Take the Leap

Change Your Career, Change Your Life

By: Sara Bliss

Narrated by: Will Blagrove, Ramón De Ocampo, Janina Edwards, Cynthia Farrel

Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Take the Leap is a road map for pursuing your true passion.

Sara Bliss (yes, that’s her real name) tracked down more than 65 people who transformed their lives to learn how they did it so you can, too.

Sell your screenplay. Code your way to a career. Make the ocean your office. Get paid to talk sports. Launch a brand in your kitchen. Move to paradise and take your job with you. Live off the land. Build a legacy.

Take the Leap is packed with inspiring profiles, quotes, and other pieces of creative advice from game changers, rule breakers, and side hustlers, including successful entrepreneurs like Barbara Corcoran, Bobbi Brown, writer turned actress (at 40) Jill Kargman, Black Crowes drummer turned sports radio host Steve Gorman, writer Simon Doonan, and NFL player turned artist/activist Aaron Maybin, and many more.

This is a career guide for today’s ever-changing job market. Thinking about your own next chapter? Take the leap.

©2018 Sara Bliss (P)2018 Simon & Schuster

Good but something missing

The stories are good and how people transition from their job to their passion, just didn’t connect with me

Inspiring stories

Taking the leap is something many people dream of in their lives.
Some make it happen.
Get inspired by real life stories

Getting Unstuck

Instead of a boring step-by-step plan for switching careers, author Sara Bliss shares real-life stories of people who extricated themselves from a variety of professions they didn't enjoy to pursue others closer their hearts. I was drawn to this book because I'm considering career change myself but I struggle with the prospect the of leaving an established career -- one that financially supports both myself and my daughter -- only to start all over again. These stories provided a much needed shot in the arm to keep going. Sometimes just hearing that something can actually can be done is exactly what's needed to propel you forward. The profiles in the book, however, are inconsistent. There were some I didn't think belonged in the book at all because some career changes seemed more like subtle adjustments: a young adult in an entry level position who then moved to a higher position in the same industry. Others left high-paying positions (that no doubt allowed them to save a good deal of money) and were easily able to take the time off they needed to ponder their lives, to pursue additional training, or bankroll a new venture. While It's always nice to see people finally doing what they love no matter what strata of society they come from, to those of us with less in the way of financial safety nets, these stories can actually hinder us from believing we can "take the leap." Nonetheless, though I personally couldn't relate to the all of the examples, I do want to reiterate that there were enough stories I *could* relate to that made listening to the book more than worthwhile. I suspect most people will find at least a few anecdotes or tips they will find useful. Whether we start with money or not, we could all use reminders now and again that our dreams are possible. Let's hope so anyway.

Fluff, fluff, and more fluff

I thought I was going to listen to a book about getting out of a corporate job. It was mostly pie-in-the-sky idealism… but well-researched.

Hated this book

All I heard were people who already had money, high-paying careers, big-time connections, or lived in some big city. There were only a few that were super poor, and didn't know anyone who could help them get to their dreams. Those are the stories I'm fascinated with. I want to hear about how those people struggled and discovered how to make their lives better. Not someone who practically had all the right things handed to them. I didn't even make it all the way through. Had to return this one.