Monthly Archives: September 2020
Some advice on changing careers…
Here is a reply I left at “Husker Connect,” an alumni forum at the University of Nebraska. As an aside, I was by far the oldest alum to reply to this question. Can not believe it has been over 50 years 🙂
Some Huskers are considering a career change. Why (and how) did you take the leap to transition into a new job or career field?
—What led me to a leap of faith? Being laid off from an engineering job less than two years after graduation, with a very pregnant wife. I remember thinking, “So this is how the game is played.” So I set my goal on having my own business, with no idea what that might be. A second layoff a few years later solidified my thinking.
—How did I prepare for it? I studied small businesses, and started some side hustles. One that worked best was teaching adult evening classes on electronics. That skill later became an important (and lucrative) part of my future engineering consulting & training firm.
—How did I navigate the change? Realizing my engineering background alone was not enough, I took a job as a sales engineer ( a career shift itself), followed by a marketing position and a stint at a startup. Dropped an MBA program when I realized it was NOT taking me where I wanted to go. Tried to leap once and failed. Tried again later and succeeded – the day the stock market crashed in 1987. Still at it 33 years later (although now semi-retired and just having fun.)
—What advice would I offer? Have an honest discussion with yourself about what YOU want out of life. Assess what you enjoy (and are good at), and what you don’t enjoy. Focus on the former, and forget the latter. If not sure, try a bunch of stuff — side hustles are great for that. Backfill your deficiencies as needed. Live beneath your means so you have financial options rather than being an economic slave.
—Finally, enjoy the ride. My business mantra has been, “Have some fun, do some good, make some money.” Mine has been a great if varied career. Wishing you the best — Daryl Gerke (PE), UNL ’68-BSEE.
Hoping some of you may find this useful. And don’t delay — the years go by fast. In retrospect, making my personal leap (or JumpToConsulting) was the second best decision in my life. (The best was asking my co-conspirator to marry me.)
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No guarantees of success in business…
Time for a harsh reality check from Uncle Daryl. No, it is not all peaches & cream starting and running a consulting practice… or any business.
But for me, it still beats working for somebody else.
This post was inspired by an almost constant barrage of human interest stories on the news about people losing their businesses to COVID-19. Please know I am very sympathetic and understand the pain. It hurts — I’ve been there myself.
But nothing in business (or life) is guaranteed. You need to consider that from the start. Statistics show 20% of small businesses fail in the first year, and 50% in the first five years.
So before you even start, ask yourself the following:
- What if this doesn’t work? It might not.
- What is Plan B (or C…)? Be ready to pivot.
- How can I minimize (but not eliminate) risk? Be bold, but be prudent.
On a positive note, I love the quote from Bob Parsons (GoDaddy Founder and now a billionaire), “Remember, if it doesn’t work, they can’t eat you…”
Now for some encouragement. Things change – sometimes suddenly. The real test is what YOU do about it. Wishing things were different does not solve problems. Creative thinking does.
It is often said a real measure of an entrepreneur is how many times they failed — and then picked themselves up and moved on. Each failure – no matter how painful – is an opportunity gain experience and learn. It also builds resilience.
One of my favorite examples of resilience is Abraham Lincoln. His mother died. His first love died. His first business went bankrupt. He lost elections. He lost children. He eventually became a successful attorney (consultant), and of course went on to save the Union as the President of the United States.
Just for the record, here are some of MY business setbacks – and how they eventually turned out:
–Laid off from my first engineering job with a very pregnant wife. (Started the wheels turning to escape the corporate rat race and become independent.) But not ready to go on my own, I sent out 50 resumes – and got two responses. Ended up in a group specializing in Electromagnetic Interference, the Technical Speciality on which I later built a successful consulting practice.
–Suffered numerous losses as a Sales Engineer –but still won more than I lost. (Became an SE to learn about sales and marketing.) It always hurt to lose a sale after investing much time and effort, but the Sales experience was invaluable as a consultant.
–Fired from a startup I helped found. (Joined the startup to learn about small business.) Should have seen it coming. Feeling ready to liberate my self, hung out my consulting shingle. Fell flat on my face, and crawled back into the corporate womb. Ended up in a Marketing group, which was a big help later as a consultant.
–Lost out on a few other jobs over the years, but in retrospect glad they did not work out. They might have taken me in a different direction, and I would have missed out on the Joys of Consulting.
–After making it as a consultant, still took four times to get the training side our business right. Ultimately made millions.
–There were a few more setbacks —  for which I still have the scars 🙂
But I kept on plugging on, mored determined that even to have my own business. And eventually I did.
So what can YOU do, if  faced with a setback?
–First, don’t mope and blame. OK, maybe for a day or two — have wine or a beer  — but then get over it.
–Second, assess your financial situation. Marshall your resources. Figure out how long you can go before you need to grab a lifeline, and (shudder) find a job if need be. Trust me, it is not the end of the world – I know – you can always try again later.
–Third, consider new opportunities. When our primary markets (personal computers and military systems) suddenly dried up in 1992, we shifted our emphasis to medical electronics. We wrote targeted articles in medical magazines, joined a medical industry committee, and contacted key people at the FDA. Within six months, we were back in the saddle. We used the same approach later to expand into several other industries.
Remember, consultants solve problems. And they help achieve dreams. If you run into setbacks, just apply your skills to your own situation.
Stay safe, and turn those setbacks into NEW business success!
The FREE Monthly Teleconference is Back!
Join us with your questions – or just listen in learn
“Ask Daryl Anything About Consulting”
© 2020, https:. All rights reserved.
