Originally Posted by fashionista7

Thanks everyone for your kind words! I am very scared of making such a big career change- not only because of the lower salary, but because I've been at my current company soo long I'm comfortable there. I'm scared of being in a new office, being the "new girl", starting over at the bottom, scared I won't like the new job or maybe I'll suck at it... but thankfully my husband is super supportive and wants me to do something I enjoy. Jayne- you said you're in school to become a copywriter- are you at a college? what classes are you taking? what is a portfolio school? I really want to get a full-time job, not freelance, I need to have a steady, secure paycheck..

I have a bachelor degree in advertising, but a portfolio school is a usually two year program that helps you create a portfoilio that will get you a job. I attend Miami Ad School (Minneapolis location, they have locations all over the world), there is also Chicago Portfolio School, VCU Adcenter(Richmond), and Creative Circus (Atlanta). It is a lot of commitment, but a portfolio is all you need to get a job as a copywriter. They don't really care about degrees. At my school there are people of all ages, many who came from very different fields of work. A portfolio school isn't absolutely necessary to become a copywriter, but is necessary to get into the bigger and better agencies. You can always make a portfolio of your own by making 5 or so campaigns for clients. If you are interested, you should read a book called "Hey Whipple Squeeze This". It should help you with your portfolio.

Aww you guys are all so sweet! Thanks Pursegrrl, Crystalina and RWolfeOH for sharing your stories with me. I'm so happy to hear your success stories- that you have started a completely new career and were glad you did so. I'm trying to put a little $ away for savings so the pay drop won't be too bad. I'm a firm believer that doing a job you enjoy and that gives you satisfaction is much more important than making a ton of money.

Jayne thanks for the advice- I'll see if there are any portfolio schools around Boston and I'll check out that book

Good luck - I envy you ! It takes courage and determination to do it and you did it - good for you. Good thing that your hubby is supportive - it's very important!

I really admire all the girls whom chases their dream - I would love to be like you.

I'll be 38 in a few months and I feel like I've missed ''the train''

Maybe one day...in this life...

[QUOTE][Thanks everyone for your kind words! I am very scared of making such a big career change- not only because of the lower salary, but because I've been at my current company soo long I'm comfortable there. I'm scared of being in a new office, being the "new girl", starting over at the bottom, scared I won't like the new job or maybe I'll suck at it... but thankfully my husband is super supportive and wants me to do something I enjoy./QUOTE]

I relate to this 100%. I was with a financial institution for 12 years and was consistently promoted without ever going through an interview process so was terrified when I was considering leaving. I had no idea what to expect in an interview but I did a lot of reasearch on the internet and spoke to my HR rep at the FI, who I was friendly with, and prepared myself as much as I possibly could.

Leaving the FI 4 years ago was a great move and I do not regret it for one moment.

Best of luck to you.

ITA, it's not too late. You should do what YOU want to do. Would you rather be unhappy in a career field for the next 35 years (if retirement is at 65)? or take the viewpoint of "short term pains, long term gains" now to pursue what you really want to do?

As other posters have said, the immediate pay reduction now is typically overcome as you gain experience.

Good luck!

Know that in life, you have choices. Choices empower us. You have the choice to make a change in your life!

I worked in editorial publishing for many years and I loved it. Like any job, it takes about 4 months to get into the "swing" of things, getting all the procedural rules and the office etiquette/politics. I find that the comraderie among assistants in publishing fields are very close, because they need to help each other daily to prepare for meetings, reports, scheduling. Each assistant works with their own set of authors (with editors), so there is no competition to speak of, unless there's a nutcase on board.

You'll do fine... 30 is not too late, it's still a great opportunity and you'll have a good time. Most assistants are young in publishing because there is a lot of turnover at times, but companies NEED someone to stay.... just a piece of advice, if you want to get promoted, do your job well enough but not too well that you cannot be replaced.... if you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.

I left at age 35 to be a SAHM... I'm 43 now, and am considering re-entering publishing sometime in the future. Not sure what my chances are at 43+, but my background is pretty solid.

Last night I met the husband of the VP I report to at my new job at a company BBQ last night. He was a manager at a well known Seattle-based company around here but realized he really wanted to be a...kindergarten teacher! So he went back to school as a 40-something to get his masters in teaching and couldn't be happier.

Originally Posted by Pursegrrl

Last night I met the husband of the VP I report to at my new job at a company BBQ last night. He was a manager at a well known Seattle-based company around here but realized he really wanted to be a...kindergarten teacher! So he went back to school as a 40-something to get his masters in teaching and couldn't be happier.

That's awesome! What an inspiring story. Well I've applied for a few jobs in the past week so cross your fingers And I'm looking every day on Monster, craigslist (which has some interesting stuff you won't find on Monster) and hot jobs, and I also just found out about this great networking site Linkedin.com. I linked up to a bunch of people I've worked with over the years, some of them have made it as high as VPs in my company, so that should be some good references! You guys should check it out if you haven't already.

Changing careers at 30 or staying with a job you're not in love with because of finances both require strength and maturity. Wishing you the best of luck!!!

I am 34, with 14 yrs of Mid Mgmt executive experience. Took too long to realise inclination towards networking. With the best wife, two cute kids and a not too bad paying job in the third world country (as people choose to categorise my country). Such an ideality, yet all of it against my passion at the moment. Entering this post after a period of 4 years does actually adds nothing to some1 specific in general, but makes me feel like having emptied my mind into the galaxy.
Well...thanks.

Congrats on taking a WONDERFUL positive step. 30 ISN'T too late at allllllll for a career change. When you think about it, you have 30 MORE working years ahead of you so a change at 30 is fine! :) Besides you probably feel it's "old" because you've worked for so long.

Write a lot, get a lot of good writing samples complied up and TAKE that $30,000 job while doing freelance writing! Freelancers can sometimes make sooooo much more. You'll be surprised how most people just do freelance because it's so lucrative (they have to be good at what they do of course).

this thread is 4 years old....

Lol!!!!

Originally Posted by CobaltBlu

this thread is 4 years old....

Haha. I guess we can safely assume the OP has made her career change.....

Just a thought: You need to just do it despite of the pay! You don't want to live your life till your 40 and realize that you could have done something you've been wanting to do yet couldn't get the courage to do it. If it's just you and your DH with no kids, this is the time to make the leap of faith! Best of luck!