Losing a job in mid-career can feel like failure, but it’s an opportunity for growth. Reframe the experience to rebuild confidence, visualize new goals, and embrace future opportunities.

As a mid-career professional, you’re more than just your resume. Your experience, wisdom, and strategic thinking set you apart. However, to truly stand out, consider adopting a product mindset. This means defining, articulating, and marketing your value in a mission-critical way. It involves focusing on delivering niche solutions and being data-driven. Avoid common mistakes such as focusing solely on roles and responsibilities or telling war stories. Instead, prepare thoroughly, focus on your deliverables, and present compelling evidence that you’re the right person for the job. Remember, you’re not just an employee, you are the solution.

If you’re having trouble finding your next gig, or you’re running into unexpected friction or headwinds in your current position, you may be thinking too much like an employee. Consider the advantage of a more entrepreneurial mindset. As you evolve in and beyond mid-career, your mindset must shift if you’re going to maintain your momentum

The most valuable skill for mid-career professionals is thought leadership. It is even more important than a strong resume or LinkedIn profile, and more important than having an active network. This is because if you’re not engaging as a thought leader, there is little reason to navigate to your profile, and your network has no