What do you do if you're a late career professional in Creative Strategy and not ready to retire?

Para o profissional em fim de carreira em Estratégia Criativa que não está pronto para se aposentar, transformar-se em um mentor ou consultor pode ser como se tornar um farol, guiando navios mais jovens pelas águas traiçoeiras da criatividade e inovação. Compartilhe sua vasta experiência e insights acumulados, ajudando a moldar a próxima geração de pensadores criativos. Considere a possibilidade de dar aulas ou workshops, onde você pode inspirar e ser inspirado pela energia e ideias frescas dos participantes. Explore projetos de paixão ou colabore em iniciativas que sempre teve curiosidade, mas nunca tempo para se dedicar.

Mentorship can be amazingly rewarding. Handing down information that you wish you'd had when you were less experienced is priceless. The passing on of information is what building a legacy is all about. A few hours a week is all that is needed.

Mentoring, teaching and coaching roles are a natural transition for many of those who have put in more than the requisite 10,000 hours to be considered experts in the creative strategy field. This means making essential shifts and learning new ways of working, Coaching, for example, requires skillsets and conversation styles different from leading creative teams. Then there's technology: how do you maximize the digital platforms for maximum effectivity? Creative strategy needs reflect current trends and cultural nuances, staying updated on language, trends and emerging consumer behaviors is also key. Expertise in creative strategy is more valuable than ever. It's simply a matter of repackaging for relevance and impact.

No matter what stage in your career you are, continual learning is essential to keeping the fire alive in your creative journey. Books, videos and other desk-related learning are great, but I feel that learning from others is the best way to absorb more than the instructions to do something. You get the passion and experience.

In addition to personal gain, personal projects are a great way to rebrand, and help employers look at you in a new light. Writing a book (even a self-published one), creating a podcast, producing a film, or helping a friend launch their business are all new skills you can now offer clients. They can tide over employment gaps, and may even become successful/profitable endeavors on their own.