Don’t Wait to Be Pushed Out: Build a Business on Your Terms and Take Back Control | #209

Are you waiting for a layoff, burnout, or bad boss to make the next move for you? In this episode of the Second Act Success Career Podcast, host and business coach Shannon Russell challenges you to stop waiting and start building a business that puts you in charge.

Shannon walks you through how to:

• Create an exit strategy from your 9–5 job
• Start a side hustle using your existing skills
• Build a bridge from employee to entrepreneur
• Reclaim your purpose after a career setback
• Set goals and take action toward your Second Act success

If you're a midlife woman who feels undervalued at work or fears being pushed out, this is your wake-up call to future-proof your income and finally create something that no one can take away from you.

🎯 It’s not about starting over. It’s about starting forward—with clarity, confidence, and control.

👉 Learn more about Shannon’s Second Act Accelerator program: secondactsuccess.co/course

SHOW NOTES:

https://secondactsuccess.co/209

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Transcript

Second Act Success Career Podcast

Season 1 - Don’t Wait to Be Pushed Out: Build a Business on Your Terms and Take Back Control | #209

Episode - #209

Host: Shannon Russell

Transcription (*created by Descript and may not be perfectly accurate) 

[00:00:00] 

Are you waiting for the next layoff, burnout, or bad boss to push you out the door? Why wait to be pushed out when you can take control now and build a business that puts you in charge? Let's talk exit strategy on your terms. Don't wait to be pushed out. Why it's time to take back control and build a business on your terms.

Are you ready to quit your nine to five job and start a business of your own? Well, you're in the right place, my friend. Welcome to the second Act Success podcast. I am your host Shannon Russell, and my mission is to help you produce your best life. This podcast will teach you how to get from where you are now to where you want to be and how to build a business that fits your life and lights you up.

Let's get started.

Hey friend. Welcome to the second Act, success Career podcast. I am Shannon Russell, a former television producer, turned business coach for women, and [00:01:00] the author of Start Your Second Act.

Today we're talking about something that hits close to home for so many of the women I coach, maybe even you.

It's the reality that far too many women, especially in midlife, are being quietly pushed out of the companies. They've dedicated years, even decades of their lives, to layoffs, restructuring this message is loud and clear that loyalty doesn't guarantee security. And that's why now is the time to take that power back and build something that no one can take away from you, your own business.

Here's what I'm seeing. Longtime employees are being let go with little notice. Older workers are being passed over for promotions or quietly phased out.

Entire departments are being dissolved overnight, and the worst part,

it often leaves incredible, smart, capable women feeling blindsided, like they've lost their identity, their purpose, and their future all in one meeting. But [00:02:00] let me remind you, you are not disposable. Your value does not end with your job title, and your best work is still ahead of you. Our careers are not our identity.

It's what we do with our skills and our experience that makes us who we are. I wanna talk about your choice. Your choice is to wait for that push or build your bridge.

You can wait and hope that your job stays safe or you can start building a bridge out on your own terms. This is why side businesses are built. They are bridges, bridges to freedom, bridges to options, bridges to opportunities, bridges that show us that our skills, our talents, our experience, everything from our past can actually lead to something new.

Bridges are your second act. Even if you stay in your current job for another few years earning your paycheck, imagine what's possible if you start building your business on the [00:03:00] side. Right now, you can be generating extra income, growing an audience, and having that safety net, having that side business in case things go awry, you can test out your business idea and that will build your business confidence and you are creating an exit strategy that's empowering, not reactive. You're doing it from a place of comfort where you are now rather than waiting for that meeting to tell you that your job has been eliminated, for you to start worrying, stressing, and then starting to build your future.

Starting a business used to feel risky. But in today's world, staying in a job with no backup plan is the real risk. And I see it today, day in and day out with the women I speak to. I recently began working with a woman who was laid off after 20 plus years in the role of director of marketing at a pharmaceutical firm.

After the initial shock and the reality of her [00:04:00] situation kicked in, she knew that she wanted to start something of her own and that she had the experience to do it. So now we're planning her next phase, her second act business together she is taking what happened to her and creating something that she is now in control of a business of her own.

By starting a business now, even just with one hour a day, you are going to start future proofing your income. You'll be creating a path to work that fits your lifestyle and you're going to be designing a business that you can run long after your corporate days are behind you.

And let's be real, after years of working for someone else, wouldn't it be amazing to finally work for yourself? I have another client currently who has a full-time job and she's starting to build a business now that she can continue running even after she retires from her day job.

I am helping her build a virtual assistant business that she can run now part-time, and that she will also have, when she's finally [00:05:00] retired,

 It will be a business that will be formed and together and a well-oiled machine when she is in retirement that she can actually do anywhere she travels to.

She is taking action to start this business now so that she is ready for her future.

if you are nodding along and thinking, okay, Shannon, I hear you, but where do I start? Here's a quick roadmap that you can utilize.

Step one, reclaim your vision. Ask yourself, what lights me up? What am I passionate about? What are my hobbies? What skills have I gained over the years that I actually enjoy using? And what kind of business can I see myself running for the next 10 to 20 years? Now, step two, start a side hustle that aligns with your strengths.

You don't have to quit your job tomorrow. You just need to start small. Maybe it's coaching, consulting, writing, designing, teaching, crafting. The opportunities on what you can [00:06:00] start on the side really are endless.

Step three, learn, plan, and take consistent action. Listen to podcasts like this one. Download free resources. I have a ton at second act success.co/resources, and I'll link them in the show notes for you too. Read business or personal development books. My book, start Your Second Act is really a great resource that walks you through how to start that second act.

Whatever it might look like for you.

I'll leave a link in the show notes as well, or you can head over to start your second act.com.

You might also consider joining a coaching program or an accountability group. I've got a few. Let's chat most importantly, start putting these pieces together in one place, one step at a time.

Step four, set a goal for your exit. Give yourself a realistic timeframe. Maybe you're not planning on leaving your role for six months, maybe it's going to be two years, [00:07:00] but every step you take today will be a step toward walking out of your job on your own terms. Knowing that you have something in place that's bringing you in income, and that you truly control all on your own.

Remember, you deserve more than a pink slip. If your job ended tomorrow, would you be ready? That's not to scare you. It really is to empower you because by choosing to invest in yourself now to start laying that foundation for your business, you are taking back control.

You are saying you don't get to decide when I'm done. I do. You get to say, I'm not waiting for permission. I'm creating my own path. You get to say, I'm not starting over, I'm starting forward. You get to say, I have so much experience, skills and talents, and I'm using everything that I've learned at this job, and I'm building a business for me to help others.

My friend, if [00:08:00] today's episode lit a fire under you, let's keep going. Head to second act success.co to get inspired to grab free resources, blogs and more. And if you're ready for real support, my second ACT Accelerator program is here to help you. It will get you from dreaming to actually doing, with coaching tools and a community of women who are building their second act just like you.

Please don't wait for any company to decide your worth. You are worth what you want your future to look like. Start building your thing. Start betting on yourself, and start writing a story where you are the boss,

Because your second act is not a backup plan. It's your upgrade, the upgrade that you've been working towards, the upgrade that you deserve. Until next time, I am Shannon Russell, your business coach cheering you on as you produce your best life.

[00:09:00]