In this honest and heartfelt episode, we hear from Chris Rice. Chris worked in marketing for the film and entertainment industry since leaving university back in 2006. He achieved senior roles within global agencies and brands before making the move to become freelance in 2020. In 2023, he decided that a more wholesale change was needed, and, today, while still working in his original industry, he is also retraining to become a plumber.Chris opens up about how his constant search for ‘more’, and never feeling at home in his career, led him to the realisation that a change was required. He discusses how he needed to let go of some of his own stereotyping and judgements around certain careers before he could really commit to a career that he felt was right for him. Chris also describes how working freelance in his previous career enabled him to re-train whilst still drawing an income. He makes it clear that completely changing career can be hard financially, requiring severe sacrifice at times, but that, in the end, it felt necessary and totally worth the temporary struggle.

We’re back after a short break over the summer! In this episode, we kick things off with the brilliant Mie Kayser Jensen. Before deciding to change career, Mie worked as a Communications and Social Media Executive at a luxury travel company in London. When she moved to Australia and took a job in sales, she realised she needed a career change. Since finishing her Masters in Journalism, Mie has been working with news podcasting, and now writes about lifestyle and motherhood.Alice and Mie discuss the importance of moving forward despite having fears and doubts, and how, often, the next step can only become apparent by getting started. Mie shares how she felt returning to work after having babies, and how managing the timing of a career change whilst having kids is not always clear cut. She shares the highs and lows of changing career, whilst being incredibly patient with herself, and the journey, along the way.

This month, it was a real pleasure to speak to Philippa Dunn. Philippa began her career with a brief stint as a press officer, before building a career in fundraising and philanthropy for cultural and environmental charities. Having gone freelance in 2020, she is now a creative strategist for a range of third sector clients. She's also a writer (having just completed her first novel), and runs a small holiday cottage business, too - so no two days are ever the same in her new portfolio career.In this episode, Philippa talks about how she managed to overcome her need for societal validation to carve out an authentic career that gives her the more balanced lifestyle she craved. She discusses how coaching led her to realise what was key for her in life, and how understanding and communicating the value she brings to a role meant she could be more proactive in seeking out career opportunities that she enjoyed. Philippa’s career change shows us that career ‘success’ is down to your own definition, not society’s.