Joy At Work

Money can be one of the biggest reasons we stay in work that no longer fits. But how much of that is financial reality — and how much is financial fear?In this conversation, Lucia Knight talks with Barney Whiter, The Escape Artist, about the beliefs and anxieties that can make staying put feel safer than making a change.Barney explains why status, lifestyle expectations, debt and financial uncertainty can contribute to a “freeze” response — and why getting clear on your actual financial position can help you make better decisions about what comes next.You’ll hear:Why financial anxiety can keep you stuck at workHow status and lifestyle expectations influence career decisionsWhy knowing your numbers matters before making a career changeThe three financial numbers Barney recommends getting clear on: your emergency fund, accessible net worth and spendingHow those numbers can help you understand the runway you actually haveReady to understand what could make work feel better for you?Take the Joy at Work Quiz to discover your Joy Readiness Score, your easiest quick win and the biggest blind spot that may be keeping you stuck.https://lucia-trqb5gnw.scoreapp.comLearn more about Barney Whiter and The Escape Artist:https://theescapeartist.me/about/https://theescapeartist1.substack.com/

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 lifestyleFeeling 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-independentLearn more about Barney Whiter and The Escape Artist:https://theescapeartist.me/about/https://theescapeartist1.substack.com/

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

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 38Structuring your days so rejection doesn’t define your worthMidlife 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

Ever find yourself thinking, “I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up”?You’re not alone — and more importantly, you’re not behind.In this episode, I respond to a heartfelt question from a 43-year-old marketing director who's feeling stuck and unsure about their future. We unravel the pressure-packed question we've all heard since childhood — “What do you want to be when you grow up?” — and offer two far more useful ones instead.You’ll hear:Why we’re still haunted by career expectations that began at age fiveA mindset shift that turns work from obligation to opportunityTwo powerful questions that can reframe your midlife work lifeHow to connect your superpowers with real-world problems that matterA peek inside how we tackle this inside the Fierce Emporium programmeIf your brain has been circling the same old questions for years, this is the episode to help you stop the spiral — and start designing something better.🎥 Watch the video – Do I just need a new job or a new strategy? 👉 Watch now📥 Free download – Five Questions to Ask When You’re Feeling Career Stuck 👉 Download here💬 Join the conversation – You’re not too old, and it’s not too late. 👉 Midlife Unstuck Community InvitationIf this episode sparks something, please share it with someone who's quietly wondering the same thing.