Invincible Career - Claim your power and regain your freedom

Have you ever experienced a conversation like this with someone?* “I want wild adventure, but I must feel safe at all times.” * “I want to quit my job, but I can’t give up the nice lifestyle I enjoy.”* “I crave more freedom, but I dread losing security.”* “I hate working for someone else, but I’m too afraid to work for myself.”* “I want a better life, but I can’t change anything.” If it were easy to have it all, you would already have it. Right? Why would you deny yourself a dream life if it were easy to create? Why would you punish yourself unnecessarily? Why would you suffer? The reason you’re feeling stuck is that it is not easy! It’s damn hard to build a life that gives you what you want in balance with what you need. The hard pill to swallow is: Something has to give. You must give up something to gain something. I’ve learned that 99% of the time when people say, “I can’t!” what they really mean is “I won’t.” They could make the necessary changes if they really wanted to, but they don’t. The pain of remaining the same is slightly less than their fear of change and the unknown. When I left my corporate career behind in 2010, I spent the next five years trying to have it all. I wanted the freedom of escaping my old 9-to-5 job (more like 7 AM to Midnight). I wanted the stress relief of leaving behind toxic bosses. I wanted the joy of owning my time every day. I wanted the pleasure of reclaiming my health and rediscovering fitness. However, I also wanted to maintain my expensive home, fancy car, and luxurious lifestyle. I tried really hard for those years, but eventually, the harsh reality came crashing down: I just could not have it all. So, we discussed a new plan. We decided what we would have to give up to create the new life we desired. * We had to downsize our home. * We had to leave Silicon Valley. * We had to sell the luxury car. * We had to live more simply. * We had to make changes.I won’t tell you it was easy. That's kind of the point of this episode. It was hard, but it was worth it. Within a few years, we knew it was the right decision. What we had gained was worth far more than what we had “lost.” Maybe others are telling you that you can “have it all.” I’ve seen plenty of BS posts online about that. But let me be the honest person who will give it to you straight: Make some hard choices. Create a spreadsheet with two columns: A. Gain and B. Give up. Decide what you want most in your life and put those items in the Gain column. Choose what you are willing to leave behind and sacrifice so you can have what’s in the Gain column. Put the items you will give up in column B. Now, create a plan and a schedule to build a roadmap to give up more of column B to have more of column A. This process can take years, by the way. Go slow if you want, but don’t wait long. By the way, column B is a trap. It’s a noose that tightens more with every new thing you add to it. It’s a golden cage that you may never escape if you keep adding more bars. The longer your Column B list gets, the harder it will be to escape later. Column A is a delight. The longer you delay gaining the items on that list, the less time you will have to enjoy them. Sadly, most people wait until retirement to pursue that list. So, they don’t enjoy that lifestyle for as long as they could have. Even worse, some of those items have an expiration date. You will be too old to pursue them anymore, or the opportunity has passed. It’s too late. Want to make this process easier? Here are a few things that can help (I explain them in more detail in the podcast audio, so scroll up and hit play to listen):* Create wiggle room in your professional career. * Become a lifelong learner to avoid stagnation and avoid being left behind. * Develop flexible streams of income outside your primary job. * Build revenue models that aren’t locked into specific locations. * Do not increase the cost of your lifestyle as your income increases. * Aggressively manage your expenses to see if you can reduce them. * Continuously feed funds into your financial cushion for some breathing room. * Get outside your bubble to expand and diversify your network. * Open your mind to unexpected opportunities and new ways of living. * Invest in your physical, emotional, and mental health. * Calculate more realistic risk assessments of what you want to pursue. * Build backup plans for the worst-case scenarios. * Realize that intelligent and ambitious people can bounce back from failure. I recently met with Cory Vinny on my Invincible Life podcast. He shared how he prepared for a life of adventure, and what he had to sacrifice to pursue it. Listen and note the tradeoffs they had to make so they could spend the next year sailing around the world. What do you have in your Gain column? What do you want more of in your life? What is in your Give Up column? What are you willing to sacrifice to acquire more of the things you want to gain?I’d love to hear about it, so leave a comment below!I’m Larry Cornett, an executive coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become more invincible, and create better opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of what you love and less of what you hate! 📕 Check out The Invincible Daily Journals!➡️ Want to chat with me about planning tradeoffs in your career and life? You can schedule a complimentary call. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

My guest for this episode is Bob Baxley, design advisor, mentor, author, and speaker. He is one of the most familiar design leaders in Silicon Valley, having worked on products you probably use every day. Bob and I worked at some of the same companies (e.g., Apple, Yahoo), but only crossed paths once at one of my favorite coffee shops in Mountain View, CA. He has strong opinions about design, leadership, creating great products, and crafting a lasting career, so I know you’ll enjoy this episode! About BobBob Baxley is a designer, executive, and advisor who has built and led UX teams at some of Silicon Valley’s most respected companies, including Apple, Pinterest, Yahoo!, and most recently, Thoughtspot. During a career spanning over three decades, Bob has played a pivotal role in the design of the Apple Online Store, Yahoo! Answers, the Apple Store App, Buyable Pins, and ClarisWorks—products that have been used by hundreds of millions of people around the world. Committed to recruiting and inspiring the next generation of designers, Bob also mentors individuals and advises organizations that are working to improve the practice, craft, and culture of digital product design.We talk about* His background in tech, starting with Claris* The tough decision of moving from Yahoo to Apple in 2006* The opportunity to work with a historic figure, Steve Jobs* The wild rise of tech companies in San Francisco, CA* How he looked for opportunities in his career to “witness history”* The concept of getting on the bus with the right people* Making decisions at branches in your career* How a tech career can be much like playing poker * What you can control is placing yourself in interesting environments with the right people* Thinking of time with an employer like a “presidential term” and time-boxing your plan for impact* Why four years feels like the sweet spot for staying in one role* Patterns he’s observed in people who succeed vs. those who do not on his teams* How he structures job interviews and what he looks for (especially for designers)* Design education, training, mindset, and careers* How our modern transactional environment might impact design and design roles * Design may become more powerful and influential, but with fewer people* The impact of AI on professions and entry-level jobs* How to stay relevant in the industryScroll up and hit play to listen to our full conversation.Where to find more* Bob’s LinkedIn* His personal websiteI’m Larry Cornett, an executive coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become more invincible, and create better opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of the work you love and less of what you hate! 📕 Check out the Summer version of my Invincible Daily Journal! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

🎟️ Get your ticket for our live Job Interview course launching at the end of May. Two ex-tech leaders teach the insider secrets to getting hired, promoted, and staying off the layoff list. The price goes up in 4 days! Tim Yeo joins me for this special episode so we can share more details about our upcoming live cohort course, Too Valuable to Lose. We discuss our backgrounds as leaders in the tech industry and career coaches for the past several years, and how this inspired us to create the course. * We’ve seen that the quiet, good people are often overlooked for raises and promotions. * Humble people and introverts frequently struggle with selling themselves during job interviews. * And talented people sometimes get put on a layoff list because their bosses aren’t fully aware of their value and everything they do for the company. Well, Tim and I want to change that! Scroll up, hit play, and listen to us discuss the course in more detail. Learn to become so valuable that your employer keeps you happy (e.g., receive raises and promotions, stay off the layoff list), and potential new employers can't stand the thought of losing you (i.e., they make you job offers quickly).What you'll get from the course:* Practical and doable steps you can take the very next day* Access to two live sessions with the instructors and other attendees on May 31st and June 7th* Homework exercises to help you put our advice into action between sessions* Downloadable templates to help you showcase your accomplishments and talents* Scripts you can use during your job interviews and conversations with your manager* Techniques for using AI to help you with preparation and practice* Q&A feedback from the instructors to help you fine-tune your strategies and materials* Lifetime access to our private community for the advice, feedback, and support you needWhat you'll learn:* Get better at selling yourself for the jobs you really want* Learn how to ask for a raise or promotion the right way* Consistently demonstrate your value so your manager can't imagine losing you* Become so valuable that your employer fights to make you happy, retain you, and keep you off the layoff list⬆️ Scroll up, hit play, and 🎧 listen to this episode to learn more about the course, what you will get if you join us, and who we are. Where to find out more* The Too Valuable to Lose course * Read more about our backgrounds and see our testimonials * The video version of this podcast episodeI’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become invincible, and create new opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of what you love and less of what you hate!Tim Yeo has been an introvert for 40 years! He is a design leader, speaker, empathetic storyteller, facilitator from problem to solution, open collaborator, builder of design teams. He spent 18 years in UX & Design. He's now the chief introvert at The Quiet Achiever (TQA). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

“Nothing is working. I can’t find a job!”I was talking with an acquaintance about their job search strategy recently. They complained that nothing they had tried was working. They had written and shared articles on social media, but the engagement wasn’t very good. They had searched for jobs but couldn’t find what they were seeking. * I asked how many articles they had written. * They said, “Two.” * I then asked how long they had been searching for relevant job listings. * They said, “A week.”Okay, folks. I’m sorry, but sometimes, more effort and patience are required! We seem to have turned into an instant gratification nation. Ubiquitous internet access, fast smartphones, thousands of online services, and the rise of AI have made us all expect instant answers and results. But it doesn't work that way. Your easy access is everyone’s easy access. Everyone is posting, sharing, commenting, and competing for attention. I’ve published over 1,000 posts/articles over the past eight years. I started writing on Medium in 2017 and launched my Substack newsletter in 2019. I slowly built a decent number of readers on both platforms, but only in the last three months did my subscriber numbers really grow! I have a lot of failings, but I do have some personality traits that help me. I’m very persistent and patient. I will keep grinding away at something for years and years. * I’ve been working out almost every day for the past 16 years, and it took at least 4 years of lifting weights 5 days/week before I started seeing decent results. * I’ve been building and running my businesses since 2010 (never returned to a job). * I’ve been writing something every single day for years and years and years. I’m stubborn, if nothing else. Perhaps there have been times I should have given up. I know there are times other people definitely would have given up because I’ve watched them do exactly that. When to be patientSometimes, you just need to be patient. Stop expecting instant success! * Networking takes time.* Building an engaged audience takes time. * Looking for a new job in a terrible market in a struggling economy takes time. If you’ve invested many years in your current career, you may need to be more patient. It can often take approximately one month for every year of experience to find a new job (e.g., a full year if you have 12 years of experience). Also, you may need to be patient if you have many commitments and change would disrupt them. For example, your family might depend on your income, and you don’t want to take your kids out of their local schools, so you can’t just quit your job or jump at a new opportunity that would require a move. If you have a job you don’t love but the job market is terrible, you may need to be patient and ride it out. But you should still be looking around. Treat it as a validation exercise. * Are you being paid what you should be?* Are you at the level you should be?* Are you being given the opportunities you could be?* Is your manager more supportive and mentoring than what’s available elsewhere? I guess my early career years are an example of being patient. I worked for almost 10 years before I got my big break and started landing promotions that moved me up the leadership ladder. When to pivotIf you feel you’re spinning your wheels, not getting any real traction, or running out of time, you may need to pivot and change strategies. At some point, more patience won’t help. Also, if you have already been impacted by a layoff or business failure, you may need to make a change to survive. The degree of change depends on your situation, how long you’ve been trying other options, and your desired outcome. How much you pivot your career depends on what’s possible and what’s necessary. * Small pivot - Find a new job with an employer in the same industry and vertical (this is what most people do). * Medium pivot - Find a job with an employer in the same industry but in a different vertical (e.g., ecommerce instead of gaming).* Large pivot - Find a job with an employer in a completely different industry (e.g., transportation instead of tech) or geography (e.g., a different country).* Massive pivot - Change professions entirely using your transferrable talents and skills (e.g., a good manager is a good manager in any business). Or build your own business! The size of your pivot depends on what you do for a living, how deeply your job or business has been impacted, and how serious you are about doing whatever it takes to survive and thrive in this economic downturn.➡️ I go into more detail about these pivots in the podcast audio. So, scroll up, hit play, and listen. 🎧Small pivotA smaller pivot is what most people do when seeking a new job. They stay in the same profession and find a new employer in the same industry and vertical. An example would be a small change from being a designer at Amazon to taking a design job with eBay. Medium pivotA medium pivot is also fairly common when changing jobs. Someone stays in the same profession and industry but moves to a new vertical. An example would be staying in consumer technology but moving from the vertical of ecommerce to web search. Large pivotIf you’re out of work and the job market is terrible, you may need to make a larger pivot if you’ve been struggling to find a job and time is running out. You could land a new job with an employer in a completely different industry (e.g., transportation instead of tech) or geography (e.g., the EU instead of the U.S.).An example would be leaving the core tech industry to take a job applying your profession to the transportation industry (e.g., a UX designer taking a design job with a logistics company). I’ve also worked with clients who were frustrated by the U.S. job market and moved to Europe to take roles with companies based there. Massive pivotIf you're reaching a financial breaking point, a massive pivot may be required to get back on your feet. Time has run out, and you need a drastic career change to survive and thrive. You may need to change professions entirely or deconstruct your job and reconstruct your knowledge, skills, and experience for an entirely new industry.I did this over nine years ago. I left my profession (i.e., Product & Design leader) and industry (i.e., Silicon Valley Tech) to create a business to do something completely different. I became a leadership coach and career advisor.I took parts of my past job (e.g., mentoring my team, performance coaching, hiring talent) and different components of my skills and experience to create a new beginning. I did this because I wanted the freedom that a solopreneur business could give me (e.g., living where I wanted to live, working remotely).I know the thought of changing professions is overwhelming. But, making a pivot this massive could enable you to overcome this economic uncertainty. It is possible, and other people have successfully made a significant career change like this. I’ve interviewed a few for this podcast (e.g., Isabel Sterne, Emily Schneider, Maureen Wiley Clough).I did it. You can, too, if that is what it takes to survive. I’m here to support you if you want to discuss it. 📖 Get your free chapter from the book I’ve been writing for the last few years, Becoming Invincible in Life: A Guide to Reclaiming Your Power, Freedom, and Future. I’m in the editing phase right now, so I’ll hopefully be able to publish it later this year! I’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become invincible, and create new opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of what you love and less of what you hate!📕 Check out the Spring version of my Invincible Daily Journal! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

We may feel powerless at times like these, but we are not. Over 70M people in the U.S. didn’t want the outcome we are dealing with now. Millions more are now regretting choices made that enabled what is happening.However, if we unite, we become powerful. The coordinated focus of our time, energy, and money would have a massive impact on those who think we have no voice. We are familiar with the idea of voting with our dollars. We change our spending habits to favor one business over another, to show that we reject a corporation’s policies, and to influence a company’s actions. It happens all the time. But we also live in an online world that isn’t about the money we spend with a company. Instead, it’s about the time and attention we give to their platforms, services, and apps. We are the product. Our data, behavior, and clicks are harvested to feed their advertising platforms. We don’t pay Meta to use Facebook, for example. But that corporation sure makes a significant profit from our time spent in the app. So, we can vote with our time and attention, too, not just our dollars. By deactivating or deleting our accounts, we can starve specific platforms (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X). We can also feed other platforms that represent the values we believe in (e.g., Bluesky). Money talks. When a company loses enough advertising revenue, they take notice. They may decide to change their policies and actions before it’s too late, and they lose everything. We have the power to make that happen if we are willing to redistribute our time and attention. We can decide how we spend our money, time, and attention. We get to choose the companies that we feel are aligned with our values. But there is another way to live your values and influence policy that we don’t talk about as often: Where you work.You can also “vote” with your blood, sweat, and tears. Our jobs are where we spend a significant portion of our adult lives. Of course, we need to work to live. We must cover our bills, buy groceries, and pay for housing. But work is already hard enough without being completely miserable while we are doing it. And working for an employer that doesn’t align with your values adds another layer of pain to the misery. Being selective about choosing an employer is undoubtedly a privilege that not everyone can enjoy. If you live in a small community with few employers and no options for remote work, you are stuck with few choices. I grew up in a tiny farm town like that. The online world hadn’t been created yet, and few local employers existed. You took any job you could find. However, those who do have more options for their career paths can use this opportunity to research, plan, and select employment that:* Aligns with their values.* Supports their belief system. * Positions them for the future. * Gives them flexibility and resilience. This podcast episode discusses these points in more detail, so scroll up, hit play, and listen. In summary, you have more power than you think to help change this world and right wrongs. * You can vote with your dollars to help influence policy. * You can vote with your time and attention to make change happen. * You can vote with your blood, sweat, and tears to reward the right kind of employers with the precious remaining time in your career. You deserve a career and a job that makes you feel good about waking up on Monday mornings!📖 Get your free chapter from the book I’ve been writing for the last few years, Becoming Invincible in Life: A Guide to Reclaiming Your Power, Freedom, and Future. I’m in the editing phase right now, so I’ll hopefully be able to publish it later this year! I’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with you to optimize your career, business, and life. My mission is to help you take complete control of your work and life so you can become a more “Invincible You.” My wife and I live in Northern California near Lake Tahoe. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

My guest for this episode is Isabel Sterne, a writer, designer, and brand strategist who helps entrepreneurs and professionals build aligned brands. She offers LinkedIn visual design, content writing, marketing clarity calls, and monthly and project-based marketing and branding support.I always talk about treating your career like a business that sells a product called “you.” As such, you should invest in your professional brand and leverage LinkedIn to attract new opportunities. Before starting her own business, she worked for 12+ years in marketing and communications for global brands like Condé Nast and Effie Awards. She also has a B.Sc. in Communication from Cornell University.When I encountered Isabel on LinkedIn, I first noticed how funny her posts are. Then, I noticed how much engagement she was getting on those posts. She’s humble about this, but I like to say that she’s conquered LinkedIn. If you’re not following her there, you should be!About Isabel​Isabel Sterne helps founders and solopreneurs develop their reputations and attract more opportunities on LinkedIn and beyond. She provides design, ghostwriting, and strategy support for those looking to level up their LinkedIn presence and be seen as the experts they are.Late identified as neurodivergent, she's also passionate about neurodiversity advocacy and raising awareness about the challenges and advantages of thinking differently.We talk about* How she became more active on LinkedIn after being burned out by layoffs.* Why she decided to start her consulting practice doing what she had always been doing for her employers (e.g., creating marketing content).* How she would have told her younger self to put herself out there more.* What she does to be so successful on LinkedIn by being more human and authentic.* The role of AI in content creation and mistakes people make with it.* How she helps her clients get more out of LinkedIn and social media.* The challenges of being neurodivergent in the workplace.Scroll up and hit play to listen to our full conversation.Where to find Isabel* LinkedIn* Substack* Her website30 for $20! ☎️Schedule a call and get 30 minutes of coaching for just $20 on any career topic you want to cover. Save $177 off the regular price! Note: This offer is only available for new clients who haven’t worked with me before.I’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with you to optimize your career, business, and life. My mission is to help you take complete control of your work and life so you can become a more “Invincible You.” I live in Northern California near Lake Tahoe with my wife and our Great Dane. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe

My guest for this episode is Maureen Wiley Clough. Maureen is the host of It Gets Late Early, a podcast and community of tech employees bringing awareness to the issues facing experienced workers and striving to create a better working world for all. I’ve talked about the issue of ageism in the tech industry before. I faced it myself a few times, and I witnessed discriminatory behavior during my decades-long career (e.g., during job interviews). I wrote a post on LinkedIn about embracing aging, which is how I met Maureen and got invited to her podcast. So, now she has returned the favor and joined me for this episode to talk about her mission to shine a light on ageism and find a better way to move forward in the working world as we all grow older. About MaureenMaureen built a successful career in tech. But as she looked around the Zoom room at her last early-stage startup, she was struck by the fact that the number of people over 40 were slim to none. When she realized she had observed a similar demographic makeup in her past roles at more mature organizations, she began to wonder about her ability to chart her own course in this sector for as long as she wanted - or needed - to be employed. She also recognized that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs had not focused on the issue of age, the one “ism” coming for all of us (and that’s if we’re lucky). So, she set out to start conversations with her peers and conduct research to understand reality and build towards a better, more inclusive future for all - no matter what your age.We talk about* When Maureen first encountered ageism in her career* Why she started her podcast “It Gets Late Early”* How ageism will affect all of us (if you’re lucky to live long enough)* How age discrimination negatively impacts corporations* The unexpected ways ageism creeps into recruiting, hiring, and promotion practices* Why return-to-office hurts parents and older workers* What you can do to be better prepared as you advance in your career* How Maureen can help companies improve their recruiting practices, hiring policies, organizational policies, and more to help find and nurture great talent, regardless of ageScroll up and hit play to listen to our full conversation.Where to find Maureen * It Gets Late Early (website, podcast episodes, and newsletter)* LinkedIn * Instagram* Threads I’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with you to optimize your career, business, and life. My mission is to help you become a more "Invincible You" so you can live your life on your terms instead of being controlled by someone else's rules. I live in Northern California near Lake Tahoe with my wife and our Great Dane. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newsletter.invinciblecareer.com/subscribe