manpower: https://www.manpower.com/

Kelly: https://www.kellyservices.com/

Robert Half: https://www.roberthalf.com/us/en

Adecco: https://www.adecco.com/en-us

Randstad: https://www.randstadusa.com/

Express Employment Professionals: https://www.expresspros.com/

Aerotek: https://www.aerotek.com/en

PeopleReady: https://www.peopleready.com/

MRINetwork: https://mrinetwork.com/

Staffmark: https://staffmark.com/

More temp agencies:

2025 America's Best Temp Staffing Firms by Forbes Magazine

Want more advice? Check out these additional episodes: 

Ep 4: Aged out: Making a career switch at over 50

Ep 16: Breaking into a new industry in your 50s

Ep 18: The pros and cons of being a full-time author

Ep 21: From side hustle to a new career

Ep 23: How being bilingual helps your new career

Ep 32: How to make a career change after 50

Ep 41: Pursuing your passion at any age

Ep 48: Tuning into your younger self

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Do you want to make a career change, but you feel stuck? Do you keep procrastinating, thinking you’ll get started next week, month, or year? 

Here to get you going is executive coach and leadership consultant Ellen Whitlock Baker. As the founder and CEO of EWB Coaching, Ellen helps midlife professionals reclaim who they are and what they want to do next in their careers.

In this episode, Ellen shares why it’s so hard to get started even when you know it’s time for a change. She reveals how you can identify those conscious and unconscious blockers that are keeping you from switching to a new career and the tiny, low-risk steps you can take to start anyway—even if you’re scared, unsure, or don’t have a plan yet.

Episode Highlights:

• Why it's hard to get started with a career change

• Your biological wiring that resists change

• Perfectionism and other common blockers that keep you stuck

• How your upbringing and past work experiences influence your thinking

• Taking action even when you don't feel ready

• Small "experiments" to investigate new career paths

• Reframing failure as learning

• Using AI to generate insights for possible next steps

Find Ellen Whitlock Baker at:

Website: https://ewbcoaching.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellenwhitlockbaker/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellenwbcoaching

Podcast: The Hard at Work Podcast

Start Anyway Workshop on 9/18/25: https://ewbcoaching.com/startanyway

Discount code for 15% off: SWITCH25

Resources Mentioned: 

Immunity to Change: How to Overcome It and Unlock the Potential in Yourself and Your Organization by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey

Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career by Herminia Ibarra

Want more advice? Check out these additional episodes:

Ep 34: 3 signs it’s time for a career change

Ep 19: Here’s why you’re procrastinating about your career change

Ep 7: Lost with what career change to make?

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Jim Fina made his career switch in the late 90s when new media was becoming more mainstream and integrating itself into our daily lives. Jim, a textbook editor at Scholastic, gradually transitioned into project management at a time when it was relatively new in tech. 

Jim's experience from 20-plus years ago mirrors where we are today with artificial intelligence. Just like the web in the 90s, AI is quickly going mainstream and reshaping how we live and work. 

In this episode, Jim shares how he paved his way in a new field and how you can do the same in AI or any other growing industry. 

Episode Highlights:

• Exploring new media after a layoff

• Telling colleagues you're interested in other areas

• Defining a role when it's still new in an industry

• How to switch into a field that's still being defined, like AI

• The skills you need to get your foot in the door

• Working through comparing yourself to others 

• Do certifications help?

• The one thing every interview question boils down to

• What a hiring manager really wants to hear from you in an interview

• How to answer a question if you don't know that answer

• Using a layoff to get out of a rut

• Making a career switch in multiple steps

Resources Mentioned: 
What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard N. Bolles

Want more advice? Check out these additional episodes:

Ep 38: How to transition from corporate to non-profit

Ep 16: Breaking into a new industry in your 50s

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

If you need a pep talk today, this episode is for you! Wherever you are in your career change journey, my guest has you covered with practical tools and soulful guidance.

Robyn Moreno is a spiritual coach and author of Get Rooted. In this episode, Robyn shares how you can manage those fears and doubts that often come up with making a career switch—by tapping into your intuition and staying in the present. 

Robyn also reveals the four pillars you can always count on to stay grounded and motivated to keep going with your career change.


Episode Highlights:
• What it means to get rooted
• Feeling unrooted where you are
• Acknowledging your inner voice (or “ser”) that guides you toward change
• Accepting the newness of switching industries or professions
• Networking in a whole new way 
• How to reframe your past experience as fuel for your next chapter
• Four pillars to handle the ups and downs of a career change
• The concept of "susto" and how unprocessed work trauma can hold you back
• Trusting and valuing yourself as you transition into a new field   

Find Robyn Moreno at:

Website: https://www.robynmoreno.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robynnmoreno/

Book: Get Rooted

Need more encouragement? Check out these additional episodes:

Ep 52: Figuring it out as you go

Ep 43: Trying to change careers now

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Any career change has its risks. That’s why a major goal of this podcast is to encourage you to TAKE ACTION. Nayan Patel exemplifies this mission perfectly. 

Recently, Nayan went from working as a banking executive to managing a horse farm. As the new owner of Horse Shadow Run, he now oversees a 16-acre horse farm that offers boarding, riding lessons, and summer camps in Charlotte, North Carolina.

In this episode, Nayan walks us through how he is figuring out his career transition into entrepreneurship. Nayan’s attitude that he can learn anything required to operate his business—by asking or finding the help he needs—has him optimistic that his career switch will work out. 

Nayan shares how he’s navigating year one of his new venture, the calculated risks he’s taking, and his plan if things don't pan out. 

Episode Highlights:

• Feeling overworked and wanting to slow down
• Deciding to buy a business 
• Responsibilities of running a horse farm
• How to learn on the job
• When to outsource
• Why Nayan isn’t afraid to ask for help 
• Tackling the worst case scenario
• Taking calculated risks 
• Giving yourself a time frame to figure things out
• Managing people, a transferable skill that supports entrepreneurship 
• Working alongside your spouse
• Horse Shadow Run boarding, riding lessons, and summer camps info
• Working on expanding the business
• Nayan's advice for taking risks

Find Horse Shadow Run at:

Website: https://horseshadowrun.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/horseshadowrun

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/horseshadow.run/

Mentioned in this episode:
Charlotte is a growing city:
Number of People Moving to Charlotte Area Every Day Climbs to 117 by Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, August 2024

Other episodes about starting a business

Ep 37: Starting a retail business after corporate burnout

Ep 29: The ups and downs of building a business

Ep 25: Is your hobby your next career?

Ep 6: Starting a woman-owned small business

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Let's face it, career changers aren't typical job candidates. You've got the extra hurdle of having to convince a hiring manager that you can do the job you're applying for in a new field.

To better understand what a hiring manager is thinking—and feeling—I’m speaking with Dawn Graham, PhD, a licensed psychologist and author of Switchers: How Smart Professionals Change Careers and Seize Success.

Dawn is a leading career switch coach, TEDx speaker, LinkedIn Learning instructor and the former host of the popular show, Dr. Dawn on Careers, on SiriusXM Radio.

In this episode, Dawn takes us on a psychological deep dive into what’s really going on when a hiring manager evaluates a career changer. She reveals which pain points you need to address, the mistakes you could be making without even realizing it, and how to reframe your approach to win over the person who'll likely be your boss.  

Episode Highlights:
• The psychology aspect of a job search
• Loss aversion and red flags
• Incorporating emotion in hiring
• Elimination vs Selection
• How to counter bias with networking
• Closing the gap as a career changer
• Pros and cons of cover letters
• Identifying a hiring manager's pain points
• How a hiring manager is likely feeling
• Addressing concerns a hiring manager has about career changers 
• How to show that you are serious about your career switch
• Deciding if you need to go back to school
• Mistakes you could be making when applying for a job in a new field
• Match first, stand out second
• The benefits of a stepping stone switch

Find Dawn Graham, PhD, at:

Website: https://execpsyc.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdawngraham/

Book: Switchers: How Smart Professionals Change Careers and Seize Success

LinkedIn Learning Courses: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/instructors/dawn-graham

TEDx Talk: Your Next Job is One Conversation Away

SiriusXM Radio show: Dr. Dawn on Careers

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Sometimes you don’t have to go far to make a career switch. My guest today is a great example of how to change careers without changing companies. 

Mia Villarreal went from social media strategist to product marketing manager—within the same organization—in only a couple of years. 

In this episode, Mia shares how she first got into VMware, a global software developer, in 2020 as a contractor—a move that gave her access to the company culture and cross-functional teams before she was even a permanent employee. 

Mia walks us through the inside track she took to change careers within VMware—from leveraging in-house platforms to tapping into her internal network. 

She also recalls how her mentors and trusted colleagues helped her navigate her impostor syndrome about transitioning to product marketing when she had no direct experience. 

Episode Highlights:

• Getting your foot in the door as a contractor

• Is your company culture conducive to a career change?  

• Accessing in-house resources

• Getting help with impostor syndrome 

• How to ask your manager for support with switching roles

• What to keep an eye out for possible openings within a company

• Setting up coffee chats – how to approach people and what to cover

• What to do in the first 30, 60, and 90 days in a new role

• Leaning into your strengths when making a career switch

Resources Mentioned: 

Product Marketing Alliance: https://www.productmarketingalliance.com/

CliftonStrengths Assessment: https://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths/en/252137/home.aspx

Career coach Alicia Wolfe: https://www.integratewell.co/

Additional Episodes:

Need more help with impostor syndrome? Check out these episodes:

Ep 49: Need some A.I.R. with your career change?

Ep 11: Impostor syndrome and other roadblocks to a career change

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Madeline Miller, a Gen Z and Millennial career and leadership coach, shares her A.I.R. Formula—Alignment, Influence, and Resilience—to help professionals connect with a more fulfilling career. 

Drawing from her own career switch as an entertainment attorney turned entrepreneur, Madeline breaks down the mindset shifts needed to:

• Align your work with your values 

• Build influence

• Develop the resilience to keep moving forward

"If you are going through a career transition, mindset is the most important part," says Madeline, founder of Coaching with Madeline. 

Episode Highlights:

• Madeline's career trajectory that led her to develop A.I.R.

• Alignment: Finding a sense of purpose by aligning your work with your values and skills

• Influence: The gap between who you are and how you want to show up

• Resilience: Developing healthy emotional resilience to get through setbacks

• Managing impostor syndrome

• Handling uncertainty

• How to get started with A.I.R. for a career change

Find Madeline Miller at:

Website: https://coachingwithmadeline.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madelinemillercoaching/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/millermadeline/

Career and Leadership Coaching Packages: https://coachingwithmadeline.com/career-leadership-coaching-packages/

E-book: Redefining Success: The Burnout-Free Formula for Influence and Impact

https://coachingwithmadeline.com/ebook-the-burnout-free-formula-for-influence-and-impact/

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Barbara Brandon-Croft is recognized as the first Black woman cartoonist in the U.S. to break into the mainstream press with Where I’m Coming From, her cartoon feature centering on Black female voices.

As we celebrate Women's History Month, Barbara looks back at her various careers—from her early days as a fashion and beauty writer to her time as a cartoonist at the Detroit Free Press in the 90s, and later, as the research director at Parents magazine, where she worked for 18 years. 

In this episode, Barbara recalls how she navigated unexpected career shifts, including getting laid off from Parents—in her 60s. She shares how tuning into her younger self helped her embrace the unknown and revive her cartooning career post layoff. 

"I needed to start thinking about receiving what I couldn't imagine," she says about the many doors her shift in perspective has opened.

Barbara’s story also demonstrates the role timing can play when it comes to a career change. When she had to move on from being a cartoonist in her younger years, it turns out it's just the right career for her now. 

Episode Highlights:

• Barbara's journey as the first Black woman cartoonist syndicated in the mainstream press in the U.S.

 • Facing unexpected career changes

 • Finding guidance in your younger self

 • The financial realities of creative careers and how to navigate them

 • How unpaid opportunites can lead to paid opportunities

 • Getting out of your comfort zone

 • Barbara's reviving her cartoonist career today

 • The role of trust and openness in career reinvention

Find Barbara Brandon-Croft at:

Website: https://barbarabrandoncroft.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbarabrandoncroft/

Museum of Modern Art (MoMA): https://www.moma.org/magazine/authors/626

Barbara’s Book: Where I’m Coming From

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Former newspaper reporter Jonathan McFadden opens up about the identity crisis he battled with his career change. He recalls everything he was afraid to lose if he left journalism—would it be worth it? 

“I, like many of us do, conflated my value as a human with my value as an employee,” says Jonathan.

In this episode, Jonathan shares how he tried a couple of different jobs and industries before landing on user experience, also known as UX.

Was it all worth it? Tune in to find out and to hear Jonathan's advice for changing careers more than once. 

Episode Highlights:
• Feeling overworked
• Wanting a better quality of life
• Planning to leave
• Former colleagues look out for each other
• Soft skills are core skills
• Learning the language in a new industry 
• Battling an identity crisis about leaving journalism
• Transitioning to user experience, or UX   
• Feeling aligned with what you’re doing 
• Don’t focus on the job title
• Advice for making multiple career changes 

Additional Episodes:
Ep 31: Leaving journalism: When you need to change industries
Ep 35: Leaving media: Career change for editors

Additional Podcast Mentioned:
What Rules!?: A Career Podcast for Women of Color


Resources:
Where Editors Go Next—An Ongoing List of Pivot-able Industries by Chandra Turner
2024 Editorial Hiring Report by TheTalentFairy

Music credit: TimMoor from Pixabay

Podcast info:
What's your career switch? What do you think about this episode and the show? Tell us at careerswitchpod.com. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.