Customer Reviews

Thinking About Tomorrow: Reinventing Yourself at Midlife

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was a nice book with great stories to provoke one to think about the possibilities at Midlife. While most of the stories were of value, they were stories of those that had a comfortable amount of savings/retirement built up enabling them to make these moves. Certainly, it is desirable to be at that point in ones life where they can afford to stop having a level of income and make the changes that are described in this book.

A worthy set of stories for those who are financially comfortable.

This book is great if you have $10K+ lying around the house and very little imagination about what to do with it. Can't have a baby? Hire a surrogate. Need time to reflect? Go on an absurdly expensive vacation to somewhere exotic. Not happy with you body? Get some elective surgery. Want to find a long lost friend or relative? Hire a private investigator. Feeling the mid-life blues? Buy yourself a $50K sports car. Tired of you old fabulously successful business? Sell it and start a new one. Get the picture?

Susan's heart is in the right place, but this book does not deliver. I'm really not interested in what she and her rich friends do to amuse themselves. And how many times can the woman manage to mention that she dyes her hair?! As if that was daring! It's truly absurd. I think if the book was titled Crazy Stuff my Rich Friends Have Done During Their Mid-life Crisises, then I might have found it amusing. But my expectation was that I would feel inspired, and I'm definitely not. I strongly recommend that you take a pass on this one.

Susan Crandell's Thinking About Tomorrow is essential reading for anyone who has ever thought, "There's gotta be something more." Crandell found 45 real-life heroes--all over 40--who stopped worrying about what other people thought long enough to discover their hearts' desires, and re-engineer their lives.

Some of her heroes are offbeat (a man who found the courage to become a woman, a fitness instructor who turned into a professional Celine Dion impersonator), some predictable (the couple who had a baby in their 50s, the businessman who dropped out to start another business), and some are just plain passionate (like the hair colorist who has turned himself into a true Iron Man). But in each story, Crandell really nails the essence of what makes some of us ripe for reinvention, and how to smooth away the bumps on life's new path. After reading this, I'll never call those turning points anything as dreary as "midlife crises" again.

One of the questions I hear most often from people who dream of a new career is "am I too old to get started?" Susan Crandell's book gives hope to those who dream of starting a new career but wonder if it is too late. What matters more than your age is your ability to do the job and to sell yourself to the people who can hire you. This book offers real life examples of people who have dared to go after their dreams. It gives uplifting advice from a wise author who has been there herself. Read it and be inspired to go after your own dream! Tag Goulet, co-author of Dream Careers: How to Quickly Break Into a Fab Job!

Can't decide which is more memorable: the extraordinary life stories of mid-life re-tooling and re-commitment to life and self (including the author's own), or the author's narrative thread: full of useful data, wise synthesis and uplifting commentary. A must for anyone approaching or just saying good-by to mid-life, however YOU define it.

A very quick and interesting read into reinventing yourself after age 50. A must read for anyone facing the age old question...What do I really want to do when I grow up.

Nicely structured chapters recount stories from the author's life and then related 2-3 page vignettes from her interviewees. The attitude is always positive, even light-hearted, and almost all the tales have a positive ending. I think the intent is to be entertaining as much as useful but there are plenty of useful little insights....but this is definitely not heavy theoretical analysis. Similar approach to the Po Bronson books but the style is lighter here and I felt I was observing interviewees rather than getting really involved with their issues.

If you have decided what you want to do with the next part of your life this book might help tip you into action; if you are unsure what/if you want to change this book offers some positive vibes but it wont give you any great analytical tools.

I now have two favorite books on this topic. The other is Sara Davidson's book, Leap! I thought the resources were especially useful and thoughtful. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking to "design" the next best years of their lives. Pamela D. Blair, Author The Next Fifty Years: A Guide for Women at Mid-Life And Beyond

This book has great stories about people who have questioned and turned around who they are at midlife. There is some good practical advice on how to reinvent yourself, but it is the stories themselves that inspire and get the reader to think about the next chapter(s) in his/her life. The author also offers great resources at the end of the book.

I loved reading this book; it is the only nonfictional work that I have had trouble putting down. I was with my wife shopping after I bought it and looked forward to her going into stores, so that I could continue my reading.