The Career Changer’s Dilemma: You want to change careers or start a business but you keep telling yourself you are not qualified or that your current career skills do not demonstrate that you are diversified enough to bring value to a new setting. You already have plenty of skills that you may not realize are very marketable and useful. These are called “transferable skills” or skills that you already have that can be applied in another setting.

1. Mary Lee Gannon
www.StartingOverNow.com
marylee@StartingOverNow.com

2. Mary Lee Gannon
StartingOverNow.com
 Mary Lee Gannon’s mission is to transform as many lives as
possible with strategies that took her from welfare to CEO of
organizations with up to $26 million in assets. She is the president
of StartingOverNow.com – a coaching and consulting firm that
helps people and businesses reinvent to enjoy freedom and
results.
 Her personal turnaround came as a stay-at-home mother, with
four children under seven-years-old, who endured a divorce that
took her and the children from the country club life to public
assistance. She is a graduate of the Duquesne University
Professional Coaching Program and an alumnus of the Harvard
Medical School and McLean Hospital Coaching in Medicine &
Leadership Conference. She has been a chief executive officer of
four separate organizations over the past 16 years.
 Author of “Starting Over – 25 Rules When You’ve Bottomed Out.”
 www.StartingOverNow.com
StartingOverNow.com

3. Transferable Skills That Rock
 The Career Changer’s Dilemma
 Reboot What’s In Your Head
 Reboot What’s On Your Resume
 Reboot Your Skills to Transferable Skills
 Reboot What You Say at Networking Events
 Reboot What You Say on the Interview
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4. The Career Changer’s Dilemma:
You want to change careers but…
 You keep telling yourself you are not qualified for
another career.
 The career skills listed on your resume do not
demonstrate that you are qualified for a position you
seek.
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5. Reboot What’s In Your Head
 Head Trash – I don’t have the skills to do that job!
 “If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a
thing, you're right.” ~ Henry Ford
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6. You believe that you don’t have the
right skills to change careers.
What has that cost you?
 Confidence to apply for “stretch”
jobs.
 Empowerment to acquire and hone
new skills.
 Focus to consider new
opportunities for networking and
job opportunities.
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7. If you DID have the skills to reboot your
career what would you be doing right now?
 Applying for jobs outside
of your comfort zone.
 Working in a field that
challenges and fulfills
you.
 Enjoying purposeful work
and better life balance.
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8. What empowering belief are you telling
yourself in this fulfilled state?
 I can do anything.
 Life is good – I am so grateful
that I made a change.
 I can adjust to new situations
and thrive.
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9. So what do you do with the head trash
that keeps telling you that you “don’t
have the skills to try something new?”
 1.) Define your transferable skills that may be applied
to another job.
 2.) Practice how you describe them in an interview or
networking situation.
 3.) Assure the voice in your head, which is trying to
protect you from failure, that you have the skills
defined above to be an asset to any organization!
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10. Reboot What’s on Your Resume
Tailor every resume, cover letter and application to the
requirements of the job.
 Dates of
Employment
 Responsibilities
 Skills
 Include dates of promotions
and unscheduled raises.
 Include key accomplishments
that apply to the prospective
job.
 Include how you used
transferable skills to accomplish
the company’s mission.
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11. Reboot Your Skills
to Transferable Skills
 Employability Skills
 Skills that you have that can be applied in
another setting
What are “transferable skills?”
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12. Your resume should feature “transferable skills”
and “measurable accomplishments” utilizing
those skills.
 Example: Built a department of 15 direct reports and
within six months was able to increase sales 11%.
 If your skills and knowledge are valuable to only one
employer, you are in trouble. Sooner or later your
employer will no longer be interested in buying
those skills or can get someone new to do them for
less, and you will have no place else to put them to
use.
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13. Transferable Skills Fall into
Three Categories:
 1) Communication
 2) Organization of Information
 3) Operation/Fixing of Systems and
Equipment
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14. Communication
 Speaking effectively
 Writing concisely
 Selling
 Building consensus
 Facilitating group discussion
 Negotiating
 Perceiving nonverbal messages
 Reporting information
 Interviewing
 Editing
 Inspiring and motivating
people to act
 Developing rapport
 Listening
 Providing support for others
 Delegating with respect
 Train others
 Managing conflict - people
 Delegate responsibility
 Evaluate Your Own Work and
that of others
 Handle complaints
 Networking
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15. Organization of Information
 Forecasting and predicting
 Creating ideas
 Identifying problems
 Creating solutions
 Analyzing alternatives
 Identifying resources
 Creating plans
 Defining process
 Setting goals
 Defining needs
 Developing evaluation strategies
 Attend to detail
 Make sound decisions
 Manage a Budget
 Coach
 Manage change
 Attend to written, visual and
auditory detail
 Delegating with respect
 Keep records
 Research
 Meet deadlines
 Crisis management
 Time management
 Ability to think and act
independently
 Create and implement strategy
 Independent learning
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16. Operation/Fixing of Systems
and Equipment
 Install software
 Engineer systems
 Coordinate equipment
interfaces
 Manage a sound system
 Manage a lighting system
 Manage facilities operations –
HVAC, utilities, etc.
 Build things
 Install appliances
 Interface technology
 Engineering
 Compare systems
 Commercial and residential
real estate construction
 Repair equipment /
machinery / appliances /
technology
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17. Mary Lee Gannon
www.StartingOverNow.com
marylee@StartingOverNow.com
Free Offer
Get the FREE eBook:
“The Productivity Gauge – Time Management Strategies”
by sending an email to
marylee@startingovernow.com
StartingOverNow.com

18. How to Determine Your Transferable
Skills and Key Accomplishments
 Start with Your Resume
Skills from Last Job or
Volunteer Work
Transferable
Yes? or No?
How Can That Be Used
in a New Job?
Measurable Key
Accomplishment
Example: Data entry Yes Can enter data for any
employer.
Created new format. Result –
expanded scope of reports
Sales Yes Can sell anything Increased sales 8% the first
year
Managed people Yes Can manage people in any
setting
Managed 8 direct reports and
increased productivity 5% in
the first quarter
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19. Age Bias
“I am older than most people in the work force and certainly than
most people looking for work. How do I stand out?”
 In what areas are you an expert?
 Are you only considering opportunities that mirror your last job?
 What is the demographic of a company that could use your
expertise that might not have confidence in someone much
younger?
 A small privately held company may need the expertise of a
seasoned professional. How do you describe why you are the
best candidate for that position by using your transferable skills
and key accomplishments?
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20. Reboot What’s On Your Resume
 Read the prospective job description and
identify which of your transferable skills apply.
 Tailor your resume and cover letter for each
prospective position you seek.
 Write a Professional Summary that tells which
transferable skills are applicable to the position
you are seeking.
 On your resume under each position you’ve
held list key transferable skills that apply to the
new position.
 Network with individuals in that line of work or
in the prospective company.
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21. Reboot What You Say at
Networking Events
 When people ask, “What do you do?” don’t
say, “I’m unemployed right now.”
 Suggestion: “I’m seeking my next opportunity
to apply my ________________(transferable
skills) to help a company _______________
(key accomplishment) like I did in my last
position.”
 “I’m looking to apply my sales skills to help a
company increase sales 15% or greater as I did
in my last position.”
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22.  Interviewer: “This is a fast paced culture
where people work independently. What
have you done in your last job that prepares
you for that?
 Interviewee: “At my last job I had six bosses
in seven years. I had to organize my time and
set priorities to get the job done to everyone’s
satisfaction. I was promoted and got two
unscheduled raises during my tenure there.”
Reboot What You Say on the Interview
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23.  Interviewer: “So you I see that you haven’t really
ever held a position in finance. How would you
propose to do this position of account clerk?”
 Interviewee: “As a head of household I handle
all of the family money, including savings and
checking, without ever bouncing a check or
failing to pay a bill on time and have done so for
20 years. Additionally, I managed a budget of
$260,000 in my last job and I understand the
issues regarding cost control and productivity
metrics.”
Reboot What You Say on the Interview
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24. Reboot Recap
 Define positive energy regarding your job search. Why might
this be an opportunity? Envision the best thing that could
happen and expect it.
 Redesign your resume highlighting your transferable skills for
every position you seek.
 Highlight in your resume the measurable key accomplishments
you’ve achieved in the areas of each transferable skill.
 Practice what you will say at networking events and on
interviews out loud ahead of time.
 Celebrate your successes!
StartingOverNow.com

25. Mary Lee Gannon
www.StartingOverNow.com
marylee@StartingOverNow.com
Free Offer!
Get the FREE eBook:
“The Productivity Gauge – Time Management Strategies”
by sending an email to
marylee@startingovernow.com
StartingOverNow.com