It takes tremendous courage to follow the career path you believe is right for you. We often succumb to the pressures and expectations of our parents, our spouse, and our peers, and choose careers we know in our hearts don’t fit us. On this week’s episode – “The Magical Reinventions of Janay Smith” – our Guest Mentor provides some real talk on resisting the pressure to conform. As an engineer in corporate America, an attorney at Johnnie Cochran’s law firm, and steward of the largest private sports memorabilia collection in the world, Janay Smith has been a master of career reinvention.

It takes tremendous courage to follow the career path you believe is right for you. We often succumb to the pressures and expectations of our parents, our spouse, and our peers, and choose careers we know in our hearts don’t fit us. On this week’s episode – “The Magical Reinventions of Janay Smith” – our Guest Mentor provides some real talk on resisting the pressure to conform. As an engineer in corporate America, an attorney at Johnnie Cochran’s law firm, and steward of the largest private sports memorabilia collection in the world, Janay Smith has been a master of career reinvention.

Few people I’ve met have walked so boldly on their career path as Daron K. Roberts. Daron is a law school grad who decided he wanted to be a football coach. So after three university degrees and $250,000 in student loans, Daron reinvented himself as an NFL coach. That would be the first of several bold moves in Daron’s incredibly dynamic career as a professor, author, and podcast host. As part of our series “Restarting My Career,” Daron talks about how to confidently walk in your purpose without fear or excuses. On The Breakdown, I provide four practical ways to create opportunities in your career which match your skills, ambition, and purpose.

Our Guest Mentor on this week’s Protégé Podcast is an entrepreneur using technology to bring innovation to a tradition bound industry. Is this a startup CEO in Silicon Valley with a social media venture? An entertainment executive leading a streaming music service? Nope. Meet Chicago-based entrepreneur Darrell Hill, the founder and CEO of Eternity Gardens, an online portal of cremation, memorial, and scattering garden sites for the permanent placement of cremated human remains. As part of our series, “Restarting My Career,” this episode reveals how this husband and father of three decided to launch this innovative venture, and the fascinating insights we can learn from his career journey.

John Berry will help your child become a great athlete and an even better person. As the president of Youth Hoops, John takes the lessons learned from his hardscrabble upbringing in Philly, the analytical skills of a computer engineer, and the focus of an entrepreneurial leader and fuses them into inspirational programs at his basketball camp. As part of our series “Restarting My Career,” we discuss how John walked away from a six-figure job and a thriving career in computer science to follow his entrepreneurial dreams.

John Berry will help your child become a great athlete and an even better person. As the president of Youth Hoops, John takes the lessons learned from his hardscrabble upbringing in Philly, the analytical skills of a computer engineer, and the focus of an entrepreneurial leader and fuses them into inspirational programs at his basketball camp. As part of our series “Restarting My Career,” we discuss how John walked away from a six-figure job and a thriving career in computer science to follow his entrepreneurial dreams.

What do you do when life throws you a curve ball? What do you have to fall back on? What is your career Plan B? On this week’s episode of Protege Podcast, we continue our series “Restarting My Career” featuring TV anchor turned PR guru Desireé Robinson. Desiree shares her journey through the peaks and valleys of her career, and dishes real talk about surviving and thriving no matter what life throws your way.

What do you do when something unexpected happens in your career? As part of our series “Restarting My Career,” we talk with Donna, an Ivy League educated attorney. She was making a seven-figure income at a major New York law firm. Donna had broken the glass ceiling by becoming the firm’s first black woman partner. And then she walked away from it all. Donna shares with Protege Podcast the arduous journey in her early career, and the liberating feeling she now enjoys pondering what’s next for her life. A powerful and provocative conversation about achievement, fortitude and reimagining your career.

How did Donna decide to walk away from it all? What lessons did she learn about ambition, integrity, and defining success on one’s own terms? In Part 2 of our conversation with Donna, we find out why this next phase of her career might be the most important, and how aspiring professionals can flip the script and be true to themselves in their own careers. A thought-provoking conversation with a trailblazing attorney at a personal and career crossroads.