By Kent Johnson


I know from coaching clients and from my own experience that changing careers or starting an new business -- especially in mid-life -- usually brings up many questions, concerns, and downright fear.

A million scenarios run through people's minds, many of them negative, as they contemplate of all the things that could go wrong.  Will I have enough money?  Will I face months of unemployment as I search for a new job?  Will my new business fail before it can begin turning a profit?  Am I too old for this? Am I too young?

Now certainly these are all legitimate concerns, and you should always weigh the possible negatives in a situation before taking the plunge into a new career or business. But you also don't want to talk yourself out of what could be the opportunity of a lifetime. 

After all, everyone who's successful now once faced these same questions and fears, and they pushed ahead anyway.  In fact, being willing to take a calculated risk is one of the traits that have been identified in most self-made millionaires. 

Okay, you may ask, so how does that help me conquer my own apprehensions?

You might try a technique called "mental mapping."  The idea here is to picture in your mind exactly where you want to be in 5 years, or even 10 years from now. 

Making a list of goals is important, but many people find it even more powerful to visualize exactly how their lives will be once they've attained those goals. This, after all, is the "carrot" that keeps you moving forward, even when you have a setback and things don't go as planned.

To perform this exercise, find a quiet place where you can sit and be undisturbed for a half hour or so. Then close your eyes and try to imagine exactly how your life will be in 5 years, when you've achieved your goal of a new career or business.

Try using all of your senses.  How do you feel?  Who are you with? Where are you living?  How much are you making?   How are you interacting with subordinates and other people around you?  In short, what does your "perfect work day" look like?

Do this exercise more than once, and I think you'll find that the picture becomes clearer and clearer.  Most successful people know exactly what they want, and exactly what they have to do to get there. 

Once you have this "mental map" of where you're going, you can begin to set short term goals that will help you get there. And when those fears and anxieties do crop up -- and they will -- you can hopefully stay calm and focus on the task at hand.

And if your mental picture of success starts to get fuzzy over time, find that quiet place again and re-visualize your life at the top.  After all, if you don't know where you're going, how can you ever get there? 

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