The Art of Midlife Career Reinvention for Your Personal Brand with Bernie Borges: A Roadmap to Fulfillment

Question

Feeling stuck in your career and wondering if it's too late to change things up? How do you even "put yourself out there" in mid-career?

Expert Guest Answer

On this week's episode of Ask The Brand Therapist, that's exactly what we're discussing with Bernie Borges, the host and producer of The Midlife Fulfilled Podcast.

Bernie is also the Vice President of Global Content Marketing at iQor, an author and industry expert who also experienced the need for a career reboot.

This led him to develop a unique model for career reinvention, focusing on the importance of understanding evolving values and spotting the signs indicating a reboot is in order. We discuss his framework and the step-by-step path to "reboot and repackage" yourself to start building your brand and get out on LinkedIn and beyond.

Bernie shares his expertise on LinkedIn optimization, encouraging us to think like product managers and align our profiles with the people we serve. We discuss engaging relationally, building meaningful connections, and taking thoughtful action for positive change.

LINKS
Connect with Bernie Borges
The Midlife Fulfilled Podcast Website
My episode on personal branding on The Midlife Fulfilled Podcast
Grab your copy of The Midlife Fulfilled Career Reboot Workbook

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Michelle B Griffin is a thought leadership-focused personal brand and PR strategist and founder of Standout Women Media who positions established women experts and authors into visible industry authorities.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hey everybody, it's Michelle, Just giving you a quick heads up on what today's episode is all about. I'm interviewing someone that I really wish I would have met in 2015. And I will tell you exactly why when you get into the podcast. Not to be a big tease, but he is all about helping people who are feeling unfulfilled. He is the host and producer of the Midlife Fulfilled podcast, but in the day he is the vice president of global content marketing at iCorp and he's the author of Marketing 2.0, one of the earliest books on social media marketing. And his most recent book is a midlife career reboot a workbook style guide for midlife professionals to find their next career chapter clarity and confidence. Like I said, I really wish I would have met him in 2015.

Speaker 1: 0:52

Bernie has been a podcaster since 2013. His latest podcast, the Midlife Fulfilled podcast, was a podcast that I was on several weeks ago. I'll link in the show notes where we really headed off and I knew I had to bring him back to share his story and his framework to go from really stuck and unsure to finding that fulfillment, that path, that proven path as he tells us to get there. So today's story is if you are feeling like you're off on your career. Learn from this, learn from the stories, because, if that ever happens, we've got answers, and he's also sharing with us the link to download this workbook. I read it. It's really good, it's very well done. So take a look, listen. It's a very short and actual episode, and I know you're just going to really be so impressed with Bernie and his mission. So, with that being said, let's get on with today's conversation. Hey there, it's the brand therapist, michelle B Griffin, and welcome to your weekly personal brand therapy session. This is the podcast that helps solo experts like you get unstuck and get on your way with a brand that takes your places. I'm super excited you're here. Now let's get going with today's session.

Speaker 1: 2:19

Welcome back everybody to this week's episode of Ask the Brand Therapist. I'm your host, michelle B Griffin, the brand therapist, and I'm excited today to bring on an expert guest. You know, in last week's episode I mentioned how we need expert guests. I'm bringing on amazing people to help us answer the personal branding questions that we all have, and today's a really important topic because it's one I actually had to face myself when I wanted to leave my job. The question is you hit a certain age. You're out of your 20s and 30s, you're like in midlife. Is it just too late? Where do we start? Is it too late to reboot and to put ourselves out there? Today, I'm excited to have on the show Bernie Borges, who is the host and the producer at Midlife Fulfilled Podcast. Welcome to the show, bernie.

Speaker 2: 3:03

Thank you, Michelle. Thank you so much. It's a thrill to be here with you.

Speaker 1: 3:07

Absolutely so. A fun fact I was actually on Bernie's podcast several weeks ago so I'll put a link in the show notes to that and he's just a delightful host. So I said, of course you have to come on and talk to us about this important topic. When is it too late? Is it ever too late to reboot? Put yourself out there. Whatever you say, tell us Bernie. Is it? Tell us what that is, that burning question that you have 150 episodes or so on on your podcast?

Speaker 2: 3:35

So it starts with what are your current values? As we go through these different seasons in life, Michelle, as you said, you go through 20s and 30s and then, for many of us, we're in our 40s or beyond and our values change, and I don't mean core, core values that are instilled in us in childhood. I mean just the things that are important to us in the current season of our life. And in many cases, michelle, a lot of people experience a certain plateau or level of discomfort or frustration or stagnation call it what you want to call it in their current professional endeavor and I'm using that broad expression, michelle, intensely. It could be a job, it could even be a current business. I had my own business for 15 years and I hit that plateau and I did a reboot after 15 years of my own business. So it doesn't matter whether you're in a job situation or you're an entrepreneur. If you hit that plateau, then you really have to ask yourself is it time for a reboot?

Speaker 1: 4:38

I absolutely love that you say reboot. It's not starting over, it's just like our computer we just need to restart it, make it fresh, because I personally face that too. I've said that on a mini podcast. On this podcast, I was an amazing job, great job. It was just perfect in every way, but I didn't fulfill myself. I wasn't growing in the way that I saw my future. So I knew that I wanted to start my own consultancy, something that I had since my 20s. It bubbled up. My kids were getting older, but I hit the wall, because my story is, I took five years to get out there. That's why I'm so passionate. My mission is to put yourself out there, and you and I are so aligned on our missions. You're all about the midlife era. Now let's talk about the people, the listeners, who are saying yes, that's me, tell me more about this. You say start with your values, but what are the signs that we should be looking for? Sometimes we don't know things are there until they kind of bubble up. What do you look for to get?

Speaker 2: 5:35

Well, the first telltale sign really is something like on Sundays if you're dreading the next day, that's a big telltale sign that you might be ready for a reboot. But in terms of what do you do? Right, because that's what we're here to discuss is what do you do? Well, I've kind of come up with this model that starts with, and it takes me back to early in my career. It starts with the concept of thinking like a product manager. So let's just take a moment to define what is a product manager do. What is a product manager's job? Well, it's to either launch a new product or, if they take over an existing product, it's to grow market share In that product. Well, the first thing they have to do is that I have to understand what problem that does that product solve, who is that product for, who's the target Audience for that product and what's the best way to reach that product. In this case, michelle, the product is you, the product is me, the product is Each of us. So we have to kind of put those glasses on, put those lenses on and think like a product manager and simply look at yourself as a product. And so, if you think of a physical product now Think of like a consumer product that you get a, say, a big box retail. It comes in a package, right, and I'm using that example very specifically because the metaphor that I'm really driving toward is how are you packaged up digitally? What is your packaging?

Speaker 2: 7:09

For many of us, michelle, as you know, as you said, we're very aligned. For many of us, that's linked in. So if you think of yourself as a product and you think of yourself, of how do you define what problem you solve and who is your audience, then you have to go to your linked in profile if that's where your audience is. If your audience is somewhere else and not on linked in, then just transfer, replace linked in with whatever that platform is. But for now, since you're as the brand therapist, you and your community is mostly linked in Go to your linked in profile and simply ask the following question how aligned is my current linked in profile with who I need to be or want to be as a quote, unquote product and I'm using your quotes for anybody who's listening.

Speaker 2: 7:57

So it starts there to think of yourself as a product manager and you're the product, and then go to your linked in profile and make sure that you align yourself and a lot of cases, michelle, that requires a pretty significant exercise, that whole reboot concept. You might have to take your linked in profile and completely make it over Everything from the banner image, even maybe updating your photo, and certainly your headline and your about section and whatever content you put up there in the featured section, etc. Etc, etc. You've gotta make sure that your linked in profile is aligned with the audience you want to reach. I'll pause there. There's more, but I'll pause there.

Speaker 1: 8:43

Now, I actually love that and I actually posted about that today. Ironically, on linked in, when you know who you are, there is no competition and it almost is like on linked in, people are scared to show up because they don't know and so, as you're saying, go to linked in a line that. But I even want to say what kept me stuck for five years because I wasn't sure which path I wanted to go on. I can do a lot of different things and I wasn't sure at that stage in life what really let me up, where I needed to go. And so there's a lot of some pre work is a lot of what I do as well. In your framework you have. Do you address that, or what are your thoughts on getting clear on what that would be?

Speaker 2: 9:24

Yeah, so I actually have a whole workbook on this and in the workbook I provide a little template that basically says who identify your target audience and identify each and every attribute about your target audience and don't hold anything back.

Speaker 2: 9:40

It's not just facts and figures and demographics, but also psychographics, what are the things that they think about, care about, like to do? Just identify as many attributes as you can about your target audience and build it out. Like I said, I provided a little template model for that. Build it out in something. It can be a crem, but it can also be like a spreadsheet, as simple as a spreadsheet, once you built it out and you've gone through that exercise of building it out. There's two Benefits of that. One is you visually see it. You see what those attributes are, but the fact that you went through the exercise, your brain is processing it now at a different level and now you can go back to your linkedin profile and you can really more readily align your LinkedIn profile in a way that's really aligned with the attributes that you've just identified in that model that you built.

Speaker 1: 10:38

This is where you and I are so aligned. I have read your workbook. I've told you how fantastic it is. We will put a link in the show notes, but you are really driven, like I am, to get clear on who you are. And then, who are you showing up for your audience, whatever it is and what context? Because we are here as people and businesses to hopefully solve problems. I love that your problem focus gets really clear on what keeps them up at night, their desires, their challenges. I want to add you can get super clear, but until we really launch that product out there, we don't know. We can do all the market research and everything, but we can't just set and forget it. We will learn so much by keeping a pulse on our market and our audience. What do you suggest to that next step? After you've given us a pre-work, I'm going to link to the show notes so people can test that out, get in alignment. What next in your framework?

Speaker 2: 11:33

The next step is what I call engage relationally. Once you've identified who your target audience is, now you have to go seek them out Again, sticking with LinkedIn, which is the world that you and I live in. It's fairly easy on LinkedIn. I say fairly because you can do a whole bunch of different searches hashtag searches and groups and that sort of thing and company searches and identify people. Once you've identified the people who meet those attributes of your target audience, engage relationally. By that I simply mean and you know this, because you have a whole community where you do this every day, literally every day where you simply you're commenting on their posts, you're liking their posts, you're adding value, you're engaging in the conversation. I call it engage relationally because you're looking to actually build some relationships and then eventually you can begin to connect with those people. What I find, michelle and maybe you see this as well is that people make the mistake of going right for the connection instead of engaging relationally. That's why I make a big point of saying first engage relationally and build some of that KLT no Like and Trust and then reach out and connect. First of all, you have a much better chance of making the connection confirmation Once you make the connection request on LinkedIn, you have a much better chance of getting it. If you've engaged relationally, then once you have made that connection because, again, you've done some relational engaging then you have a better chance of the final step, which is getting the meeting.

Speaker 2: 13:11

Now, meeting can be multiple things. It doesn't have to be a meeting, it can be something else, whatever that outcome is. So it could be a call, it could be hey, let's meet for virtual coffee. I'd like to learn more about X, y and Z, and you should know what X, y and Z is, because you engage relationally with them. Or maybe you're offering something, and I don't mean a product or service, I mean something of value.

Speaker 2: 13:36

Hey, michelle, I noticed this, so I'd like you to know about that, something that's relevant to your world. But if you've done those early steps, those pre-steps, if you will engaging relationally and then connecting and then waiting a little time I usually suggest waiting one to three days before you actually do that follow-up so that you don't appear overly aggressive or overly anxious about it. But those people are going to go back to your profile if you've done the early homework in the first part of the process that we've discussed here, michelle, which is to align your LinkedIn profile with who you are, your value proposition and then what your target audience cares about. Then all the other steps the relational engagement and the connecting and the outreach after that have a much, much better chance of being successful for you. And if you do that consistently, you dramatically increase your success rates.

Speaker 1: 14:36

That's exactly putting yourself out there, the power and the payoff, and it's an organic thing, it's not forced. We see that too much in LinkedIn. You can almost see right through those people. It's kind of like when you and I met I believe that you heard me on another podcast you sent, we connected, we talked and we just built a relationship. I was excited to be on your podcast, here you are in mine and that is an example, right then and there, of just, and we were both aligned and I think that's what really attracted the networking relationship. Wow, you think that too, I do too, and so by putting yourself out there completely on who you are, who you're showing up for everything about you, it just is your antenna to connect with those people you're here to connect, which is not everyone, I might add to. So quality over quantity is what you're saying here as well, so I totally identify with that.

Speaker 2: 15:28

Yeah, but thoughtful, thoughtful quality, like putting a plan behind it and it being a thoughtful process.

Speaker 2: 15:34

And I'll take it back to the beginning of the conversation.

Speaker 2: 15:37

I mentioned early in this conversation that I had my own business for 15 years and I reached the point where I just felt that it was time for a reboot. It was not a comfortable feeling, michelle. For most of those 15 years I was in the groove, I was making it happen and things were pretty good, but at some point I reached this plateau and I couldn't break through the plateau and I kept asking myself should I do something, should I, should I, should I, should I? And eventually I just said, yeah, I need to, I need to stop putting it off. And so I've walked in those shoes and I'm well into my midlife, and so I want to encourage anyone who's listening whatever stage of life you're in, if that's an emotion that you're dealing with and, by the way, I characterize that as an emotion because it is, let's call it what it is Then don't deny it and know that you can take some action. But it needs to be thoughtful action, and that's really what this whole conversation is about.

Speaker 1: 16:37

It's absolutely about that. You realize it, you address it and then let's take action. Because, again, why am I here? So no one spends five years spending their wills, because time is too precious to waste for us. There's too many of us hidden and held back on the sideline, unclear and unsure. So your framework is brilliant, Bernie. So, as we end our session today, what is that one takeaway that you would encourage our listeners if they have that nine feeling that something is not ready and they might need a reboot?

Speaker 2: 17:08

So my takeaway to share with you and your amazing audience, michelle, is simply, if you are dealing with that emotion, just know that there is a process and it's a proven process. I use this process myself and I know others as well have used this process. It's doable, it's not overwhelming and it's just a simple process, and just follow those steps. Think like a product manager. Make sure that your LinkedIn profile is aligned with who you serve, engage with people relationally, start building connections and then have those meetings and those conversations, and if you do that in a methodical way and consistently, you will have success.

Speaker 1: 17:50

And that's what we all want to attain. Thank you, Bernie, for that. Now, where can we find and connect you to get that workbook and learn more about what you do?

Speaker 2: 18:00

Sure, Just go to midlifefulfilledcom. So that's fulfilled the past tense midlifefulfilledcom. And it's right there.

Speaker 1: 18:06

Yes, and then you can get the workbook and you can follow Bernie on LinkedIn and his page. I know he puts out a lot of content, actually all over, not just on LinkedIn, but you also post about the podcast on Instagram as well, correct? So, bernie, thank you so much for being a guest and sharing your amazing framework that is going to help so many people. Not only that, it's simple and it's actionable, and that's what I'm all about to help my listeners answer these questions that are nine inside them, because the answers are really in us. We just need to get them out there. So, until next week, everybody, I'll be back with another session. Take care, that's a wrap for today's brand therapy session. Need help with your personal branding journey? Then head on over to the brandtherapistio and grab my free resources to get going today with your brand. And until next time, keep putting yourself out there. You have a brand to build, a message to share and people to impact. Take care, everyone, I'll talk to you soon.