Career kickstart mid forties

[Moneynoob]

Have ruminated and slept badly all night. Would be great to get some real life advice as my close friend chat gpt has not really been that helpful!

am 45. I have taken side ways and possibly recent a downwards steps due to to absolutely toxic workplaces / horrible bosses (left two organisations to protect mental health.

I now earn what I did almost 10 year ago and have lost my senior edge in terms of external networking.

recently I’ve seen past peers (on LinkedIn) get some huge promotions. I feel jealous and also hard on myself for making bad decisions.

can anyone give any advice please? I work in finance so very conscious of my age being a factor externally , current org nice enough but very land grabby and hard to carve out opportunities to succeed above current role.

thanks all

Lonely bump?

I feel your pain. I am in a similar position in terms of being stuck but have no job atm and have no answers for you. But perhaps you can give a clearer idea of skill set?

Do you like finance? Are there any sideways roles that look appealing? Are there any professional exams you could do?( ideally paid for by your employer)
Or do you want a complete switch?
Think about what's important to you. Money, wfh, work/life balance.
Could you be fulfilled outside work through hobbies or volunteering?

You definitely need the Mature Study and Retraining board, @Moneynoob- innumerable threads by people thinking of or experiencing some sort of re-start:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/mature_students

thank you. Looking at thread is more from career changers which I don’t think is what I want. I guess is tips on how to level up at a later age in life?

Re skill set. From previous, strategy planning which I loved, much more technical/ hand on these days. Seem limited opportunities for even sideways here