Advancing Women's Careers in Midlife: an interview with Linda Lautenberg and Judy Schoenberg of EvolveMe

Judy Schoenberg and Linda Lautenberg are co-founders of EvolveMe, a professional growth company providing individual and group coaching for women in midlife career transition using their proven DARE™ method of career reinvention. Their clients call their EvolveMe experience “life-changing” and “the best professional investment” they’ve ever made. 

Linda and Judy each shared that, because of the messages they received about money when they were young, they were determined to be self sufficient right out of college. Linda went to business school and moved to Manhattan to work in finance, not because it was her passion but because that was where the money was. Similarly, Judy got a job and moved out of her parent's home a few months after college graduation.

They each shared their stories of reinvention. Linda took a long career break to raise her children. When her youngest child was getting ready to enter college she panicked; afraid that her absence from the workforce meant that she would never be able to find her way back to working full time. Judy, on the other hand, had a long career in leadership the non-profit sector, and knew that she had another chapter in her as she approached her late 40's. Both found themselves isolated; there didn't seem to be any user's manual or path forward for women reinventing in midlife. 

They met in a program for women that were looking to return to the workforce, specifically in the social impact space. It was out of that program that Evolve Me was born.  Linda and Judy realized that they were both drawn to the same mission: to build a community to help women return to the workforce as well as to help women drawn to career change in midlife.

"We do a lot of work around imposter syndrome and self doubt. And so much of that magic happens in community with other women, because if you can't own your own strengths and you can't own your own accomplishments, other women will see value in you and be able to speak that to you. It's a very powerful experience for many of the women." - Linda Lautenberg and Judy Schoenberg

Key takeaways

- Just because you’re good  at something doesn’t mean that’s what you should do as a career. Linda shared that she received her MBA from Harvard Business School, passed the CFA exam and chose to go into finance in order to earn a living. But though she clearly had the skill set to excel, she wasn’t drawn to work with numbers. 

- Believe that everything can be figured out. Linda learned, from being a stay-at-home mom juggling three kids that had to be 3 different places at the same time, that everything is going to be fine. It gave her the confidence that she’ll be able to figure anything out.

- If you can’t see it, you can’t be it. Judy believes in the importance of sharing the stories of different paths women have taken toward successful transitions. From working with hundreds of women, she recognizes how important it is to hear about other’s roadmaps when we embark on our own journeys.

- It’s important to always be learning new things.The world of work is always changing. Technology is always changing. There are always new skills to develop. Linda and Judy are finding in their new roles that there are endless opportunities to learn and grow, and define success by how much they are learning and growing as people.

About the guests:

Judy Schoenberg and Linda Lautenberg are co-founders of EvolveMe, a professional growth company providing individual and group coaching for women in midlife career transition using their proven DARE™ method of career reinvention. Their clients call their EvolveMe experience “life changing” and “the best professional investment” they’ve ever made. Through EvolveMe@Work, Judy and Linda also provide workshops, programming, and keynote addresses to companies invested in attracting and retaining top female talent. Judy holds a Masters in Education from Harvard University and a is former national executive for Girl Scouts of the USA. Linda earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and holds a Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Her earlier career was in real estate finance at Prudential and Nomura Securities.

Website:- https://evolveme.work

Linkedin:- www.linkedin.com/in/lindalautenberg

                            www.linkedin.com/in/judy-schoenberg

                        www.linkedin.com/company/evolveme-work

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/evolveme.work

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evolveme.work/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/evolveme_work

Email: linda@evolveme.work; judy@evolveme.work

Free resource: Get Going! Guide to Midlife Career Reinvention

Learn more about the next Reinvention Collective, launching late October. 

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Disclaimer: Please remember that the information shared on this podcast does not constitute accounting, legal, tax, investment or financial advice. It’s for informational purposes only. You should seek appropriate professional advice for your specific information.