Follow the stories of 10 professionals as they reflect on their journeys from one successful career to another. While each story is vastly different, common themes begin to emerge about the questions, challenges and doubts that arise during a major career switch. Do you have a great career 180 story to share? Click here.
Regardless of when the inspiration strikes—or lingers and grows—pivoting from a long, successful career into a complete unknown takes guts. Career 180s are the stories of the brave professionals who changed course after years of success to pursue totally new ventures. No two paths are the same, but every great career 180 story has significant obstacles, learning opportunities and moments to inspire us all.
Following more than 20 years in a high-powered role at Goldman Sachs, a persuasive call from the State Department gave new purpose to Connie’s retirement dream of balancing work, charity and family time. She spent the next several years developing a successful government-backed startup to help economically empower women in Afghanistan. Connie applied her extensive business intelligence to identify a viable product, secure funding, find and train employees, and reinvent the supply chain for an ancient indust