A Broadway actress, Danielle was tired of being a struggling artist and knew she wanted more out of life and her career. But what – and how? Dissecting her career on the stage helped Danielle quickly realize that her professional theater background was the perfect training for planning large events. “With any big event like a wedding, you’ll find the same key elements: costumes, lighting, set decoration, production and timing, and lots of details to coordinate. I thought – why not bring that same excitement and theatrical sensibility to non-Broadway events?” She is now the Owner and Creative Director of Curtain Up Events (CUE) and an excellent example of a woman who combined her passions, skills, and experiences and used them to transition into a new career. [Read more...]
Career Coach • Author • Speaker
Janet Sanders, The Diabetes Coach
Janet Sanders went to law school because she wanted to exercise her philanthropic muscles. After reading an article in Time magazine about a parent/child support center, she aspired to open a similar facility in her native Philadelphia. By pursuing a law degree, Janet thought she would gain the skill set and professional competencies necessary to realize her dream. She did in fact hone these transferable skills, but her career went in a different direction than she had planned. [Read more...]
Tonya Fitzpatrick, Executive Producer and Co-Host: World Footprints Radio Show
Award-winning broadcaster and author Tonya Fitzpatrick always knew “come hell or high water” she would become a lawyer. She did just that, and enjoyed an appointment as a Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education, and also served under a federal defense contract as the Senior Legal Advisor for the Office of Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. But her dissatisfaction with her legal career and the political environment in Washington, DC confirmed that she was ready for a change. Traveling has always allowed Tonya to reconnect with herself and her passion for travel and desire to live a purposeful life led her to reinvent her avocation and make it her career. [Read more...]
Anne Shroeder, Star Gazing Farm/Language Works Websites/Sheep Shearer
Anne Shroeder has been through many transitions in her life but at age 50 she has now found her passion and peace with a dream career that will warm your heart. She splits her time between her web development business, Language Works and caring for 50+ animals in need of a home. Her animal sanctuary: Star Gazing Farm is also a non-profit organization and if that wasn’t enough, Anne is also refining her skills as a sheep shearer. [Read more...]
Ellen Covner, Custom Gardens, LLC
Early on in her career Ellen Covner, like many other professional women, noticed that working with men could be a very mixed experience. She also learned that group and workplace dynamics often had a style and language all their own that did not promote cooperation, creativity and “drive.” She came to realize that as important as it was to be self-supporting and have a good income, money was not a sufficient motivator to stay in a “good job.” After 20+ years practicing health law in major hospitals and law firms, she was ready for new challenges. She wanted a change that would renew her creativity and joy in her work. The call of the outdoors beckoned and enticed her to focus on promoting environments that nourish people and their properties. [Read more...]
Debbie Waitkus, Golf For Cause, LLC
Always an athlete, Debbie Waitkus played on the soccer team at the University of Arizona and after graduate school she went on to establish a thriving corporate career as president of a 37 year old, $130 million private mortgage banking firm. She always attributed golf as one of her keys to success since she would take her clients on golf outings to establish and steward professional relationships and business deals. When the CEO of her firm implemented a new strategy that didn’t follow suit with her professional values, Debbie knew it was time for a change and what better way to plan her reinvention than to leverage the game of golf in a new business.
Mary Wasiak, Teacher
Mary Wasiak was raised in a conservative family that always encouraged her to pursue a practical career. She always knew that she would attend graduate school but found herself in law school without interest or aptitude because it would lead to a sensible career. Little did she know that teaching would turn out to be her dream job in the near future. [Read more...]
Kari DiFabio, Director of Sales & Marketing Sodaro Estate Winery
Kari DiFabio had tears of joy in her eyes when she earned her Elementary Education degree and couldn’t wait to get started on her career as a teacher. After teaching multiple grades in Arizona and Nevada she had a revelation that launched her personal career change. “Sitting in the teacher’s lounge one day, my life flashed before my eyes and I saw myself 20 years down the road, unhappy and bitter if I stayed in this career.” Following her intuition, Kari quit teaching, moved to California and lived with her grandmother while she figured out what to do next. [Read more...]
Joni McGary, Playwright
Pegged early on as a math and science kid, Joni McGary distinguished herself in her upstate New York high school with National Science Foundation accolades and planned to attend medical school after college. A mentor introduced her to Food Science, an academic discipline that would provide all the prerequisite classes and distinguish Joni amongst the sea of applicants vying for competitive spots in prestigious medical school programs.
After earning an undergraduate degree from Cornell with a major in Food Science, the career path lured Joni out into the world-of-work and the thought of medical school soon faded. A renaissance woman, Joni has always blended her aptitude for math and science with a love for the arts and a passion for theatre. Who knew the seeds of her artistic passion would later lead to a career change and the beginning of a new chapter in her professional life. [Read more...]
Nancy Sheridan Laird, Owner, Chief of Operations Restaurant Serenade
Nancy Sheridan Laird went to graduate school to earn a degree in Library Science at Columbia University. Her first job was as a research librarian for Morgan Stanley but later she transitioned out of the library but stayed in corporate finance eventually landing a top VP position in Mergers & Acquisitions at Kidder Peabody.
During what she describes as the crazy eighties, an earlier recession rocked the economy and the big money went away in the corporate sector so “…M&A was not as fun as it used to be.” according to Nancy. [Read more...]
