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.

• Why financial runway can give you more freedom to make a career change
• A simple way to think about how much runway you currently have
• Why earning more doesn't necessarily mean having more career options
• How lifestyle inflation can quietly reduce your freedom
• Why your professional “tribe” may influence what you've come to see as a normal lifestyle

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/

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.

• 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.

1. Why midlife job search feels different (and heavier) than early-career moves
2. How a defined runway reduces panic and protects your thinking
3. The power of mindfulness over frantic productivity
4. Creating 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

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:

1. Why we’re still haunted by career expectations that began at age five
2. A mindset shift that turns work from obligation to opportunity
3. Two powerful questions that can reframe your midlife work life
4. How to connect your superpowers with real-world problems that matter
5. A peek inside how we tackle this inside the Fierce Emporium programme

If 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 Invitation

If this episode sparks something, please share it with someone who's quietly wondering the same thing.

Have you ever had that gut-feeling that something’s off at work? You’re good at your job, but it just doesn’t feel good enough? In this episode, I share the one powerful concept that’s helped hundreds of my clients feel more alive, energised, and fulfilled in their careers—superpowers.

Not the comic-book kind, but those unique things you do so effortlessly and joyfully that time disappears.

Together, we’ll explore:

1. What superpowers actually are (and how to spot yours)
2. Three ways to uncover your own hidden brilliance
3. Simple, real-life tweaks to build joy into your workday
4. Why using your superpowers more often leads to promotions, pay rises, and feeling less drained at home

And yes, there’s a free tool to help you begin.

📥 Download the Superpower Starter Worksheet

👉 https://midlifeunstuck.activehosted.com/f/17

Let’s design a workday (and a work life) that actually feels like you.

When your new boss is 20 years younger than you (and possibly owns trainers your teenager wants), the emotional whiplash is real.

In this episode, I respond to a listener who's just landed under the leadership of someone they could have taught to drive. I share seven very practical, very real strategies for navigating this shift—without bitterness, without sarcasm, and with all the self-possession you've built up over decades.

This isn't about sucking up or staying silent. It's about dignity, relevance, and choosing to lead in a new way. Whether you're simmering with frustration or simply unsure how to proceed, this one's for you.

You’re not too old, and it’s not too late.

Join the Midlife Unstuck Community → https://midlifeunstuck.activehosted.com/f/3

1. 7 Dignified Strategies for Working with a Baby Boss
2. Case Study Series on Midlife Career Redesign

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.

1. The difference between chasing balance and creating work-life flow
2. Why “everything is an experiment” removes the fear of getting it wrong
3. The kind of appreciation that makes work deeply satisfying
4. What it feels like when work aligns with your Superpowers
5. How 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

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