Press
© 2005 WaterMark Media
May, 2005
By Kirk Hartlage
A NEW SECOND ACT
Changing careers in mid-life poses more challenges than meets the eye ¨ as this Sarasota therapist-turned-coffee bar owner has learned
Gone are the days of longevity in a single, solitary career.
Gold watches awarded for extended tenure with a company have fallen by the wayside as the average American no longer remains employed with the same company ¨ let alone the same career field ¨ for life.
The Wall Street Journal reports that half of all working Americans wish they could change to an entirely new career. And as many fields, particularly those in industry, continue to see workforces slashed, others such as health care cant seem find enough employees. Suddenly, the thought of changing careers isnt as foreign or as shocking as it once was.
The motivations to quit and find something else are plentiful. Job dissatisfaction, a discovery of hidden talents, a desire for a raise in pay more than the occasional øbumpÓ ¨ all of these factors can push a person from one occupational path to another.
Sandy Pheil is a professional life coach who experienced her own change in careers and now helps motivate others make their own changes. After giving up a high-powered corporate position in marketing to start her life-coaching firm, she quickly discovered she was not alone in her desire to professionally start anew.
øIve been amazed since I left corporate America at how many people hate their jobs,Ó Pheil says. øThey go to work because they ¥have to go there, doing things they ¥have to do.Ó
In questioning her own career, she found it easier to describe what she didnt like as opposed to what she did like. Pheil realized that she felt as if she had to sacrifice her own self-identity ¨ including being an open lesbian ¨ for her job.
øFamily, relationships, style of living ¨ these are all things that is really what life should be about,Ó Pheil says. øIn our work, we want to do something that makes us feel value and pride and gives us reason for getting up in the morning.Ó
It may be easier for gays and lesbians to change careers as opposed to their straight co-workers. It can be less traumatic to take risks that may involve a financial or family burden for those in the GLBT community who dont have children or families depending on that job.
øWe have more of an opportunity ¨ less overhead, if you will,Ó Pheil says.
A THIRD CAREER,
A THIRD-PLACE CAFÞ
Sarasota resident Betsy Nelson is in the process of making a rather drastic job change, though its not the first in her overall career path. Shes giving up her psychotherapy practice of 12 years to open her own coffee and wine caf¹ this month. Some have joked that she herself may be most in need of therapy to take the distinctly different direction her career path. Others ¨ mostly those with restaurant and bartending experience ¨ have offered her praise her for the new-found ability of capitalizing on hearing peoples problems while making income by selling them food and beverages. Maybe the two fields arent as far apart as they seem.
Located on the edge of Downtown Sarasota, near the northeast corner of Osprey Avenue and Mound Street, Nelsons new enterprise, Metro Coffee and Wine Caf¹, will take up 1,500 square feet in a mixed-used building that was once an auto dealership. Her neighbors will also soon include an art gallery next door, a suitable companion business that Nelson hopes will capitalize on the caf¹s similar market segments, and vice versa. When completed, Metro will have seating for 48 coffee sippers inside and 30 outside.
øWhen were full, the chefs going to be really busy,Ó Nelson laughs.
The chef wont be the only one ¨ Nelson will still see a small handful of her clients in addition to running Metro. The three to four clients she plans to keep ¨ at least for a while ¨ are primarily children.
øOnce you take a kid on as a client, its important to see them through to college age. Attachment issues are important,Ó the therapist-entrepreneur says.
Nelson brings an interesting background to her new profession. After college, her initial career involved teaching golf professionally to the LPGA. It was during that time she met her partner, whom shes been with for 18 years.
øI was in Philadelphia and she was down here,Ó Nelson says about the eventual decision to move to Florida. After teaching golf for a while, she went into clinical social work, an occupation that she followed for 12 years. Though Nelson laughs that øit seemed time for another career.Ó
Nelson, a licensed clinical social worker who specializes in couples therapy and working with grief and loss issues, has seen a rich representation of society in her practice. She hopes to see the same mix of sexual orientations, races, and ages in her new venture. She wants it to be a reflection of the Philadelphia neighborhood she left behind with its cross smattering of demographics.
The name øMetroÓ speaks to the environment Nelson hopes to create. To accomplish that, she plans on advertising in several non-mainstream publications, making sure word gets out to the various unique minorities of Sarasota. Shes also serving as a sponsor of this months Sarasota Pridefest and will be distributing samples of her frozen beverages.
So far, her clients have had a mixed assortment of reactions. Many have welcomed the opportunity to get to know her in a different atmosphere.
Nelson says that many professions allow for socializing between øproviderÓ and øbuyerÓ ¨ but psychotherapy is not one of them. And even though many in the restaurant business will say they themselves are the original low-cost therapy providers, Nelson has had to talk about setting boundaries with some of her current clients. Though she jokes about it, she wants to make sure her caf¹ does not completely become a place where people come for øa beer and an ear.Ó
MORE THAN ADVICE AT THE BAR
In setting up the caf¹, Nelson has also learned about her own boundaries.
øWithin the last year, Ive learned a lot about my own needs and self-limitations,Ó Nelson says. øIve learned not to punish myself for things I didnt know.Ó
øTen years ago, I couldnt have done this,Ó Nelson says. øI feel pretty confident about it.Ó
Sometimes the grass isnt always greener on the other side of the fence.
øI used to complain about the amount of paperwork involved in therapy,Ó Nelson says. øManaged care has made that a very unpleasant part of the process. Now €Ó
She trails off, sighing. Little did she realize the length of the paper trail involved in the food and beverage industry. A lot of the tasks required to open the caf¹ have been self-taught. Nelson says shes been ølearning along the way and asking others in the field for advice,Ó a tactic that includes questioning one particular journalist about his multiple years worth of restaurant experience.
øI never would have known I was an entrepreneur at heart,Ó Nelson says. In doing skill evaluations of herself, she learned that many of the tasks she enjoyed doing ¨ and excelled at ¨ were entrepreneurial based entities.
Though there were certainly many directions she could have harnessed that entrepreneurial spirit, she elected to focus on coffees as it is a product she says she understands. Finding unique coffee bars and bistros on trips out of town, she realized Sarasota was lacking in that market niche. In business, the best opportunities are found where an under-served market exists.
Beyond the coffees and wines, shes also creating an upscale fun caf¹ food menu that reflects much of her own tastes. Nelson is a self-professed øfoodieÓ and her passion shines through when describing how the coffee beans sold in her shop are grown and harvested as well as when she describes the menu. Working with the chef shes hired ¨ a man who is as passionate about food as she is ¨ theyve collaborated on a unique menu that is also kid friendly and doesnt appeal to just one demographic.
During the construction process she ran into some friends, blue-collar types, who expressed concerns that her business may be too upscale for their pocketbooks. It was a conversation shes taken to heart.
øAs soon as people asked if I would have affordable things, I knew I needed to keep an eye on my prices,Ó Nelson says.
To raise capital, Nelson sold some shares in her business and took out some home equity loans. Her approaches attracted the attention of the Southwest Florida Business Guild, which recently asked her to serve on a discussion panel on how to start a small business.
In hiring staff and bringing on others to share her vision, she realizes shell still be doing a bit of mentoring, similar to her work in therapy.
øI cant imagine not doing life coaching in this,Ó Nelson says.
In both teaching golf and practicing psychotherapy, Nelson has seen how the education process, of learning a new skill or task, can leave a person feeling vulnerable. As she embarks on her newest career, Nelson admits she has her own vulnerabilities. Shes concerned about having other peoples money invested in her dream and hopes the caf¹ is successful not only for her but for her investors as well.
øIve accepted that its OK not to know some things, that I dont have to be an expert in everything,Ó Nelson reasons. øIm relying on the expertise of others. Were gonna learn together.Ó
CHANGE IS GOOD
Life coach Pheil would see Nelsons attitude as the correct one. She advises clients to accept that any change is not going to be easy, but that they in turn control their own destiny. Risks and fears are part of any positive growth. It is important to have a plan, one that sees five years ahead.
øYou may be a very self-motivated person, but when you become your own boss you have to remember there is no one making you do anything,Ó Pheil says. øStill, theres an incredible feeling of freedom that comes along with that.Ó
As tempting as it is to treat that new profession as a dream vacation, Pheil says its important to treat it as a real job with realistic goals as part of an established solid business plan.
øWithout risks there is no positive change,Ó Pheil says. øIf you always do what youve always done, youll always get what youve always gotten.Ó W
>> Return To Press Page
|
