How Do You Reach the Other Side of Change?

We're never taught how to navigate transitions, but that skill is essential to modern life and business.

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RETROSPECTIVELY, IT'S EASY to underR stand which parts of our education have most impacted us. I can't say my college European History 101 class helps me as an entrepreneur, but my seventh-grade typing class continues to serve me well, and the art class I took that same year opened me up to seeing the world in new ways.

But there's one class I never got to take, and it's one I desperately wish had been on offer. I'm talking about education on transitional intelligence. In the past, Americans didn't change jobs much: Half of Americans age 65 and older have stayed with an employer for at least 20 years. Today, the average worker holds 12 jobs throughout their career. Life is far less linear than it used to be, but we have no formal education process to help us navigate the many personal and professional changes we now face. It's as if we've moved from horses to cars but aren't being offered driver's ed.

I say this from experience. In 2007, after more than 20 years of running my boutique hotel company, something shifted. My inspiring calling turned into a dreary job. I'd written my third book, and dreamed more about writing and speaking than I did about being CEO. I'd plow through my day job looking forward to the speech I was giving that night-it felt like I was cheating on my 3,500 employees.