Life Transitions: Finding Your "What's Next"

By Margaret Nelson, Member, Impact 100 Garden State

I’m always reading about people who left soulless corporate jobs with fancy titles to open a bakery or run a triathlon or become a watercolor artist or whatever. They tell mostly the same story: Do what you’re passionate about and the money will follow. The truth is, leaving an established career to pursue a passion is hard for many reasons and most people never do it. Not long ago, I found myself at a crossroads in my professional life.​

Rather than stressing about how I was going to help myself, I decided to help others. It led to my own “What’s Next”. Taking the next step One of my passions is helping children. I’ve long had a soft spot for kids born to poverty or ugly family situations, kids that statistically don’t stand a chance. My father was a product of the New York foster care system of the ‘40s and ‘50s. He was lucky. He went on to lead a successful, happy life with his own family until he left us, far too soon. Years ago, I wanted children, in part as a way of honoring my father’s commitment to family, but as it happens sometimes, life got in the way. Instead, I’ve spent my career helping to build small pharmaceutical businesses. I’ve loved my colleagues, made lifelong friends, traveled frequently, felt like I was making a difference, and was for the most part happy with my career. Until I wasn’t.

My industry was evolving. The new owners of my company made some big changes. I kept it up for a little while, but I had become restless and burned out. Then, in 2019, my mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I decided to quit my job because I wanted to spend as much time with her as I could and help to take care of her with my siblings, as a family. Seven months later, my mother was gone and the estate was settled. I felt adrift, unsure of the future, and sad. Gradually, though, I focused on what had always been important to me: giving back. I started asking around for a worthwhile organization that could use my experience and energy. A former client of mine told me about a non-profit called Health Access Connect (HAC), which connects remote Ugandans with their healthcare providers. I jumped right in and helped where I could. Because that experience was so rewarding, I began looking for something closer, not only geographically but to my heart. That’s when a friend told me about Impact 100 Garden State a women’s giving circle. The concept is simple: Each member donates $1,000 and the donations are combined into $100,000 grants that have a transformational impact.

New opportunities

One grant recipient, Roots and Wings, which boosts foster care kids leaving the system into successful adulthoods, touched me, because of my father’s experience. I now volunteer for them in addition to HAC and Impact 100 Garden State. For the first time, I feel like I’m doing what I care about instead of what’s expected of me. I came to believe that something powerful happens when we’re on the court playing instead of sitting in the bleachers, watching, wishing, and regretting. Instead of focusing on self, I was focusing on being in service to others. And good opportunities have come my way as a result. An old colleague reached out about consulting for a struggling pharma startup. That led to another job at a boutique pharma company, where I am happy and working on my terms for the first time in my career. I love my volunteer work. I’m in service to others. Taking the time to volunteer has helped me realize I’m open to what the universe is willing to give me. I’m thankful every day for what it provides and sometimes, for what it doesn’t.

If you see a little of yourself in my story, a great place to start is https://impact100gardenstate.org/​. I guarantee getting out there on the court and interacting with this great organization will create new friends and positive pathways in your life. For more information about Impact 100 Garden State, join us at an upcoming event or contact [email protected].