Last week’s blog generated the most feedback since I started this blog – I received more than a dozen emails and more WhatsApps. It warms my post-corporate heart to hear something I’ve written strikes a chord. The word “resonated” was used in almost every one – good. That’s what I mean to do with these blogs – and the book - resonate with you, use my experience and my empathy to help you see you’re not alone, what you’re feeling is pretty normal and that there is a way out.

I saw the sad news about John Lewis this week and the potential 11,000 redundancies. John Lewis was my first corporate love. As I wrote in my book, I became totally institutionalised working there as a Saturday lad hauling 40” TVs into the back of people’s fancy cars, on the shop floor every holiday and even joining its graduate training scheme after university – I wanted that career. The different staff restaurants depending on your grade, the language, the military routines and standards.

I was asked to join the Leadership Zone podcast this week by its host Sile Walsh. She asked me a good question that, although I cobbled together an answer for the show, got me thinking lots more afterwards:

Why do we find ourselves feeling dissatisfied with our careers in our 40s and 50s?

Lilli is ex-Frog (a Cap Gemini service design agency) and left corporate life to become a climate adaptation specialist. Lilli is passionate about helping people and businesses adapt to the climate crisis and has formed a community of like-minded designers who want to make a difference.

She is a champion of the freelancer and runs IMMA Collective (Impact Makers), a community of freelance designers sharing advice and, very importantly, jobs.

There’s a new episode of the Corporate Escapology podcast (here or here) out this week, with Niall Riddell, founder of Paua – an electric vehicle startup.

I met Niall when I was scouting for startups for the accelerator programme I run. Niall’s corporate background at EDF, SSE and others came up in conversation and we ended up talking about why it can be such a challenge for corporate folks to reinvent themselves as startup founders.

It’s often easier to say what we don’t want, than what we do.

I knew I no longer wanted a routine 9-5 in a corporate. I’d known that for some time. But knowing what I wanted to do instead was much more challenging.

That uncertainty kept me from moving. The pull to a new future, though attractive conceptually, was too vague, too unspecific to give me the necessary confidence to exit.

I know it’s the season of goodwill, but I had one of those moments this week when I thought thank goodness I no longer work in a corporate.

That’s putting it politely.

Yesterday I joined thirty-odd authors at an event organised by my publisher. It was a moment for potential imposter syndrome as most of the authors have books out in the market. Some are even quite famous.

The deadline is fast approaching for the final manuscript of Corporate Escapology – December 11th is looming. I’m literally poring over every word, reading them aloud, trying to hear how I sound (friendly and supportive but like I know what I’m talking about).

I took the day off yesterday – it was my birthday! It’s one before the half century. Maybe it was nearing 50 that made me reflect on whether I’ve become the person I expected to become.

Six special people have been reviewing the draft of Corporate Escapology.

One of them, who I’m going to keep anonymous, is someone who has been going through the formal separation from their company. They’ve shared their feedback quite differently from the others – via whatsapp, largely as streams of consciousness. Long, personal texts that describe how the writing has made them feel. Providing stories and examples that my words and exercises have triggered. And where I fell short in giving them what they needed.

This week I hosted the Demo Day for Shell StartUp Engine UK, the accelerator programme I run.  It was the final act of the programme and huge recognition of the effort and impact of eight incredible startups over the past five months.  I bought a new suit and waltzed about on stage with my startup mates. You can watch us here.

I made a reel this week on Instagram called Five mistakes corporate people make

I didn’t offer antidotes to these mistakes, so I thought I would here, where I feel you’re a bit more patient and prepared to give me more than a nano-second.

When you do something for long enough you start thinking anyone can do it.  You stop valuing the fact that you took time to learn something that others didn’t.  I see it in my wife, an upholsterer, often reluctant to charge the true price for her decades of knowledge and expertise, even though very few people could do what she can do. And almost no-one took the time she invested in learning how.

Last week I shared the Four Forces model, which I think is a really helpful way at looking at what makes you switch to a new solution or stick with what you’ve got.  I wanted to dig into the first of those forces this week, Push – the force that makes us want to break away from our existing solution, e.g. our current corporate job.

Got a heap of lovely comments for the return of Corporate Escapologist – thanks a million.  And it’s been great to reconnect with a bunch of you over email to find out where your journeys have taken you.  I’m looking to speak to some of you for the new Corporate Escapology podcast…more to come.

You know the shot at the end of a film where you think the villain is dead – but they’re not really, leaving the door open for a sequel?

Well I didn’t do that.