Your Career Transition - Methodology

The Teton Range - 2022

Grand Teton National Park

 When to Create Your Strategy and How to Execute the Tactics

Your future career transition is an event about which it’s natural to experience feelings of excitement as well as some concerns.

As the time nears, your concerns may become more prevalent. A major reason is the recognition that this is an unfamiliar process, yet you know it’s necessary to begin to plan.

But how do you know when is the right time to start planning, let alone what end date is possible? The reality is that it’s very difficult to determine when to begin to prepare when the necessary scope and duration of preparation is unknown.

In order to address that, it’s essential to consider significant personal, professional and practice matters. As you do so, it’s necessary to answer other preliminary questions to determine what it will take to prepare: 

• What is the nature of your career transition? 
• Are you planning a classic succession or outright sale? 
• Do you want to undertake a sale of your assets and close your practice?

The reality is that at the core, this is a very personal and professional matter, with many different aspects that are often intertwined. These will take time to contemplate and work through.

For these and other practical reasons, it’s impossible to predict how much work and time it will take. You can only anticipate so much…and you’ll probably have more to do than you think necessary. 

The best way to know is to engage the challenge by beginning to plan and prepare…and be flexible so that you can adjust your planning and timeline as needed.

The question remains: When to begin?

A Practical Rule of Thumb

A common feature of your planning and preparation is that it will create a significant, additional workload that is superimposed to your existing responsibilities. This will usually occur at the same time that you may want to take more time off. This is beneficial, as it will allow you to adjust to the experience of having more discretionary time. But can you really do so?

All too often, the experience is being busier than ever. With that, there may be increasing fatigue, frustration, stress, etc. This, at the very time when you thought your experience would be the opposite.

So how do you take control of your life when so much of what you have to do to prepare is unknown? 

You do so by developing a proactive attitude and start your planning earlier that you might think.

A very good indicator that will signal you to start planning, is when you find yourself thinking about your career transition more often than usual. For many, that’s about five years in advance of your possible end date in the case of a succession or outright sale. If you are planning to close your practice, it’s advisable to begin at least three years in advance.

In either case, your available options are typically proportionate to planning proactively in a timely manner. 

Are there other impediments hiding in plain sight?

On Banishing Procrastination

There are two very different types of reactions to this topic that reflect human nature.

There are those that plan and prosper. There are those that deny and defer. 

The reality is that your career transition is inevitable. An important question you must ask yourself is: Will I ignite proactively the process to create my vision or will I allow life to simply present me with what it may or may not have to offer?

The good news about this process, is that it’s within your power to design it according to your needs and desires.

By doing so, you will be able to have control over much of it. There will be times when life's menu will serve you a dish that’s unexpected. However, by being prepared you will be ready to adapt accordingly.

How to Plan and Prepare?

Your career transition is a multi dimensional process. A critical element of success is that you have a clear understanding of how you want to live your life afterwards. 

In addition, it's also essential to prepare an analysis that allows you to determine whether or not your lifestyle plan can be supported by your financial assets. 

To achieve an optimal career transition experience, you must have a defined process of how and when to accomplish a variety of tasks that culminate in your actual end date.

It’s very important to create a systematic, actionable approach to accomplish this. Here’s how: 

The Blueprints Triad

This methodology is comprised of a clearly defined set of three blueprints or plans that comprise a triad. Each of these three plans has a specific purpose and a particular sequence in which they are created and executed to achieve optimal results. They are:

The Post Career Lifestyle Plan _TM  

This is the first step on your journey of renewal and fulfillment, a major goal of a transition.

Your Post Career Lifestyle Plan  serves two major purposes. One, is that it provides the framework for how you will live a balanced, ideal life. The second, is to provide the basis for determining whether your new lifestyle can be supported by your financial resources.

 The Post Career Financial Plan _TM  

I refer to the next evaluation as your Post Career Financial Plan. This is different from your retirement plan that comprises your financial resources. Its purpose is to determine whether your retirement plan assets will support your lifestyle plan. If it does, it allows you to proceed with confidence. If it does not, you can reevaluate both plans and make adjustments to one or both.

The End of Career Transition Plan _TM  

This is your blueprint that guides you as you undertake the process of ending your career and arriving at your destination: your actual end date. This plan is designed to guide the implementation of the decisions you have made about the nature of the disposition of your practice. Fundamentally, as described, it’s to sell it or close it.

This consists of a plan action, a blueprint with detailed policies and procedures that outline what to do as well as when and how to do them. This includes when you will actually initiate and complete your career transition.

How Does This Triad of Plans Benefit You? 

The creation of your End of Career triad of plans will be incredibly valuable to you. Whereas without them you may experience stress and preoccupation long before your end date, having your plans will help you design a clear path marked by tranquility and triumph.

An important benefit of that, is that you can move forward on your path confidently, with a smile on your face and a feeling of pride knowing that once again, you have succeeded on your terms.

My best wishes to you and your family!

PS: By the way, do you want to learn more from me about how to create a positive End of Career Transition and a fulfilling life beyond? I would like to help you. I provide consulting and coaching services that are tailored to your specific needs. Click here to request an introductory conversation.

Henry’s Lake - 2022

Idaho