It is not too late to recreate yourself （499 words）

By Mrs Moneypenny

Reinventing yourself in later life has always been possible.

I did not have to look very far for examples when I was writing my careers book, back in 2011: in it I described three women in Scotland who had relaunched themselves into new paid employment, all at the age of 60. One became a lawyer, one a priest and the other a residential lettings specialist.

So the challenge of becoming UK prime minister at 59 should be no problem for Mrs May.

Closer to home, Mr M has reinvented himself twice in recent times — after 25 years in the TV industry he became a wine merchant, and nine years later he moved on to become a professional cricket coach.

So, it is never too late. But regardless of age, how do you know if you should be changing direction?

Here is a checklist:

• Have you for some time been getting up in the morning dreading to going to work?

• Do you feel that you add little to no value in the job you do?

• Do you look at your boss and think that you really do not want their job?

• If you own your own business or work for a start-up, do you look five years into the future and feel ambivalent about what you see?

If the answer to any one of these is “yes” then you should think about doing something else. “A change is as good as a rest” is not simply an overused adage. (Random fact of the week — the phrase was first used as the title of a poem in 1857. People were sick of singular careers even then!)

One thing that almost anyone who has ever changed career direction has done is to retrain. There are lots of reasons to consider doing this and in an age of “blended learning” (some study in person, some over the internet), you can usually do so without leaving your current job.

The first is to see if you actually like doing the job to which you aspire. Interior design might look like an attractive and creative way to spend your time, but try studying it first to find out if you could really devote all yourself fully to textiles and the trade in transcendent taste.

The second reason for retraining is to show people that you are serious, which is crucial if you are going to try and make a lateral move. Even if you already know everything there is to know about wine, passing professional exams shows intent.

The third is to force yourself to give proper time to considering what might be a life-changing move. No decision I have ever made has suffered for being taken over a longer period of time.

So this summer, while you bask in the sunshine and leisure time and maybe reacquaint yourself with your family, consider whether you are really happily employed.

You spend most of your waking hours at work. Is it time to do something new?

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1．Which is not right about the title that three women who had relaunched into new paid employment?

A．lawyer

B．artist

C．priest

D．residential lettings specialist

答案

2．How many times that Mr M has changed his job in recent times?

A．1

B．2

C．4

D．5

答案

3．Which is not right about the checklist?

A．dreading to going to work

B．add little to no value in the job

C．you really want your boss's job

D．feel ambivalent when you look five years into the future

答案

4．Which is not right about the reasons to consider retraining in an age of “blended learning”?

A．consider in five years whether you will like your change

B．if you like doing the job you aspire

C．show people you are serious

D．force yourself to give proper time to think

答案