{"id":104640,"date":"2020-11-04T13:04:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-04T10:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts\/"},"modified":"2020-11-04T13:04:00","modified_gmt":"2020-11-04T10:04:00","slug":"common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts\/","title":{"rendered":"#\n  Common themes that make for successful \u2018second acts\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3eaedabd607\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3eaedabd607\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts\/#What_Ive_learned_from_78_interviews_for_my_%E2%80%98Second_Act_Stories_podcast\" >What I\u2019ve learned from 78 interviews for my \u2018Second Act Stories\u2019 podcast<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts\/#5_themes_of_successful_second_act_entrepreneurs\" >5 themes of successful second act entrepreneurs<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/common-themes-that-make-for-successful-second-acts\/#Andy_Levine\" >Andy Levine<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#<br \/>\n  Common <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">theme<\/a>s that make for successful \u2018second acts\u2019<br \/>\n<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"article__subhead\" itemprop=\"alternativeHeadline\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Ive_learned_from_78_interviews_for_my_%E2%80%98Second_Act_Stories_podcast\"><\/span>\n  What I\u2019ve learned from 78 interviews for my \u2018Second Act Stories\u2019 podcast<br \/>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"column column--full article__content\">\n<div id=\"js-article__body\" class=\"article__body article-wrap at16-col16 barrons-article-wrap\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-sbid=\"WP-MKTW-0000048999\">\n<div class=\"barrons-article-ad-wrapper\">\n<div data-track=\"barrons-article-ad-wrap\" class=\"barrons-article-ad sticky_item\">\n<div class=\"barrons-main-article-ad-target sticky_target body_ad\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-layout=\"inline\n              \" data-layout-mobile=\"\" class=\"\n        media-object\n        type-InsetMediaIllustration\n          inline\n  article__inset\n        article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration\n          article__inset--inline\n  \"><\/p>\n<figure class=\"\n        media-object-image\n        enlarge-image\n        renoImageFormat-\n        img-inline\n        article__inset__image\n      \" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:66.640625%;\" data-mobile-ratio=\"66.640625%\" data-layout-ratio=\"66.640625%\" data-subtype=\"\" class=\"image-container  responsive-media article__inset__image__image\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=140&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 140w,\nhttps:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=540&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 540w,\nhttps:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=620&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 620w,\nhttps:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=700&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 700w,\nhttps:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=860&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 860w,\nhttps:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=1260&amp;size=1.5005861664712778 1260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 140px) 100px,\n(max-width: 540px) 500px,\n(max-width: 620px) 580px,\n(max-width: 700px) 660px,\n(max-width: 860px) 820px,\n1260px\" src=\"https:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=620&amp;size=1.5005861664712778\" data-enlarge=\"https:\/\/images.mktw.net\/im-251310?width=1260&amp;size=1.5005861664712778\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption\" itemprop=\"caption\"><span class=\"wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit\" itemprop=\"creator\"><br \/>\n            istock<br \/>\n          <\/span><br \/>\n  <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>       It was a Friday afternoon in December when Paul Tasner\u2019s boss asked him, \u201cHey, can you jump into a quick meeting with me before you take off for the weekend?\u201d So, Tasner, then senior director for operations at a San Francisco-based manufacturing company, followed him into a conference room and saw the company\u2019s director of human resources there.<\/p>\n<div class=\"paywall\">\n       The faces turned somber, the voices became monotone and Tasner realized what was happening. At 64, he was being fired. \u201cI left the meeting and met my wife and another couple for dinner. We proceeded to get silly drunk,\u201d said Tasner, who\u2019s now 75.<\/p>\n<p>Two years after the dark day, at 66, Tasner became an entrepreneur for the first time, starting PulpWorks \u2014 a company that designs and manufactures biodegradable packaging from paper, agricultural and textile waste. \u201cIt\u2019s very meaningful to me. We\u2019re a venture that helps reduce the billions of pounds of single-use plastic packaging dumped each year, and polluting our land, our rivers and our oceans,\u201d Tasner said.<\/p>\n<p>Paul Tasner is one of 78 people I\u2019ve profiled over the past two years for my \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.secondactstories.org\/\" class=\"icon none\">Second Act Stories<\/a>\u201d podcast. Like Tasner, many have started businesses. Some are pursuing nonprofit work. Others turned a hobby into a new, money-making vocation. Almost all of them are a heck of a lot happier in their new roles.<\/p>\n<h6><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"5_themes_of_successful_second_act_entrepreneurs\"><\/span><strong>5 themes of successful second act entrepreneurs<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h6>\n<p>I\u2019ve found five common themes among the\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/following-second-act-dreams\/\" class=\"icon none\">second act success stories<\/a>\u00a0of people who became entrepreneurs for the first time in midlife or later:<\/p>\n<p><strong>1. Find what feeds you.<\/strong>\u00a0The most successful second acts, I\u2019ve found, involve finding meaning and purpose.<\/p>\n<p>Chris Donovan, 59, spent 25 years in a dead-end job as a telephone repairman. \u201cIt kind of sucked the soul right out of me,\u201d he said. But a prostate cancer diagnosis at 50 jolted him into pursuing his lifelong obsession: designing women\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n<p>A renowned designer who Donovan met at a workshop in New York City helped him enroll at Polimoda, the prestigious fashion design school in Florence, Italy. Today, Donovan is president of Chris Donovan Footwear, managing an eclectic collection of high-end designer shoes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>See:<\/strong> Need ideas for your retirement \u2018second act\u2019?<\/p>\n<div id=\"cx-membership-tile\"><\/div>\n<p>Amani Roberts, 46, had a 20-year career in hospitality sales and management at Marriott. But he always dreamed of working as a disc jockey playing music at clubs and special events.<\/p>\n<p>So, he started a DJ business as a side hustle on the weekends. Once gigs and revenue increased, he was able to quit his day job to pursue his passion full-time and hasn\u2019t looked back.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2. A successful second act is rarely a straight line<\/strong>. It\u2019ll undoubtedly include roadblocks and challenges. But the successful entrepreneurs are flexible and creative in overcoming these barriers.<\/p>\n<p>Take Cathy Heying, 49. While working as a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a> worker at a church in Minneapolis, she observed a continuing problem among the working poor. A person\u2019s car would break down and they wouldn\u2019t have the money to repair it. Lacking dependable transportation, they\u2019d then become unable to get to work, lose their job and become homeless.<\/p>\n<p>In 2011, Heying took the unusual step of enrolling in the Dunwoody College of <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology<\/a>, a two-year technical college, to learn auto mechanics. A middle-aged woman in a class of 18-year-old testosterone-fueled boys obsessed with cars, she tried to quit multiple times, but her instructor wouldn\u2019t let her.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related:<\/strong> It might be time to think about a career change<\/p>\n<p>Following graduation, she jumped through all sorts of hoops to create The Lift Garage, which provides low-cost car repairs to the working poor in Minneapolis-St. Paul.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3. There are planners and there are leapers.<\/strong>\u00a0Most experts encourage second act candidates to carefully plan their move, either\u00a0 testing the waters through a community college course, informational interviews or an internship or trying out a new path out as a side hustle or hobby.<\/p>\n<p>But some successful second act people follow a \u201cleap and the net will appear\u201d approach.<\/p>\n<p>Like Richard Turner, now 81, a former high-powered trial lawyer in California. He woke up one morning in 1999 and announced to his wife that he was putting his sleeping bag in the car and taking a one-month sabbatical to wander around the Western United States. When he returned, Turner became a nature photographer, launching RT Turner Fine Art Photography. In 2002, he started Gorgeous Greetings and has since sold over 50,000 personally signed greeting cards of his wildlife photography.<\/p>\n<p><strong>4. The rise of the reluctant-preneur.<\/strong>\u00a0Not every business owner aims to become an entrepreneur; some are pushed into the role.<\/p>\n<p>Jane Canapini, now 59, worked as a creative director for large and small advertising agencies in Toronto over a 20-year career. But in 2012, her last agency downsized, and Canapini was laid off at 51. Rather than landing another job in advertising, she decided it was time to focus on her lifelong passion: <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/trip-and-travel\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"10\" title=\"Trip &amp; Travel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">travel<\/a>ing the world.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pandemic startups: <\/strong>These N.Y. entrepreneurs did the unthinkable during COVID-19<\/p>\n<p>So, in 2013, Canapini began Grownup Travels, a successful travel blog and writing service concentrated on active explorers over 45. Sidenote: Always creative, Canapini coined the term \u201creluctant-preneur.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>5. You\u2019re never too old to make a change.<\/strong> Marty Herman wrote and self-published the first of five mystery novels at the age of 75. He has since sold over 15,000 books \u2014 nearly all face-to-face at community book fairs.<\/p>\n<p>Judi Schindler sold her Chicago-based public relations firm at 60 and has been a professional actress for the past decade.<\/p>\n<p>At 62, Michael Lowe launched Green Hat Gin, Washington D.C.\u2019s first gin distillery in over 100 years.<\/p>\n<p>Art Schill became a stand-up comedian at 81 \u2014 working regularly at top comedy clubs in the Northeast.<\/p>\n<p>As one of my interview subjects told me, \u201cDon\u2019t tell yourself you\u2019re too old to start something new. If you find yourself in that place, give yourself a slap across the face.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read next: <\/strong>Optimism among small businesses climbs to pandemic high, NFIB says<\/p>\n<p>Tasner proudly cited research showing that older entrepreneurs have a 70% success rate in starting new ventures. \u201cWe\u2019re like the Golden State Warriors of entrepreneurs,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u00a0 Andy Levine hosts the \u201cSecond Act Stories\u201d podcast. Each episode is shared in an engaging, NPR-storytelling style and profiles a courageous individual pursuing a more rewarding life. Check out the stories at\u00a0<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.secondactstories.org\/\" class=\"icon none\"><em>SecondActStories.org<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0or wherever you get your podcasts. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>This article is part of\u00a0<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/special-report\/americas-entrepreneurs-a-special-report-from-richard-m-schulze-family-foundation\/\" class=\"icon none\"><em>America\u2019s Entrepreneurs<\/em><\/a><em>, a Next Avenue initiative made possible by the\u00a0Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation\u00a0and\u00a0EIX, the Entrepreneur and Innovation Exchange. This article is reprinted by permission from\u00a0<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/\" class=\"icon none\"><em>NextAvenue.org<\/em><\/a><em>, \u00a9 2020 Twin Cities Public Television, Inc. All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>More from Next Avenue:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"articleList\">\n<li>\n      <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/how-do-you-know-if-youre-ready-for-your-second-act\/\" class=\"icon none\">How Do You Know If You\u2019re Ready for Your Second Act?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n      <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/retired-doctor-band-grandpa\/\" class=\"icon none\">Retired Doctor Becomes a \u2018Band Grandpa\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n      <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextavenue.org\/secret-sauce-choosing-second-act-career\/\" class=\"icon none\">The Secret Sauce When Choosing a Second Act Career<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"byline article__byline\">\n<p>      <span>By<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author  hasMenu\" data-scrim='{\"type\":\"author\",\"header\":\"Andy Levine\",\"subhead\":\"The Wall Street Journal\",\"list\":[]}' itemscope itemprop=\"author\" itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/Person\">\n<h4 itemprop=\"name\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Andy_Levine\"><\/span>Andy Levine<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.marketwatch.com\/news\/story.asp?guid=%7B21004575-02D4-D4B5-4572-DBF676361CB0%7D&#038;siteid=rss&#038;rss=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;# Common themes that make for successful \u2018second acts\u2019 &#8221; What I\u2019ve learned from 78 interviews for my \u2018Second Act Stories\u2019 podcast istock It was a Friday afternoon in December when Paul Tasner\u2019s boss asked him, \u201cHey, can you jump into a quick meeting with me before you take off for the weekend?\u201d So, Tasner,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":104641,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-104640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}