- Discover new career paths that truly fit who you are
- Follow a proven methodology to find exciting options for 'what next', without risking your finances or your day job
- Feel a new lease of energy about your career
You’re ready to make a change, but you’re not sure where to start
On the outside, you have a good career. On the inside, you know there’s more to life than this.
You've had enough of waking up and feeling flat about the day ahead. You can't shake the sense that you're in the wrong place, and it's leaving you feeling frustrated and unfulfilled.
You want to create a career that feels good on the inside, rather than just looking good on the outside. You want to do work that feels like “you”.
“The course was transformative. It put a rocket under my shift and helped me to identify a career that I didn’t previously know existed.”
The Launch Pad is an 8-week immersive experience, delivered online, to give you clarity, confidence and direction
Act it out, don’t figure it out
- Overthinking your career change? Made lists, read career change articles, done online profiling tests and still not got any clearer about what else you really want to do? If you're stuck in analysis paralysis, more analysis won't help.
- Instead, action is key. Through the activities we’ll give you, you'll be in motion: generating new exciting ideas; running small career experiments to test what works with minimal risk; and, as each action builds on the previous ones, feeling clearer and more confident every week.
Look for people, not for jobs
- Endlessly scrolling though job sites? Getting no joy from recruiters? Feeling drained by the process? Unfortunately, the traditional job market is not supportive of career changers.
- Instead, we’ve seen that looking for people, not for jobs is more effective. You’ll not only learn about other fields, but also uncover new work opportunities in the hidden job market. We’ll show you how to identify these people, how to approach them and how to make the most of your interactions with them – leaving you with new ideas, new motivation, and new opportunities.
Do this with others, not alone
- Feel like you might be your own biggest obstacle? Know that your fears and your lack of knowledge about what other options are available to you are keeping you stuck? Doing this alone is the hard way.
- Instead, surrounding yourself with a support team is one of the most effective accelerators for your career change. In the Launch Pad, you’ll travel the journey with a bright, motivated set of peers, multiple experienced coaches, mentors and subject matter experts. You’ll feel supported, you’ll open up new connections and perspectives, and you’ll get unstuck faster.
Follow a step-by-step, structured process
Each week, you'll follow a carefully designed set of missions and exercises.
Missions
Missions are active tasks that get you engaging with the world outside of your head (think conversations, experiments and challenges). They’ll test your assumptions, open your mind to new possibilities, and get you making step by step, tangible progress toward clarity on your future career – and they're designed to work alongside what's happened currently with Covid-19.
Exercises
Exercises are reflective tasks that draw out insights, flip perspectives and hone possibilities (think worksheets, creative thought experiments and planners). They’ll help you clarify your thinking, open your mind, and uncover ideas you didn’t know you had.
You’ll move through our three-stage process
Most career changes take a minimum of six months to make, so we're not expecting you to make a full shift within the eight weeks of the course. However, we've designed the experience to get you unstuck, into action and finding the direction you need to make your shift happen.
WEEKS 1-4
Discovering
- Learn how to generate new ideas, even when your mind feels like a vacuum.
- Tap into the old dreams and unspoken possibilities you’ve kept hidden for years.
- Challenge the automatic ways of thinking and behaving that are keeping you stuck.
Finish this stage with an exciting new worldview, a new set of career possibilities and a deep understanding of what you want and what you’re good at.
WEEK 5
Focusing
- Bring together your ideas in an unconventional way that gives you access to new career options.
- Reveal the hidden clues that have been right in front of you the whole time.
- Articulate what you want and what you bring to the table in an authentic way that's unique to you.
Finish this stage with 3-5 career themes that give you purpose, energy and direction.
WEEKS 6-8
Testing and Validating
- Test your new career directions to make sure they’re viable, without needing to leave your day job (or take financial risks).
- Build confidence, experience and authority in your chosen career areas.
- Learn to create new work opportunities for yourself, even when there’s no job advertised.
Finish this stage with confidence that you’re on the right track, your first option tested, and a tailored roadmap to move forward.
“I’d spent so long feeling unhappy at work that it felt important not to compromise anymore. The Launch Pad helped me structure the actions I needed to take for my shift.”
Get expert input on your shift
Your Launch Pad leaders will provide you with expert input, challenge and accountability throughout the eight weeks. And they haven't just made their own successful shifts; they also bring years of experience to share with you from working in large corporates, government, non-profits, international development, social enterprise and entrepreneurship.
Natasha
Natasha Stanley
Career coach
Burned-out and feeling trapped by her CV, Natasha quit her charity job in 2012 and booked a one-way ticket to the Greek mountains. After five years working around the world, she now “gets paid to be herself”, combining her work at Careershifters with a side hustle on the art and science of meaningful human connection.
As co-creator of the Launch Pad experience and the primary writer at Careershifters, she’s regularly featured in the media, and has helped thousands of people to shift into work they love. Natasha also leads the ICF-accredited Careershifters coach training programmes.
Richard
Richard Alderson
Career coach
Richard is the founder of Careershifters and a licensed Firework career coach.
His background includes 15 years in entrepreneurship, coaching and leadership development. He co-founded an award-winning incubator for social entrepreneurs in India, following a career in business and IT consulting. Richard has helped thousands of people with their career changes and has been featured in media publications including The Times, the BBC, CNBC, Mashable and Inc Magazine.
John
John Lees
Career strategist
John Lees is one of the UK’s best known career experts. He has published 15 books on careers and work including the UK best-seller ‘How to Get a Job You Love’, now published in its 2021-22 edition as well as ‘Secrets of Resilient People’ which looks in depth at confidence. His books have been translated into Arabic, Georgian, Polish, Japanese and Spanish.
John was previously Chief Executive of the Institute of Employment Consultants and was a founding board member of the Career Development Institute. He holds degrees from the Universities of Cambridge, London and Liverpool and is a NICEC Fellow.
Find work you love, faster.
Save time and effort with our tools and resources
Move faster and track your progress with our ready-to-use tools and cheat sheets
For each mission and exercise that's part of the course, you'll get an easy-to-download PDF cheat sheet to follow. These are accompanied by checklists, templates and tools for you to complete as you progress on your career change journey.
Use what's worked for others
Why re-invent the wheel? We'll share with you the emails and scripts that have successfully opened doors and generated job offers for our previous participants, so that you can adapt these for your own shift.
Join a vibrant community that will help you move faster in your shift
Get support and accountability from your coaches and a peer group of like-minded shifters
If you've struggled to make progress on your own up to this point, the Launch Pad is designed to put the ideal team around you. Draw on the expertise of our coaches; know that you'll be supported and held to account by your peers; and take advantage of the wealth of connections that can come from your group.
We'll be here for as long as you need us
Our support doesn't just last for the duration of the course. You’ll become part of our Launch Pad Alumni, which will provide you with a supportive community in a private group and ongoing support with our quarterly 'Momentum' calls.
Feel secure with our money-back guarantee
Feel secure with our money-back guarantee
We've put hundreds of hours into creating the Launch Pad and we stand 100% by the impact we believe it can make on your life. That’s why we’ve included a guarantee. If, within the first two weeks of The Launch Pad, you decide you'd rather not continue, we’ll refund your course fees.
“I’d had enough of analysis paralysis. The Launch Pad helped me get clear on what I like and don't like doing. I now wake up with a sense confidence and purpose about my work.”
Our participants come from a diverse range of sectors, work situations and ages
Sectors
Employment status at the start of the course
Age range
... and here are success stories from our alumni
“The Launch Pad shifted my mindset – I wouldn’t have approached my now boss and then taken the chance to move into this job opportunity without the course.”
“After applying what I learned on the Career Change Launch Pad, I've secured myself the job I wanted in the company I wanted. Never dreamed it would come true!”
“I couldn’t make a change on my own. I needed someone else to help me understand what I was great at, to guide me through the process of transferring my skills to something more meaningful.”
“I'm happy for two reasons: firstly, that I actually made a change and have embraced it, and secondly that the change feels right – it's where I am meant to be right now.”
“I've taken the plunge to being a freelance writer, and in doing so I feel far more energised and more 'me' than I have done in a really long time - in fact perhaps ever. I'm so happy!”
“Incredibly motivating. It changed my perspective and I now work for myself. The Launch Pad helped me be brave enough to make the shift.”
"I'm now doing a professional qualification at a cooking school. It wasn't a rash decision; I did my homework, added up my financial figures and talked to a lot of people. The Launch Pad gave me the tools to do this. I'm loving what I'm doing."
“The Launch Pad showed me that career change doesn't have to be scary; it can be exciting, light-hearted, an adventure.”
“Without the Launch Pad I wouldn’t have been able to create the business I have today; not only did I get the big picture on the jigsaw box, I was able to understand how to fit all the pieces together.”
“I feel certain I would still be stuck doing my 'day job' if it wasn't for the boot up the **** that the Launch Pad gave me. Thank you!”
Find work you love, faster
Take part at no risk
Take part at no risk
If, within the first two weeks of The Launch Pad, you decide you'd rather not continue, we’ll refund your participation fee.
Questions?
- Will the Launch Pad work during lockdown / alongside what's happening in the world right now with Covid-19?
Yes.
The missions and exercises that make up the course can be done from home and we've successfully run Launch Pads through multiple lockdowns during 2020 and 2021!
- Will the Launch Pad fit around my full-time job and/or family commitments?
Yes.
The Launch Pad is specifically designed to work over and above a full-time job and other commitments.
We ask you to dedicate a minimum of an average of 45-60 minutes a day to the process.
If you have more time than this available, you’ll be able to move faster.
- When do the weekly group coaching calls happen?
From 2.00pm-3.00pm Eastern / 11.00am-12.00pm Pacific every Thursday.
All of them are recorded, so you can easily catch up on any that you can't make.
- What if I'm away or unavailable for part of the course?
Generally, this will be fine.
We ask that you commit a minimum of 45-60 mins a day to the process, so if you're unable to complete a week’s Missions and Exercises, you should be able to catch up.
All calls will be recorded during the course for you to review at any point, and all the materials will be available to you for as long as you need them afterwards.
- Does it put me at a disadvantage to be out of work during the Launch Pad (even if my finances are OK)?
No.
We've had previous participants use the Launch Pad as a great way to take action on their next career move following a period of redundancy, a career break, or taking time out for their families.
It often means you may have more time to devote to the course, which is a good thing!- Does the Launch Pad work for introverts?
Yes.
The course is designed for extroverts and introverts alike. We've taken particular care to craft the Missions and Exercises to work for introverts – both in terms of their effectiveness, and in terms of feeling comfortable and feasible to do.
- How is the Launch Pad different from working with a coach?
In short, you get most of the benefits of working with a coach and a lot more – at a significantly reduced cost.
In particular:
- Rather than relying on the expertise of one coach, you get to work with a minimum of three different coaches, all of whom have their own specialist expertise.
- You have the connections, energy and accountability of a remarkable community around you
- You have the option of 1-on-1 support, just as you would get from working individually with a coach, through our Launch Pad Plus option
- Can I get 1-on-1 support?
Yes, with our Launch Pad Plus option.
This will give you three 45-minute 1-on-1 coaching sessions with one of our expert career coaches that can be used during the course or up to three months afterwards.
You’ll also get unlimited 1-on-1 email support, access to our 'How to build a LinkedIn profile to support your career change' course and a personalised review of your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- How many people will be taking part in the Launch Pad?
For the upcoming course, you can expect to join 20-50 fellow shifters.
- Is there a crossover between the Launch Pad and your online workshop?
The Launch Pad is designed to follow on from the workshops (although our workshops are not a prerequisite for participation).
While our workshops take place over a few hours online, the Launch Pad takes place in the real world and over the course of eight weeks. It’s a much more in-depth, action-oriented experience.
- What are the benefits of Launch Pad Plus?
Our Plus option is for you if you’d like additional, personalised support with your Launch Pad experience.
You’ll get private one-on-one time with one of our coaches, extra tailored support via e-mail (in addition to our community space), access to our 'How to build a LinkedIn profile to support your career change' course and a personalised review of your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- What's the difference between a mission and an exercise?
Missions are activities you will conduct in the outside world, often involving other people; Exercises are reflective exercises you can do at home by yourself.
- Is the Launch Pad just for young people?
No.
We’ve taken participants through the course up into their 50s and 60s, as the same principles for making a successful shift still apply.
- Is the Launch Pad just for corporate professionals?
No.
We've had participants from the creative sector, tech, the charity sector, teaching, administration, healthcare, marketing, back-to-work parents, freelancers, and many more.
What unites them all is that they’re committed to doing what it takes to make a shift into fulfilling work.
- Is the Launch Pad right for me if I am considering starting a business?
Yes.
If you think you might like to start a business or work for yourself in some capacity, yet aren't sure what exactly you might do, then the Launch Pad can help you clarify and firm up your ideas. The Launch Pad will also help you test your ideas in low-risk ways.
If you already have a good idea of the business you would like to launch, and need help with the more technical aspects of getting started, then the Launch Pad wouldn’t be the best fit for you.
- How do the instalments work?
If you choose to pay in instalments, your first instalment will be processed when you decide to join the course and, after this, there will be three further instalments that will be processed every 4 weeks.
Please note the instalment rate is slightly higher than our normal one-payment rate to cater for the additional administration on our side.
- When will your next intake be?
After February 2022, the next intake will be April 2022.
- Do you have something less involved that I can start with?
Yes.
Our workshops are short, powerful ways to learn more about what you want from your next career and the steps to take – and the ideal pre-cursor to our Launch Pad
- Do you have a program for executives / senior leaders?
Yes, we do.
It's called our High Flyers' program. It's by application only and the first step to express interest would be to send a quick email to [email protected].
- Any other questions?
See our Help Center or drop us a line at [email protected].