“Work’s become my sanctuary”

Emily, 36, Kent

“When I was 30, I changed from PR for restaurants and bars to being a bridal make-up artist. My advice would be to do any retraining you can while you’re in your current job and earning (during weekends, evenings or holidays). I also started building up my make-up kit while in full-time employment so it wasn’t such a financial hit later on. If there’s something you’ve always thought about doing career-wise but never tried, do some work experience or shadowing in that area to double-check you would actually enjoy the reality of that job. The only tricky thing has been learning to adapt to not having the regular income of a full-time job. But I wouldn’t change it for the world – my work doesn’t feel like ‘work’ to me in the way that it did before. It’s become my sanctuary.”

“I’ve helped clients change careers so they have time with their children”

Lo, 34, Cheshire

“I lost my job during maternity leave (like the other 54,000 UK women this happens to every year), so I worked back up to retail management around childcare and then launched Good Copy, a bespoke CV, cover letter and LinkedIn writing business, full-time in 2020 as a Covid response to support mass redundancies. I didn’t dream it would grow this much or there’d be so much demand, but here I am four years down the line with a writer on staff. I think the best advice I can give to career changers is to home in on your transferable skills. At the moment, the main driver for people – mums in particular – seems to be pivoting into remote or flexible work. When I receive feedback that I’ve helped clients change careers so they now have time with their children, more money in the bank and the flexibility to book a mid-week doctor’s appointment – that’s the most heartwarming and rewarding thing. I regret not planning for growth a little better, and not believing that my career change would work.”

“Nothing is worse than being miserable”

Lianne, 38, Middlesbrough

“When I was 26 I quit my graduate role in London that I’d been in for 18 months and got a job in hospitality as a server in a burger restaurant. My graduate role was paying me a salary of £18,000, which was barely enough to survive, and it was a very toxic environment. I was fully prepared to earn even less money if it meant being happier but I ended up earning more money. I wish I’d known sooner that quitting or walking away from something isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Nothing is worse than being miserable; it’s not normal to cry on your way to work and it’s not normal for someone to make you cry at work either. I’m 38 now, and in the last eight years, I’ve started a clothing business, written a book, taught English, taught business at a university and am now exploring the freelance side of life while travelling the world with my girlfriend. I’m the self-proclaimed queen of quitting jobs.”

“You have to be willing to learn a lot about yourself”: women who switched careers after 30 on their must-know advice (and regrets)