• Have a job, but you are working from home, changing the fabric of your career and your home life.
• Have lost some or all of your work but are confident you will be able to return as the economy re-opens. 
• Are completely out of a job with no prospects of returning to what you used to do.
• Are working harder than you’ve worked in your life because you are an essential worker.
• Are working in an area that grew because of the pandemic (flour producers, delivery services, and puzzle makers to name a few). You are prosperous and struggling to keep up with demand.
• Are a small business owner, gig worker or consultant managing limited cash reserves, trying to gage how long it will take for your line of work to safely recover.
• Are enjoying a much-needed vacation and are using this time to reinvent yourself.

The list goes on.

How do you develop a strategic plan to put yourself in the best possible position? The first step is an understanding of the type of pivot you are making.

There are three levels of emergence:

• The Total Pivot
• The Creative Pivot
• The Prosperous Pivot

You are starting a career in a completely new field. Some of your skills will transfer, but you will have new duties, new products or services and a new identity. You might invest in re-training. This could be a college degree or a certificate program. Either way, you open new doors and start your next chapter.

If you are seeking a traditional full-time job, a total pivot can require you to start at the entry-level. The silver lining here is the speed at which you can learn and advance, using your maturity and work ethic as a spring board. Sometimes a step aside or a step back is the smartest way for you to regain stability.

Another total pivot is self-employment. If you’ve longed to have the flexibility and autonomy that comes with business ownership, this might be perfect for you. Take a look at my blog article on hot stay-at-home jobs to get good ideas.

This pivot is a re-invention. It requires a keen analysis of your current field, function and competition. Here you survey your options and see where the opportunities are. Use foresight to anticipate where future growth is likely to occur.

I can use myself as an example. Up until March 15th 2020 I made my living as an academically trained career development expert with a focus on organizational development. All of my work required face-to-face contact and it evaporated overnight.

It’s not the first time I’ve had to reinvent myself so I knew the steps to take (found in my book Elevate Your Career: Live a Life You’re Truly Proud Of). After much self-reflection, I was able to focus on the part of my career that I enjoyed the most, training other people how to be great career coaches. So, now I plan to open the Career Coach Entrepreneur Academy in Fall 2020. I’m incredibly excited and glad that the universe pulled me out of my groove and gave me a chance to make a change.

The last general category of career emergence requires keen business skills, competitive analysis and forecasting. It is called a Prosperous Pivot. In this circumstance you’ve hit the jackpot! You have a product or service in great demand because of the pandemic. The question facing you is this, how long with this last?

Your pivot is challenging because you are busy. It would be easy to think you don’t have time to worry about the future. Big mistake. Step back and consider your strategy. Determine when demand is likely to fall off and put a plan in place. Be ready. You might consider hiring the best executive coach money can buy. This way you leverage outside expertise when you need it the most.

My last word of advice is to keep a positive, accountable attitude. This will allow you to be resourceful and see the best path forward. You are not alone if anxiety is impacting your ability to think clearly. Ask for help, lean on the people you trust and take advantage of all the resources that can help you make a successful career pivot.