When surveyed, over 40% of my site visitors list a "career change" as one of their concerns, either right now or in the foreseeable future. Often it's not choosing the specific new career that's the real problem; it's how to approach it when you're middle-aged with limited time and money. No one likes to make an expensive "mistake".

Below, I present a simple model of one approach to a career change. I call it the Slingshot Model. A model takes what could be a very complex process and simplifies it, making it easier to understand and therefore easier to do. As I describe the Slingshot Model's three simple steps, I'll show two examples of how to implement each step. One will relate to starting a business. I'll use an Internet business for an example. The other will relate to someone who feels "burnt out" or "stuck" in his or her career, isn't interested in starting a business, but wants to find a different career.

As far as I know, this model is original to me. It would not surprise me to find that someone else came up with something similar before, but, even if that's the case, this came out of my own head in thinking about some of the problems and challenges my site visitors have shared with me. My readers come from many nations and backgrounds. If "slingshot" is a new word to you, click here to get a simple definition.

Step One - Building the Slingshot

You can look around and perhaps find a ready-made slingshot to buy, but I think the best slingshot is one you make for yourself; one that "fits" you and your goals. A regular slingshot is used to throw something, usually a stone, a great distance with minimal effort. Thus your first step is to build one and test it.

Business example: You have an idea for a new business. Building or renting a "brick and mortar" store is expensive and risky, if your idea doesn't work. Building a website is much cheaper and greatly reduces the risk. There are reasonably priced software packages that will help you do it yourself, or you can hire a professional designer. I would recommend doing it yourself, not only to save money, but to gain new skills and better understand how the Web works. Sounds difficult, but that's why they have software to help you and that software gets better all the time.

Build it, buy a "domain name" (like middleage.org or yahoo.com) and rent some space on a professional "host" (a computer that holds websites). The software or the designer will probably offer ideas on how to do that, but there's plenty of free info on the Web as well. Submit your site for free to as many search engines as you like. Then sit back and be patient. You won't get a lot of traffic at first, but if what does come in sticks around and visits several pages (your host should be able to describe the site's activity in general), you may have a good idea, even a great idea. Maybe you'll even get some e-mails from interested site visitors. Your purpose is to judge the attraction of and interest in your site. You may not even sell anything. In fact, it's cheaper and easier not to do so at first. It's a test without a major commitment.

Career example: You have a job, a career, but you're burnt out, tired, bored, unhappy. You want a new career, but you don't know where to start. If you're someone who thinks, "I'm too old, I don't have the time to start a new career", first read my essay on Time versus Age, then come back here.

Find a school or some other group offering "adult education" in your area with a course in whatever interests you. If none exist where you live, then search the Internet. There's quite a variety of free and inexpensive courses out there. Take a course as time and finances allow. This is your "slingshot" and you're testing it. Do it without making any long-term commitment. Just taking one course can help you decide whether you like it enough to continue or whether you have to start looking for something else.

Step Two - Loading the Slingshot

Once you've built a slingshot, you put a stone in it and pull back on the slingshot. This requires effort and you are actually moving the stone AWAY from where you want it to go. No need to worry, you're just getting ready for Step Three.

Business example: During Step One, you've been following your site "traffic" to see if anyone is visiting. You find out they're staying for more than a few minutes (which means they're reading, not just surfing) and they read more than one page. This indicates you have something interesting to them. If you're really fortunate, you will have received e-mail from visitors. Listen to them very carefully. A successful business, on or off the Internet, is not one that satisfies the owner, it's one that satisfies the people who visit the "store".

If there's no interest, people leave shortly after arriving, and any e-mail is negative and there's no way you can satisfy their concerns, then you can drop the business here with minimal loss to yourself and you will have gained all sorts of skills and real life experience that can be applied to other ideas. You've "profited" at very little expense compared to a regular business.

If there's obvious interest, people stick around to read more than one page, and your e-mail is positive, then "load the slingshot". That means you can now offer something to buy that you think is what your visitors are looking for. Make it inexpensive for them. This is a test to see if people are not only interested, but willing to actually buy something. Remember, it must be of real value to them. How do you find that out? Try something and see what happens. That's the joy of e-commerce, you can put things up, take them down, change their content or nature, change their price, almost anything without a great deal of trouble.

How much effort, time, and money do you put into this step? As long as the results are positive, you put in more. If they're negative, you pull back and reconsider. Yes, you're very likely "losing money" at this point, but you are letting your market lead you instead of trying to lead it. You are going "away" from the profit you want, but only because you're loading your slingshot. The best is yet to come. Even more importantly, you've left yourself in a position where you can "cut your losses" if nothing works without having gone so far as if you'd actually gone out, built a store, stocked it, and found yourself with too few customers. But let's say things go well. On to Step Three.

Career Example: You've taken a course, perhaps two or three. You've done well and you've really enjoyed it. Yes, now you know, this is the new job or career for you. Having reached this point, now is the time to look for whatever your new job or career requires to get hired and do it.

In other words, you're "loading your slingshot" by getting the credentials you need to be paid to do this work. But you aren't taking as big a chance as if you'd plunged in from the beginning. You've taken time to test your idea and now it's a real goal, not just an idea. Moreover, you've demonstrated that you can do what needs to be done and enjoy it. That could help you get the help of others, such as acceptance into a university degree program or a professional training program.

Step Three - Releasing the Slingshot

Okay, you're ready to move forward with focus and dedication. Now is the time that you are rewarded for having built your own slingshot, fit it to your own specifications, and loaded it properly. That "stone" is going to go a looooong way!

Business example: If you've made it this far happily, it looks like you have a potentially successful business on your hands. If you have the money yourself, you can proceed to advertise your business and go for it. If you don't, you have skills and relevant, "real life" experience to demonstrate to an investor that you're worthy of support. That's a lot better than just showing up with an "idea"!

Career example: You've got your degree, your certificate, your apprentice experience, whatever is needed to get you a job, and you know you're doing the right thing for yourself. When you walk into a potential employer's office, you're going to have something to offer: the right credentials AND the knowledge that your doing the right thing with your life. That's a powerful combination.

Summation: A business model like this one is not a detailed blueprint. It's a simple means of looking at the future, of choosing and reaching a new goal in life. If the two examples above don't fit your situation, use your imagination. A model like this is just a tool. It has limits, but the more you practice with it, the more it can do for you.