Joy At Work

Lucia Knight

The Joy at Work podcast offers time-poor professionals in their 40s, 50s and 60s ideas on how to increase their joy at work. Lucia Knight dives right to the heart of the value each guest offers so that you can make deliberate change to bring more enjoyment, satisfaction and fulfillment to your work. Beyond expert interviews, you'll get practical reflections following guest interviews, recommends on experiments to try this week and answers to call-in career questions from listeners.

  1. 3d ago

    Can You Afford to Change Careers?

    Wanting to change careers is one thing. Having enough financial breathing room to make that change is another. Barney Whiter — aka The Escape Artist — joins Lucia Knight to explore the idea of financial runway: the amount of time and choice your finances give you if you want to step back, change direction, retrain or temporarily earn less. But your runway isn't determined by your salary alone. How much you've accumulated matters, and so does how much your life costs to maintain. As Barney puts it, “lifestyle inflation is the enemy of career change.” And sometimes, the more successful you've become, the harder that can be to see. What You'll Take AwayWhy financial runway can give you more freedom to make a career changeA simple way to think about how much runway you currently haveWhy earning more doesn't necessarily mean having more career optionsHow lifestyle inflation can quietly reduce your freedomWhy your professional “tribe” may influence what you've come to see as a normal lifestyle Feeling stuck but not sure where to start?Career change doesn't have to begin with knowing exactly what comes next. Sometimes the first step is understanding what's keeping you stuck now. Take Lucia's Joy at Work Quiz (https://lucia-trqb5gnw.scoreapp.com) to discover your Joy at Work potential score, where you may have the easiest opportunity to make a change, and the blind spot that could be getting in your way. Resources: Read Lucia's original article about Barney's career change - https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/jam-makers-1/2019/3/4/barney-whiter-the-escape-artist-accountant-to-financially-independent Learn more about Barney and The Escape Artist - https://theescapeartist.me/about/

    Can You Afford to Change Careers?
  2. Sep 2

    Designing Work You Could Do Forever

    What if you didn’t wait until work got really bad before you started changing it? Lucia Knight is back for Season 4 of Joy at Work with the same philosophy that has always been at the heart of the show: small changes made sooner can make work—and life—a whole lot lighter. With more than 120 conversations to explore, Joy at Work tackles the things that can make work harder when life gets complicated, shares real stories from people who have deliberately redesigned their working lives, and explores alternative ways of working that challenge the idea that we all have to follow the same career path until retirement. If you’ve been wondering:How do I make work fit better without changing everything overnight?What happens when divorce, grief, aging parents, health or other parts of life start affecting work?Is it actually possible to design a different way of working in midlife?What if I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up?How have other people created more joy at work without the Cinderella career-change story? Season 4 will keep exploring those questions, including the psychology of money and work-life changes, identity after leaving corporate life, the physical impact of desk-based work, divorce and work performance, and more tiny conversations with people who have deliberately designed their work lives to suit them better. Because you don’t need to have the whole future figured out. Sometimes you just need to know where to start. Ready to find your starting point? Take the Joy at Work Quiz to discover your Joy at Work potential score, the easiest place to make some tweaks, and the blind spot that may be getting in your way. - https://lucia-trqb5gnw.scoreapp.com/ Have a question for Lucia? Is there something about work, career change or midlife stuckness you’d love Lucia to explore? Submit your question here: https://midlifeunstuck.activehosted.com/f/38

    Designing Work You Could Do Forever
  3. Mar 25

    The Midlife Job Hunt: Finding Your North Star at 48

    Searching for a new role is rarely joyful. Add children, mortgages, relocation, and a 25-year career in one industry… and suddenly midlife stuckness feels very real. When Dom Salomoni found himself job hunting for the first time in decades at 48, he didn’t spiral into panic-mode hustle. Instead, he designed a six-month runway. He invested in mindfulness. He redefined success for this stage of life. And he built what he calls his North Star — a clear, non-negotiable definition of what work needed to give him now. This conversation explores what midlife professionals rarely say out loud: The fear. The ego wobble. The identity shift. The quiet recalibration. Lucia Knight unpacks the emotional and practical strategies that helped Dom stay steady — and why midlife job search isn’t just about getting hired. It’s about designing work that matters. What This ExploresWhy midlife job search feels different (and heavier) than early-career movesHow a defined runway reduces panic and protects your thinkingThe power of mindfulness over frantic productivityCreating a North Star that reflects who you are now — not who you were at 38 Structuring your days so rejection doesn’t define your worth Midlife job search often arrives quietly — through redundancy, relocation, or simply the realization that your work no longer fits. If this conversation resonates, share it with someone navigating their own stuckness. You never know who might need a steadier way forward. And if you're ready to design work that truly fits this season of your life, you can learn more about working with me here: https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/work-with-me

    The Midlife Job Hunt: Finding Your North Star at 48
  4. Feb 25

    3 Lessons on Work-Life Flow: Former Client Chris on Designing Work That Gives You Tingles

    What if the goal isn’t balance… but flow? Five years ago, Chris joined the pilot of Lucia Knight’s work-life redesign programme. He wasn’t in crisis. He wasn’t burned out beyond repair. But something felt off. And instead of ignoring that stuckness, he chose to investigate it. Today, he shares the three insights he never wants to forget about his future work life. They’re simple. They’re powerful. And they’re the kind of truths that change how you design everything — from your diary to your relationships to the way you define success. This is a conversation about experimentation, clarity, appreciation, and that unmistakable full-body “tingle” you feel when work finally fits. What You’ll Sit WithThe difference between chasing balance and creating work-life flowWhy “everything is an experiment” removes the fear of getting it wrongThe kind of appreciation that makes work deeply satisfyingWhat it feels like when work aligns with your SuperpowersHow small experiments can quietly dismantle stuckness If this conversation resonates with someone who’s quietly questioning their version of success — someone who’s successful on paper but sensing a deeper misalignment — consider sharing it with them. And if you’re ready to design work that matters, you can explore the ways to work with Lucia here: https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/work-with-me Learn more about Chris's work here: www.brightrisephotography.co.uk

    3 Lessons on Work-Life Flow: Former Client Chris on Designing Work That Gives You Tingles
  5. Feb 18

    What Work Feels Like After You Redesign It: Gill’s Story

    In this episode of the Joy at Work Podcast, I sit down with former client Gill Kirk to capture the three timeless lessons she’s taking into the next chapter of her work life. These aren’t generic career tips—they’re deep truths discovered through months of intentional redesign. Gill shares what it means to lead with deliberate curiosity, how she gently but powerfully challenges outdated work processes, and why carving out quiet space is now non-negotiable in her career. It’s honest, human, and full of insight for anyone considering what really matters in how they work. Whether you're at a crossroads, already in transition, or just craving more joy in your work life, this conversation offers clarity, warmth, and a bit of gentle provocation. Learn how you can work with me: 👉 https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/work-with-me Catch Other Stories of Midlife Career Redesign: Designing A Work Life That Fits: Silvia's Story - https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/podcast-episodes/career-redesign-midlife-lessons-silvia When You Stop Editing Yourself, Your Work Changes: Deirdre's Story - https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/podcast-episodes/career-redesign-midlife-lessons-deirdre From Stuck to Energised: Lara’s Story - https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/podcast-episodes/career-redesign-midlife-lessons-lara Escaping Boredom and Finding Your Superpowers: Scott’s Story - https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/podcast-episodes/scott-midlife-career-redesign

    What Work Feels Like After You Redesign It: Gill’s Story

About

The Joy at Work podcast offers time-poor professionals in their 40s, 50s and 60s ideas on how to increase their joy at work. Lucia Knight dives right to the heart of the value each guest offers so that you can make deliberate change to bring more enjoyment, satisfaction and fulfillment to your work. Beyond expert interviews, you'll get practical reflections following guest interviews, recommends on experiments to try this week and answers to call-in career questions from listeners.

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