Your Life Résumé: You’re More Qualified Than You Think

When we think about making a career shift or starting something new in midlife, the first fear that often pops up is: “I’m not qualified enough.” But that’s not true. You’re just looking at the wrong résumé. Most traditional résumés focus on job titles, degrees, and dates. But your life résumé? It’s built from the real stuff: resilience, reinvention, adaptability, emotional intelligence, leadership, and grit. These are the qualifications that matter now more than ever. And you already have them.

The Myth of the “Perfect” Background

If you’ve ever told yourself:

• “I don’t have the right credentials.”

• “I’ve been out of the workforce too long.”

• “That career wasn’t linear.”

• “My experience doesn’t count…”

Take a deep breath. And let it go. The world is shifting. Skills are transferable. Passion is valuable. And your lived experience? It is expertise.

What Counts in Your Life Résumé

Let’s flip the script. Instead of what’s missing, let’s focus on what’s there:

Problem-Solving: Every time you navigated a family crisis, a tight budget, or a business challenge, you used executive-level skills.

Relationship Management: You’ve led teams, raised children, handled complex conversations, built partnerships.

Goal-Oriented Thinking: You’ve planned events, run households, managed schedules, and made hard decisions under pressure.

Lifelong Learning: Even if you're learning wasn’t in a classroom, you’ve been growing through books, podcasts, mentors, mistakes, and experience.

Emotional Intelligence: You know how to read a room, comfort a friend, lead with empathy, and make wise, intuitive decisions.

Now tell me—who wouldn’t want to hire, collaborate with, or invest in someone with that résumé?

Reframing Your Skills for What’s Next

Whether you’re pivoting into entrepreneurship, freelancing, consulting, or re-entering a new career path, your job is to:

1. Identify your transferable strengths

2. Tell your story with clarity and confidence

3. Lead with your why and lived wisdom

This week, we’ll take inventory, and I promise, you’ll be surprised by how qualified you already are. You are already enough: Stop waiting for permission; Stop waiting for another degree; Stop minimizing what you’ve done. You are not “behind.” You are arriving—with perspective, purpose, and power. Your life résumé is not a fallback. It’s your foundation.

Next Week: The Passion Audit — What Truly Lights You Up?

Before we decide what to pursue, we’ll explore the spark—what excites you, energizes you, and points the way forward.

Week 3 Reflection Worksheet

Your Life Résumé: You’re More Qualified Than You Think

Name: ________________________

Date: _________________________

1. Transferable Strengths Inventory

List 3 moments you’re proud of—professional, personal, or otherwise.

What strengths did those moments reveal?

2. Hidden Skills Check

Which of these have you used in the past 5 years? (Check all that apply)

• Problem-solving

• Budgeting

• Coaching or mentoring

• Conflict resolution

• Event planning

• Project management

• Emotional support

• Decision-making under stress

• Strategic thinking

• Learning new tech/tools

What do these say about you?

3. Confidence Boost

What do people come to you for advice or help with?

If a friend listed your top 3 gifts, what would they be?

4. Rewrite Your Résumé Story

Complete this sentence:

“I bring _______________, _______________, and _______________ to any path I choose next.”

Affirmation: “My experience is enough. My story is valid. My skills are valuable. I am ready.”