I'm only at the start of the middle
What if we had longer than we thought?
‘I’m about half way through my career’, I said to my friend the other night, as I considered whether there was still time to do all the things.
She thought about it.
‘You know, I don’t even think you’re that far along yet.’
I did the maths and was pleasantly surprised.
I started working at 23 and I’m now 38 = 15 years.
I’m probably going to work for roughly another 30 years.
So if we see my career as 3 chunks of 15 I’m actually only at the very start of chapter two. What a perspective shift!
We’ve grown up with the narrative that our dreams must be accomplished by 35 (with an absolute cut off at 40), which quite frankly is unnecessarily stressful and total BS. To imagine I’m only at the start of the middle feels so spacious and yummy.
I feel like I’m living the story, rather than trying to chase it.
(I’m conscious some people may prefer to think that they’re further through their careers, but for us multi-passionates, we want as much time as possible!)
Part 1: My first chunk of career (2008 - 2023) can be divided into a 5 + 10:
5 years working in education
10 years working for myself as a creative entrepreneur
The first 5 years were very focused in the education sector, as a teacher, then teacher-trainer, then school based social entrepreneur. Education was my whole world.
The last 10 years have been the experimentation years: following the flow and seeing where the nudges took me. The result has been a bustling portfolio or ‘Carousel’ career; a feeling of freedom and exploration that my soul longed for when working in a school.
It’s funny, because when I was in that decade I often perceived my career as unfocused and scattered. I felt like I was always ‘trying to find my thing’, and judged the experimentation as non-committal and ‘not really doing life yet.’
And then, last summer, on the 10 year anniversary of leaving full time work, I suddenly saw the past decade for what it was. It was is as if I was finally able to step off the bus and look at the ground covered. What I noticed is that I had actually been very consistent: I had continually committed to what felt most alive for me. I saw the different interests, projects and ideas coming through me: I was in the middle, ready to receive them. This felt like a huge relief, to finally own this way of working, rather than apologise for it.
My decade of experimentation included: setting up a ukulele team-building company (Power of Uke), running + performing at a London comedy night for 7 years, becoming a thought leader on Knowing When to Quit (with a TEDx, podcast and framework), writing this newsletter on living a Carousel life, learning to DJ (with gigs at Glasto no less!), hosting a breakfast radio show, running 90s piano sing-a-longs, making comedy music videos and running Creative Retreats.
Part 2: (2022-2037) feels characterised by a Structure + Freedom formula
Around the 15 year mark I started craving stability. I wanted to root. I wanted a workplace. An identity.
This new chapter I’m currently living feels very different. I trained as a coach with Co-Active, and I now work 2 days a week in schools coaching Senior Leaders. This means I have a timetable, a set group of people, and a set role to play. It’s structured and clear. The dates are in before the school year starts. I feel skilled, and needed. I have a sense of vocation.
The rest of the time I am free to do what I want. But because of the container of the school work, I feel permission to still keep my ‘exploring’ side from Part 1. Some of the things that have been flowing in that space over the last few months are:
setting up a Creative Residence-sea co-living home in Brighton
writing medleys for Day of Musical Joy and preparing to take 90s Pop Singalong to festivals this summer (including Glastonbury)
making a viral music video on Brighton seafront
exploring the concept of Beautiful Endings in a myriad of ways
DJing for Musical Theatre Raves
The non-structured time is also about presence, living and REAL STUFF
sea swimming / runs along the seafront
video calling my sister and my baby niece
doing ‘the work’ with my own coaches (I currently have a flirting coach and a life coach)
tending to friendships and big life moments
sleeping, eating and exercising properly
communal meals with my house
As I start feeling into Part 2, I sense that it will continue to build on this structure + freedom formula. I sense that I will do more coaching, and take my DJing and singalongs to bigger and better places. Perhaps there will be more artefacts through the Quitting and Endings work? It feels slower, less urgent. There are other parts of my life that also need tending to now.
Part 3: Who knows? (2037 onwards)
I remember once seeing some graffiti in a toilet that said:
‘We don’t know - that’s the beauty’
It really stuck with me. I’ve never been one to have a 5 year plan, or even a 1 year plan because who knows where I’ll want to be and where life will take me? Some of the best things that have emerged in the last few years would not have been in my plan, yet I’m so glad they happened. I love the idea that in 13-ish years time I could be in a totally different place in the world, with a different career, doing things I don’t yet know I want to do, with people I haven’t yet met.
So, my questions to you… where are you in your career? How would you divide up the different sections? What is this current chapter about? How does it feel to be where you are?
ON MY CAROUSEL
🕺Improv has come back around the Carousel and I’m performing in a show called MAN BAND about a 90s boyband on their come back show. Whether you were into Take That, Boyzone, Backstreet Boys or 911 back in the day, expect a show full of epic dance moves, key changes and 90s nostalgia. I’ve been preparing for this since the 90s.
Shows on 10th, 17th, 18th May and 8th June at Hoopla in London Bridge.
🎙 Kim Willis and I recorded another episode of Knowing When to Quit. (Our last one, on whether to quit the idea of having children is the podcast’s most downloaded episode by FAR).
I LOVED this episode. For many reasons, but not least because we recorded it in the moment just after Kim closed her gorgeous project Heroine's Journey. That moment when you've publicly closed a project is a vulnerable and a tender time. It's hard to know what is coming next, and whether you've made the right decision.
This is a beautiful conversation around the complexities of closing a project you love, around doubt, trust, and creative inspiration.
It's also a conversation of hope. We recorded this back in late 2022, and I've included a voice note of Kim from last month (March 2024) sharing her updates from the other side of the void. And they're pretty f*cking cool!
This is an episode I will come back to time and time again in moments of transition, whether that's a creative project, a city or a relationship. We gotta trust that void (and it's also pretty crap while we're in it).
🎹 My 90s piano singalong has been confirmed for Love Trails and Glastonbury this year! Come and say hi if you’re at either of these sold out festivals.
Thank you for reading and being on this Carousel journey with me. I’d love to hear any reflection you have about what career means to you and where you are in yours.
Big hugs to all and have a gorgeous weekend.
Sarah x
Love this perspective shift! Powerful!
I really enjoyed reading this x