Making the Career Leap a Conversation with Gina Riley

As people live longer and healthier lives, retirement can mean 20 or 30 years of leisure. An encore career can be a rewarding way to spend this time. Though daunting, repositioning yourself in the market and polishing your networking skills can help you pursue your vision. With thoughtful planning, your encore career can be everything you hope for.

In this episode of Creating Your Encore Career, Lynn’s guest is Gina Riley. Gina is a career transition coach who helps executives and leaders reposition themselves for new opportunities. By assisting them to reestablish their unique value propositions in the marketplace, she reinvigorates their confidence to make the leap into their encore careers. Her nine-step Career Velocity system guides Gina’s clients toward answering hard questions about their second act. 

One of the best ways to stay healthy as you age is to remain active, and that means physically and mentally. Carving out a second career for yourself that you get to design is a great way to keep your brain performing at peak levels.

As a part of guiding her clients into their encore careers, Gina advises them to begin laying the groundwork before they embark on retirement. You may not feel like you have anything left to offer once you take that step, but Gina knows better. She suggests:

  • Figure out what you’re good at. If you were a brilliant project manager, you’d still be great. Brainstorm some ways to use those skills in another way.

  • Maintain a growth mindset. Research shows that you can add about seven and a half years to your lifespan by being curious and willing to continue learning.

  • Continue networking. Find unique ways to maintain your connections. For instance, sit on a board in an unpaid position or have coffee with some of your contacts to discover where opportunities may exist.

For more ways to lay your encore career groundwork ahead of time and learn more about Gina Riley’s Career Velocity system, be sure to tune into this week’s episode.