The Best Career Advice I’ve Heard All Year! | Ep 46

The Second Act Success Podcast was born in 2022 and we are ending the year with our 46th episode! It's the Best Career Advice of 2022 episode, where I recap clips of the most impactful career advice my guests have shared with us this year.   Listen up for so many gems of wisdom and quotes that will inspire you and get you excited for the new year ahead. If you are new to the podcast, this is truly a "best of" episode where you can catch up and take notes of the episodes you want to go back and dive into. Relax and be ready to be inspired in this very special Second Act Success Podcast episode!

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Second Act Success Podcast
Season 1 - ​​The Best Career Advice I’ve Heard All Year! | Episode 46| Ep #46
Host: Shannon Russell
Transcription (*created by Descript and may not be perfectly accurate)

[00:00:00] Are you at a crossroads in your career? Ready for a change, but you're not sure how to get there. Don't worry. We are about to produce your best life together. Welcome to the Second Act Success Podcast. I am your host. Shannon Russell. I am a former Television Producer turned boy mom. I left my dream job to find family balance and in doing so, I produced my dream life. Now I am a Business Owner, Podcaster, and Career Coach. My mission is to help other women, like you, find what they are truly meant to be doing. If you are ready to start over in your career or pivot to a new purpose, then get ready to be inspired by stories of women who have done just that. We will share advice and actionable tips to motivate you as you move along on your path. It is time to shine. So let's start producing your balanced life of abundance today. This is Second Act Success. 



[00:01:00] 

[00:01:00] Shannon Russell: Welcome back to the Second Act Success Podcast my friend. And if you are joining for the first time, you have chosen a great episode to listen to. 

We are celebrating 2022, and I am about to share some of the best advice that we have received from my guests this year on the show. It's hard to believe that I only launched this podcast in April of 2022. I have been incredibly blessed to have been able to speak with so many inspiring women who have successfully changed careers and overcome obstacles to build their second act. I've spoken to actresses, authors, scientists, storm chasers, business owners, therapists, career experts, and truly incredible women who have taken the step towards happiness by switching things up in their.

My hope is that these stories motivate you to listen to your heart and follow your path towards what will make you happy, both professionally and personally. First up in this best of [00:02:00] advice 2022 episode. I spoke with the fabulous Ariel Belgrave, founder of Gym Hooky. She went from a career in human resources to launching this global fitness empire that helps women work out and find wellness that works best with their lifestyle. Check out the advice that she shared on episode eight of the Second Act Success Podcast.

[00:02:22] Ariel Belgrave: Work on yourself. I think in order to grow your business, you have to grow as an individual and being committed to growing yourself , being aware of any limiting beliefs that can possibly hold you back on your journey. There was a quote that I heard the other day, , that was something along the lines of when you choose not to heal a wound from the past, it bleeds into your business. 

And It's 

true. So making sure that you're taking care of yourself as you grow your business and know that is an evolution, just because you worked on one thing personally or on mentally or on your mindset,[00:03:00] more things may introduce as you continue to grow. So yeah, That's my thoughts take care of you. 

[00:03:05] Shannon Russell: Take care of you. That is awesome advice. Ariel, thank you so much for sharing. Now I want to introduce you once again to career expert Gina Riley. Gina shares steps that you can take in order to get that career or job that you really want.

She shares this in episode 37, and she has some incredible insight. Take a listen. 

[00:03:27] Gina Riley: Research, read, listen to podcasts, hold informational conversation. Gather information about the jobs you're interested in or whatever that thing is that you want to go do to inform your decision making process. and build a hypothesis about what it would take to get there and take a look at perceived skill gaps. All of us are like, Well, I could do that job. , if they just need to talk to me. It's on you to communicate the right messaging so they get it. So you've gotta close the gap. [00:04:00] Second thing beyond research is allocate time and make a plan. You can dream all day long, but It's up to you to make it a reality. No one's gonna make you follow your dream, right? And then play the long game. don't expect overnight success and celebrate small wins. Little things along the way that you need to pat yourself on the back and say, I did something to make progress. 

[00:04:24] Shannon Russell: Gina is brilliant. It's the little things, the small wins that really do add up to your overall success. Next, I sit down with Liz Martinez Nelson, who began her career as a Hollywood casting. She took off years to be a stay-at-home mom, and now she is a successful website and brand designer helping women launch businesses. Take a listen to some of my chat with Liz from episode 25.

[00:04:50] Liz Martinez Nelson: I've become more and more aware of how many women are affected by life coming in and sort of. [00:05:00] Changing things for them. Right? I became a mom and suddenly I had to make this decision. Is it gonna be work? Is it gonna be home? Is it gonna be something else? If you want a family, suddenly there's this domino effect that happens, that doesn't happen for men and more and more women are, starting businesses. wanna see us crush it. I wanna see you sell millions of whatever you're selling or actually, you know what? I wanna see you sell the number of things that you wanna sell. That's, that's actually more accurate. I want you to be able to build the business up to your highest standards, the biggest that you can dream it up. That's, that's what I want you to achieve. 

[00:05:35] Shannon Russell: Now we go from marketing makeup to teaching yoga to becoming a mental health counselor with Jamie Hanley.

Jamie has focused in on how to help others and spread awareness about mental health, spirituality, and being the best version of yourself. She is now an author and the host of the Spiritual Counselor Podcast. and she Gives some of my favorite advice from this [00:06:00] year on episode two of the show. Take a listen. 

[00:06:04] Jamie: Prioritize your life. What's gonna make you happy. Like to me, it was like, I need a job where I can be flexible and be available for my kids to go to their stuff. Like that's going to make me happy. That's on my priority list. I want a job where I help people. That's also on my priority list. Like, what are your non-negotiables in your life that you want to prioritize and then build your career around that. 

[00:06:33] Shannon Russell: Jamie makes it sound so easy, right? Prioritize what you want in your life and build a career around that. Such sound advice from a multi-passionate woman. Next up is Alicia Sabella. Alicia's episode was one of our most listened to of the year. She left a fashion career in New York City to launch a lactation consulting business of her. , Alicia [00:07:00] now can be present for her kids, have a flexible schedule, and help families feed their children in the best way possible for them. Take a listen to Alicia's advice from episode three.

[00:07:11] Alicea Sabelia: Make a plan. Make your career change, like your side hustle first. So like dabble in it, make sure because once you cut the cord, yes, you can go back. But like, you don't want to go back a month later. You want to go back years later cause you're ready to go back. So I would say make your potential second act your side home. First dabble in it, you know, volunteer in it, do whatever you can to kind of get exposure to it. And then when you feel secure, that that is your second act, [00:08:00] then make more moves. And also, you know, investing in, I was very lucky because there is a. IBCLC who's based actually in Queens. And she developed this amazing it's online, but it's almost like a workbook for private practice IBCLCs and how to set up your business. And I actually purchased it prior to even getting my certification. So I guess I was all in, even before I got certified, , I purchased it and it had so much on how to build your business because really. You know, even though I have a business background, building a business from scratch is it's a lot of logistics. It's a lot of paperwork. , and some of it can be quite overwhelming. So if you have resources like that, that you can kind of invest in so that you can get your business in a really solid foundation, it only helps as your business grows, because then you feel like your footing is solid and you can just keep growing.

[00:08:55] Shannon Russell: Katina Turner and I worked together at M T V years ago, all before [00:09:00] she left the big city to move to Asheville, North Carolina. It was there that she opened several fashion and beauty businesses of her own. Her advice on just going for it and dismissing the naysayers is something that we should all take to heart she shares her story and some excellent tips and tricks all in episode 22.

[00:09:19] Katina Turner: We have one turn in this world. for it. Just jump in. What's the worst thing that can happen? I think sometimes if you plan too much, if you talk to too many people, if you research too much, you get discouraged there's so many people in your ears saying, well, what about this? Did you think about this? What if this fails? There's a lot of naysayers out there and sometimes you just have to go, I'm gonna go full speed ahead and figure it out as I go and I'll make some mistakes, but I will learn from, that's the way I grow. That's what I did. And yes, we've made plenty of mistakes, but man, I wouldn't give it up for a hot second. 

[00:09:55] Shannon Russell: . Yes. Make those mistakes. Ignore the naysayers and push towards [00:10:00] your joy. Love this advice, Katina. Up next, we have female storm chaser, Jen Walton. She discusses how she left her desk job in environmental communications to experience nature full-time every day as she photographs tornadoes and runs. The girls Who Chase initiative. Here's a sample of Jen's wisdom from our chat during episode 36. 

[00:10:22] Jen Walton: You can dip your toe into anything, um, and you're not stuck, you know? When you read those sort of personal growth books, There's patterns in all of them in terms of what worked and what didn't. Right? If you take a leader like Tony Robbins for example, he often says, it's really not that complicated. You just do what you love and it'll work out. I used to listen to that and be like, Yeah, well, I don't know what I love, right? I've got bills to pay and, you know, I'm busy and I don't have time for this kind of like airy fairy whatever. But I have to say, I'm working 18 hours a day, but [00:11:00] because I know why I'm doing it, it's because of the thing that brings me through joy and flow. It doesn't matter. That's the key. If you find that thing, you will do whatever you have to, to get to where you need to be so that you can do it more or always or better. That is the only difference between someone like Tony s who is changing millions of people's lives and anyone who is sitting and listening to this podcast And I am just living proof of that because I found the thing and pursued it. And then here we are. 

[00:11:34] Shannon Russell: I'm excited to announce that the next session of the Second Act Accelerator Course will be launching in January. Learn more at https://secondactsuccess.co/course. This program is for professionals ready to pivot to a new career. Within just six weeks, you will have a roadmap to get you from where you are now to where you want to be. Join like-minded individuals in our private community group. [00:12:00] Plus you will have access to weekly group coaching, live workshops, expert guests, and one-on-one coaching with me. Learn more about the second Act accelerator and sign up at https://secondactsuccess.co/course.

I hope to see you in the next session of theSecond Act Accelerator this January. 

Now it's back to the episode. 

In episode seven, Hannah Campbell Anderson shares her favorite piece of advice that she learned from Mark Cuban. She has taken this with her from her career as an actress to a wedding planner. Check it.

[00:12:34] Hannah: Fail quickly, which is something I remember Mark Cuban saying on Shark Tank that really resonated with me. It's okay if something's not working out, but fail quickly and go yeah, that's not working. It feels like a struggle there. Moving on. I've learned so many times in my life that everything I've done has led me to this [00:13:00] moment. Every job I've had has led me to the next job. Whether it was my very first job at a card and balloon store to working at American Eagle, to waitressing and running a management company, and working in advertising, and running my own company, and renovating a house, you learns skills in every single one of these jobs that makes you absolutely invaluable to your next one.

[00:13:32] Shannon Russell: I agree 100%, Hannah. Everything that we've done up until now just adds to our life and will continue adding to this lifelong resume of ours. Next we have author Liz Alterman. Liz was my guest in episode 35. During this interview, she really stresses the importance of being gentle with ourselves, especially as we transition into new chapters in our life.

[00:13:57] Liz Alterman: I think the pandemic has taught us [00:14:00] that life is short and that the future's never guaranteed. So if there's something that you really wanna do, I would say don't put it off, I would say be gentle with yourself. I think it's very easy to get discouraged when you start something new. And especially if success isn't happening right away, you can kind of wanna throw in the towel. If you compare yourself to the people who are already so successful, it's it that's a hard yard stick. So I think just be gentle and just believe in yourself and try to take a long view if you can. 

[00:14:31] Shannon Russell: Recruiting expert Patricia DiMaria Shaffer. Join me for episode 14 of the podcast. She left her role as an accountant to try recruiting and never turned back.

[00:14:43] Patricia DiMaria: It's okay. To have some failures in the beginning. And it's the only way you're gonna learn, to just not be so hard on yourself and just, just, just know that you're in the right spot, you made the right decision and you just, you're going to be successful. You just have to keep doing it and keep [00:15:00] practicing and you're going to do better, but being hard on yourself, like that's always been a problem that I've had. You have to remember not to be that like it, it is. Okay. And when you need help, ask for help, especially if it's something new, because not supposed to know everything. That's the only way you're gonna learn and you're gonna continue growing. that would be my biggest of advice is just not be hard on yourself. 

[00:15:26] Shannon Russell: Yes, I think we can all be guilty of being too hard on ourselves from time to time. Tricia also shares some incredible tips on how recruiters can be a valuable resource when searching for a new career. So definitely take a listen to episode 14 where she shares a lot more on the recruiting.

My next guest is Dancer Turn, TV host and executive producer Diane Mizota. Diane shares the highs and the lows of her time in Hollywood and talks about the importance of following your North Star. It's all in episode 15.

[00:15:59] Diane Mizota: you know, [00:16:00] that feeling you get when you guys, uh, work together as a team and you just won your game and you're you had that feeling. I said, remember that feeling and chase that feeling because that's better than like any, substance or all kinds of other things that you could get into. Just remember what that feels like and chase that feeling. I look at my career that I've gone through so many different aspects. It's always been sort of like that feeling that passion of like, oh, I feel like I'm contributing something. I feel like I'm. You know, talented and I have something to offer. That's a really, that's a great feeling to tap into as sort of a north star. When you, when you're contemplating transition. 

[00:16:49] Shannon Russell: Seattle Sutton launched a multimillion dollar business during retirement now in her nineties, she sat down with me to talk about how she grew Seattle [00:17:00] Sutton's Healthy Eating to a household name. Seattle shares so much wisdom in this episode from working with family, growing a business, and giving back to her community. Here's just a little bit of our conversation from episode 18.

[00:17:15] Seattle Sutton: It's never too late. And I gotta admit, I can't really do everything I used to do at age 90, because honestly, when you start a business, it's not a 40 hour a week job. You have to be willing to work. I just knew that I, I had a good idea and I knew I could help a lot of people. But I ran into big hurdles too. But you just have to overcome them. 

[00:17:38] Shannon Russell: Next we have Liz McDade, a PhD scientist whose fascination with living a low to no waste lifestyle prompted her to pivot and open her own business called No Trace. Take a listen to some of Liz's advice from episode 20.

[00:17:54] Liz McDade: it's hard to see everything that might unfold, but as much as you can sort [00:18:00] of think ahead to like, what is the long term. Goal here. Where could you see this going? How is this gonna sort of sustain you down the road? So sort of trying to think about big picture, if you take this leap. So for example, I have a friend who just opened a studio, a Pilate studio. I was talking with her about that, like, okay, well, thinking through this. How many hours do you wanna be there? How is that gonna financially work? And just sort of taking that time to think through how it's gonna work and you don't have to know everything right away, but if you can sort of have a big picture idea of how this could work for you, how this could support you, that that's gonna really help you out to understand going down the road, how this could be a sustainable business for you. If you just take a moment and, and, you know, do some simple math and, you know, look at the numbers. That would be my advice.

[00:18:51] Shannon Russell: Sadly a career change is not an instant money maker. And the initial investment can be costly, so definitely do the math [00:19:00] first. Executive Coach Anne Mehl offers crucial career advice On episode 27 of the podcast, she begs us to not go lonely on our path towards reinvention. I love this advice so much, and I just know you will.

[00:19:16] Ann Mehl: You'd think as a life coach career coach, I'd be like, absolutely follow your passion, follow your dreams. I have my feet on the ground too though. And I think what I'd want is yes, dream it out. also do the work. I'm a big cheerleader for folks and I'm the last person to say, play it safe. I also believe that there are hours behind people's pivots and change of life, there are hours of research, reading, talking, so I think that has to be in parallel with it. And I would also say. don't go lonely meaning. I think some of us have a bit of a I'll figure this out on my own, mentality and possibly a little worry about exposure. but it would be sad to think you'd have a more painful journey [00:20:00] through the second act discovery. If you told yourself you had to do it by yourself. Find help, find. Find someone who can, walk their early steps with you. 

[00:20:09] Shannon Russell: In episode 20, social media, queen Jessica Hawks opens up about the lessons she learned after ditching her office job, dropping out of college, and building her booming virtual assistant and online business.

[00:20:24] Jessica Hawks: be really heavy with the boundaries that you have with the people around you. Your friends and family. Of course, it's great if they're supportive, but that's not always the case and it's not always coming from a place of meanness. Oftentimes it's just coming from the fact that they love you and they are scared for you when anyone, takes any big leap or makes any big change. So I think that you have to be really. trustful of what you want and be really confident in that and work on your mindset a lot, because there are gonna be people, everyone giving you their opinions about what you should do, and you have to be able to navigate [00:21:00] those without kind of wavering and giving in and giving up on something that you actually do wanna do. I think that also has to be carried through, into even the tangible side of starting your business, you have to kind of protect your mindset, especially when you're starting, because it's very shaky. because of the fact that your brain is like, what is happening? I'm so out of my comfort zone right now. That can come with guilt because you want to listen to the people you care about. You want them to know what's happening, but there's a balance between doing that and caring for them, but also caring more about yourself because that's always the best route in the long run

[00:21:35] Shannon Russell: Second acts can mean a lot of different things for Annemarie. It was coming out as a lesbian in her fifties, she now makes it her mission to work as a coach to support others on their coming out journey.

We're about to get some great advice on how to not let the opinions of others impact our happiness. from Annemarie Zal. She's my guest on episode 33. 

[00:21:58] Anne-Marie Zanzal: Listen to the [00:22:00] opinions of others. and that goes back to listening to your inner voice. Sometimes people in our life are well meaning. But their opinions about how we should live our life, what we should do for work, all those things like that. more about them than about you. So really learn how to not listen to opinions of others, but also be able to discern those opinions whose opinion is valuable and whose opinion? Not so much

[00:22:36] Shannon Russell: singer turned. Audiobook narrator, Sherry Senor had many careers on her path to success, one of which was being a stay-at-home mom. She talks about her choice of stepping back from work to take care of her family in episode 45.

[00:22:51] Sheri Saginor: you know, when I became a mother. It was a life change. And what I like to tell [00:23:00] other mothers is that you're going to hear a lot of this is beautiful. It's great bonding with your child, and there's so much bliss and so much joy and not enough gets talked about. How hard it really is to be sleep deprived, to have this whole little being basically borrowing your psyche for a while, until they can develop their own. And so that I would transfer to any new endeavor. It's normal when it's hard and it's gonna test your problem solving skills, but it's doable. If you fail that's okay. Don't see it as a failure. See it. Something that you were able to learn along the way and move forward. .

[00:23:54] Shannon Russell: Kayla Opperman was an engineer working in a predominantly male led industry when she opted to leave [00:24:00] corporate and open her own franchise business that teaches children about engineer. She did this all while having two kids under two, and she encourages others to just do it because there is never a perfect time to make a career change. You can listen to more from Kayla in episode four.

[00:24:18] Kayla: If you at all have an opportunity that comes up, take it. it's easy to make excuses like saying my kids are too young. It's not a good time. I'm too busy right now. I mean, I think all of us have said it's busy Right. now. Like no one has ever been like, I'm not very busy. Don't be like in the fall, it will be better maybe in the spring, you know? . It's easy to make excuses like that. That's what really holds people back is it's never a good time. Just do it. 

[00:24:47] Shannon Russell: You're right Kayla. There is never a good time, so just do it. It speaks to so many of us. Right? Lastly, on episode 24, I was joined by Happiness Mentor Karen Seitz. [00:25:00] I asked her how we will know when we are truly happy with our lives and our careers and this is what she had to say.

[00:25:07] Karyn Seitz: When we feel good about who we are on the inside, not because of what we get back in return from our outside world, I feel good about who I am and I only wanna be me. And I only want the life that I have And at the foundation of that is a groundedness in yourself where you don't feel anything is lacking. even if you lost your job, or you go through a divorce you still know you are okay. you still wanna be you and you still want the life you have, and you're gonna persevere through those experiences and build resilience and get to know who you are. 

.

[00:25:47] Shannon Russell: There you have it. Just some of the incredibly insightful advice from a handful of my guests on this year's podcast to listen to the full stories of how these women and others found success and happiness in their [00:26:00] second acts. Be sure to subscribe to this podcast or go to second act success.co/podcast. I want to specifically thank you for listening to this podcast every week and for sticking with me as I build out the Second Act Success podcast.

I want this show to be one that truly serves you and brings you the content and advice and information that you want and need. Since this podcast is for you, I'd love to know what you'd like to hear on episodes in 2023. Feel free to leave me a message on my speakpipe at www.speakpipe.com/secondactsuccess

my goal for 2023 is to spend every week with you sharing inspiring stories from my guests, and also sharing one-on-one solo episodes. Just you and me. I wanna be able to share stories, share career advice, and share how I went [00:27:00] from being a television producer to a business owner and now a career coach. In the hopes that it helps you.

For now, I am signing out of 2022 with wishes for a wonderful year ahead. Happy New Year, my friend and I will chat with you next year.

[00:27:16] Shannon: Thank you for joining us. I hope you found some gems of inspiration and some takeaways to help you on your path to Second Act Success. To view show notes from this episode, visit secondactsuccess.co. Before you go, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast. So you don't miss a single episode. Reviews only take a few moments and they really do mean so much. Thank you again for listening. I am Shannon Russell, and this is Second Act Success. 



[00:27:44] Shannon: