Do Over

Do Over Plot Summary

Introduction

Everyone faces career transitions. Whether you're stuck in a job you've outgrown, unexpectedly lost your position, or are contemplating a bold new direction, these moments can feel overwhelming. But what if these transitions weren't something to fear but opportunities to reinvent your work life? The truth is that most of us spend tremendous effort preparing for the beginning of our careers (education) and the end (retirement), while neglecting the crucial forty years in between. We have no career savings account to fall back on when change inevitably comes. Yet with the right investments in four key areas - relationships, skills, character, and hustle - you can transform any career transition into a successful do over that leads to more meaningful, fulfilling work.

Chapter 1: Invest in Relationships That Open Career Doors

Relationships are the foundation of any successful career transformation. As the saying goes, "It's not what you know, but who you know." While this might feel like a cliché, it contains profound truth. Your connections often determine your opportunities, especially when facing career transitions. Consider Nate, who lost his job on a Friday afternoon after eight years with the same company. During that time, he had become cocooned within the organization, failing to cultivate external relationships. When suddenly unemployed, he realized he didn't even know how to use LinkedIn properly. His career savings account was dangerously low on relationships. The relationship deficit affects many professionals. We meticulously save for retirement and our children's college education, but we rarely invest time in building professional relationships that could sustain us through career transitions. Yet relationships are what carry us through unexpected job losses, provide us opportunities when we're stuck, and support us when we take risks. To begin building this crucial part of your career savings account, ask yourself: "Who is one person who could help me with my career do over?" Write their name down. That's just the beginning. You likely know many more people than you realize. Think about former colleagues, industry connections, casual acquaintances, and even online contacts. Each represents a potential "boomerang" - a relationship that may come back around with an opportunity when you least expect it. Remember that casual relationships count tremendously. Brannon Golden, who Jon met just once, edited his first book. Andy Traub, whom he knew mainly via the internet, helped him get back on his feet after his last career transition. These weren't deep friendships, but they proved invaluable during career changes. The key is to throw as many relationship "boomerangs" as possible, maintaining connections even when there's no immediate benefit. The most effective way to strengthen these relationships is simple: share information. If people don't know you need help, they can't help you. Many professionals hesitate to ask for assistance, fearing they'll appear weak or needy. Yet everyone needs support at some point, and being transparent about your situation enables your network to assist you.

Chapter 2: Master Both Visible and Invisible Skills

Skills are the bridge between amateur and expert. While relationships get you the first opportunity, skills get you the second - and every one after that. The challenge is that most people define "skills" too narrowly, focusing only on what appears on resumes or in job descriptions. Everything is a skill. From how you talk to people in the break room to your ability to fix paper jams in the printer, from remembering coworkers' birthdays to keeping your work vehicle clean - these "invisible skills" might seem insignificant, but they compound like interest over time to create extraordinary careers. Jon shares how he spent seven years in the workforce before mastering these invisible skills. When he first started working, he didn't understand basics like showing up consistently, adding value, and owning his attitude. He admits being fired from a position directly because of his attitude - he had developed a sense of entitlement, believing the company should fulfill his career desires rather than vice versa. The most fundamental invisible skill is simply showing up. While this seems embarrassingly obvious, absenteeism remains one of the top reasons people get fired. Show up consistently, on time, and ready to work. Chef Anthony Bourdain once said the best advice he ever received was "Show up on time. It is the basis of everything." Beyond showing up, adding value is critical. Every job has a currency - what matters most to that particular position or company. At Home Depot, Jon's currency was writing compelling advertising copy, delivered on time, that communicated what his boss wanted. Understanding your company's currency helps you focus your efforts on what truly adds value. Your attitude is also a skill you can develop. Making sure you enjoy work isn't your company's job; it's yours. Your attitude is a decision you make every day, sometimes every hour. The most successful professionals own their attitudes rather than letting circumstances determine them. By mastering these invisible skills alongside more obvious technical abilities, you create a powerful combination that makes you invaluable in any workplace. Better employees get paid more, have better opportunities, and ultimately build better careers.

Chapter 3: Develop Character That Withstands Career Chaos

If relationships are who you know and skills are what you do, character is who you are. Character is the mortar that holds your entire career savings account together. It's what gives people confidence in you even when a project fails, and what keeps you grounded when success arrives. Think of character as an orchard. The trees are your character traits that need to be deliberately planted, watered, and tended. The weeds are all the things that threaten to destroy your orchard. And you are the farmer, responsible for both growing good traits and removing harmful ones. The challenge with character is that it takes forever to develop. You don't get apples the first year you plant an orchard. It can take five years before you have enough for a single pie. There's an old saying: "The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now." We don't have access to twenty years ago, but we do have right now. When Jon examined his own career pattern, he discovered something revealing. His typical cycle wasn't just getting hired, enjoying the job for six months, getting bored, getting bitter, and leaving. There was more: after getting bored and bitter, he would almost get fired, plot an epic comeback, make the company fall back in love with him through hard work, and then leave. This pattern revealed his core character issue - chaos. At every job, he created drama of some sort. This pattern continued even after his most recent career transition. After leaving his previous job partly because he traveled too much, he found himself on the road more than ever in his new self-employed venture. It wasn't his previous employer keeping him traveling; it was his own addiction to chaos. Recognizing this pattern gave him awareness to start working on it. To understand your own character patterns, examine your past jobs. Write down the positions you've held, your performance in each role, how you left, and the strength of the relationships you left behind. Look for patterns that might reveal character traits you need to develop or weeds you need to pull. Common workplace character weeds include narcissism (believing you're the only one who matters), dishonesty (from outright lying to gossip to overpromising), pessimism (seeing only the negative), and apathy (not caring about your job). Pull these weeds as quickly as possible to make room for positive traits like generosity, empathy, and presence.

Chapter 4: Cultivate Hustle with Awareness and Flexibility

Hustle is the fuel that powers your career savings account. If relationships are who you know, skills what you do, and character who you are, hustle is how you work. It multiplies everything else in your arsenal, turning potential into results. Contrary to popular belief, hustle isn't just about working harder. It's about being stubborn in the face of fear - what psychologists call "grit." Grit is being brave when you don't feel like being brave. It's choosing to try even when the outcome is uncertain. The challenge is that grit rarely feels heroic in the moment. When Jon launched his last career transition, he and his wife had sleepless nights and 3 AM brainstorming sessions. At one particularly challenging point, he almost started crying in a coffee shop when discussing lost friendships with a former colleague. Grit doesn't feel like bravery because it's not a feeling - it's a choice. Fear hates hustle more than anything else. As long as you're just dreaming about reinventing your career, fear will ignore you. Fear loves daydreamers and can't stand day-doers. The moment you decide to actually work hard, fear attacks with two devastating questions: "What if I don't have what it takes?" and "What if I pick the wrong thing to hustle on and miss my opportunity?" The first question tries to make you doubt your capabilities. The second plays on your fear of missing out. Both questions are designed to paralyze you, keeping you from taking action. The antidote is understanding that fear and regret are not the same thing. Fear is a moment, a tidal wave that's large and loud but temporary. Regret is a small stream that cuts a canyon into your heart slowly over time. To make good decisions in the face of fear, Jon recommends five elements: time (don't rush important choices), counsel (get input from trusted relationships), questions (ask hard questions about opportunities), kindness (give yourself permission to make mistakes), and honesty (acknowledge that you're making decisions with limited information). Hustle also requires awareness of seasons. Not every period in life allows for the same level of intensity. Bob, who emailed Jon about struggling to find time to write while working full-time with a long commute and young family, wasn't lacking effort - he was missing awareness of his season. Some periods are "medical school" seasons requiring intense work, while others prioritize family or other commitments.

Chapter 5: Turn Small Opportunities into Major Career Advancements

One of the most powerful aspects of a well-funded career savings account is the ability to turn small opportunities into major career advancements. This multiplication effect happens when you approach each situation with the right mindset and actions. Two months after Jon's last career transition, a company invited him to speak at Vanderbilt University. They said about sixty people would attend at the campus Barnes & Noble. Jon trudged across campus on a twenty-degree night, only to find just seven people had shown up. The speaking area was in the Starbucks portion of the store, and several patrons looked up in annoyance when he began talking. Despite the small turnout, Jon gave his full effort, hustling through his presentation for those seven people. Later that night, a Vanderbilt professor who happened to be there grading papers emailed him about speaking to her seniors. Jon accepted and soon found himself addressing fifty students. After tweeting about this experience, a Vanderbilt football coach invited him to speak to the team - the same team that had beaten Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida that year. After his talk with the football players, head coach James Franklin tweeted that "Jon Acuff is a beast!" - certainly the first time anyone had used that description for him. Months later, Jon was discussing speaking at Penn State with one of Franklin's assistant coaches. All this came from saying yes to a small opportunity to speak to seven people. The beauty of hustle is that it helps you turn small opportunities into slightly larger ones, which can then lead to even bigger ones. Every "yes" has the potential to grow into something significant. When Jon walked across that cold campus to speak to a handful of people, he couldn't have imagined where it would lead. But he did think, "You know where most authors are right now? At home, having tea." Not Jon - he was on the grind, giving his all regardless of audience size. This principle applies beyond speaking engagements. Misty Jones, at age forty-two, decided to focus on what she loved most: music. She applied to a yearlong music program with Berklee College of Music in Valencia, Spain. When accepted, she quit her stable job in San Antonio, moved to Spain, and immersed herself in learning music production. Her Instagram feed filled with soundboards, concerts, and classrooms as she hustled to make the most of this opportunity. After graduating, Misty secured a full-time faculty position at Kent State as an assistant professor of music. Without hustle, she would have remained stuck in Texas, dreaming about music but never acting. Her story demonstrates that hustle works in two directions: you hustle to create opportunities, then hustle again to maximize them when they appear.

Chapter 6: Build Grit to Power Through Fear and Doubt

Fear is the greatest enemy of career transformation. It doesn't fight alone but brings its equally destructive friend: complacency. Together, they create a deadly cycle that traps most professionals. We fear the unknown, so we grow stuck in the known. When we fight fear and become brave, fear concedes but whispers, "It's going to be really hard, maybe you should be complacent." When we fight complacency and hustle, it concedes but mutters, "It's going to be really scary, maybe you should be afraid." Breaking this cycle requires grit - perseverance in the face of obstacles. But grit isn't just about pushing through; it's about making wise decisions with the right elements. Jon recommends five components for "grit decisions": time (don't rush important choices), counsel (get input from trusted advocates), questions (ask tough questions about opportunities), kindness (give yourself permission to make mistakes), and honesty (acknowledge you're deciding with limited information). Everyone faces a "Grit List" - tasks they dislike but that are critical to their career. For Jon, email falls on this list. He hates that it's never done, that each message feels like a potential failure, and that the organizational aspects overwhelm him. After years of trying to love email through various systems and apps, he finally admitted they hate each other. But he recognized its value - his inbox contains relationships, skills, and opportunities. By putting email on his Grit List and acknowledging both his dislike and its importance, he committed to doing it regardless of how he felt. What belongs on your Grit List? Perhaps dealing with vendors, budget planning, or client presentations? Identify tasks you dislike but that are crucial to your success, recognize their value, and commit to doing them with grit. This approach transforms dread into determination. Flexibility complements grit by allowing you to adapt when circumstances change. Robin O'Bryant spent two years working with a literary agent but couldn't secure a book deal because publishers said her platform wasn't big enough. Initially disappointed, she was eventually persuaded by persistent blog readers to self-publish. For two years, she sold her book from the back of her car at conferences and signings. In September 2013, her self-published book hit the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestseller lists. A month later, she signed a two-book deal with St. Martin's Press. Robin's experience demonstrates the power of flexibility. When the door slammed shut, she decided she "wasn't too proud to hitch up her skirt and crawl through a window." Not every story turns out this way, but every do over avoided because of fear fails 100% of the time.

Chapter 7: Balance Your Career Investments for Maximum Returns

The beauty of the Career Savings Account is that all four investments - relationships, skills, character, and hustle - work together to prepare you for any career transition. Each component enhances the others, creating a powerful synergy that can transform your work life. When Jon left his previous job, within twenty-four hours, one hundred different friends had reached out to him. Within a week, he had a team helping build a new blog, and within a month, he had new writing projects lined up. This happened because for five years, he had been making deliberate deposits into his Career Savings Account. The formula is simple yet powerful: (Relationships + Skills + Character) × Hustle = Career Savings Account. Relationships connect you to opportunities. Skills ensure you excel when given those opportunities. Character helps you maintain integrity through challenges and success. And hustle multiplies everything, turning potential into results. Each investment shines brightest during specific career transitions. When you hit a Career Ceiling and get stuck, skills become the hammer you use to break through. When you experience a Career Bump like job loss, relationships form the safety net that catches you. During a Career Jump when you voluntarily change direction, character provides the foundation that withstands chaos. And when surprise opportunities arise, hustle enables you to make the most of them. Misty's journey to Spain perfectly illustrates this interplay. When she left her job of thirteen years to attend graduate school in a foreign country, she relied on her character to navigate the uncertainty. As she learned to be a studio engineer and design sounds, she developed new skills to break through ceilings. When invited to play at a major electronic music festival in Barcelona, she used hustle to capitalize on the unexpected opportunity. And throughout her journey, relationships - like the friends who dared her to move to Spain - provided crucial support. This balanced approach to career development ensures you're prepared for whatever transition comes your way. Rather than focusing exclusively on one area, invest in all four components of your Career Savings Account. When you do, you'll discover that you're capable of far more than you realized.

Summary

At its core, this guide is about taking control of your career destiny. The author repeatedly emphasizes that "you control more than you think," and that "a better job begins with building a better you." While external factors like economic conditions and company decisions certainly influence our careers, the investments we make in our Career Savings Account determine how well we navigate these forces. The journey to a meaningful career isn't about avoiding transitions but embracing them with the right preparation. By investing in relationships that open doors, mastering both visible and invisible skills, developing character that withstands chaos, and cultivating hustle that capitalizes on opportunities, you create a career that's resilient and fulfilling. As the author powerfully states, "I believe you are capable of far more than you think. I believe this because everyone I've ever met who hustled discovered they were." When faced with your next career transition - whether hitting a ceiling, experiencing a bump, making a jump, or seizing an opportunity - remember those three important words: "Apparently, I can."

About Author

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Jon Acuff

Jon Acuff is the New York Times Bestselling author of eight books, including Soundtracks, Your New Playlist, and the Wall Street Journal #1 bestseller Finish: Give Yourself the Gift of Done.When he’s not writing or recording his popular podcast, All It Takes Is a Goal, Acuff can be found on a stage, as one of INC's Top 100 Leadership Speakers. He's spoken to hundreds of thousands of people at conferences, colleges and companies around the world including FedEx, Nissan, Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, Chick-fil-A, Nokia and Comedy Central. For over 20 years he's also helped some of the biggest brands tell their story, including The Home Depot, Bose, Staples, and the Dave Ramsey Team. Jon lives outside of Nashville, TN with his wife Jenny and two teenage daughters.

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