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Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One Hardcover – September 6, 2016
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If you've got the perfect job or business, congratulations. But if you are even a little bit uncertain that your current gig is the right one, it is time to start thinking about your next move. In the new world of work, it's the only move that matters.
What's next? is a question we all have to ask and answer more frequently in an economy where the average job tenure is only four years, roles change constantly even within that time, and smart, motivated people find themselves hitting professional plateaus. But how do you evaluate options and move forward without getting stuck? Jenny Blake's solution: It's about small steps, not big leaps—and the answer is already right under your feet. This book will teach you how to pivot from a base of your existing strengths.
Pivoting is a crucial strategy for Silicon Valley tech companies and startups. Jenny Blake—a former training and career development specialist at Google who now runs her own company as a career and business consultant and speaker—shows how pivoting can also be a successful strategy for individuals looking to make changes in their work lives, whether within their role, organization or business, or setting their sights on bigger shifts.
When you pivot, you double down on your existing strengths and interests to move in a new, related direction, instead of looking so far outside of yourself for answers that you skip over your hard-won expertise and experience. It empowers you to navigate changes with flexibility and strength—now and throughout your entire career.
Much like the lean business principles that took Silicon Valley by storm, pivoting is the crucial skill you need to stay agile, whether or not you are actively looking for a new position.
No matter your age, industry, or bank account balance, Jenny's advice will help you move forward strategically. Her Pivot Method will teach you how to:
· Double down on existing strengths, interests, and experiences. Identify what is working best and where you want to end up, then start to bridge the gap between two.
· Scan for opportunities and identify new skills without falling prey to analysis paralysis or compare and despair. Explore options by leveraging the network and experience you already have.
· Run small experiments to determine next steps. Do side projects to test ideas for your next move, taking the pressure off having the entire answer up front.
· Take smart risks to launch with confidence in a new direction. Set benchmarks to decide when the time is right to go all-in on your new direction.
Pivot also includes valuable insight for leaders who want to have more frequent career conversations with their teams to help talented people pivot within their roles and the broader organization.
No matter your current position, one thing is clear: your career success and satisfaction depends on your ability to determine your next best move. If change is the only constant, let's get better at it.
- Print length288 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherPortfolio
- Publication dateSeptember 6, 2016
- Dimensions6.25 x 1.08 x 9.25 inches
- ISBN-101591848202
- ISBN-13978-1591848202
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
—Cal Newport, author of Deep Work
"If you don't manage your career, who will? Jenny Blake is here to remind us that we live in a different time, and the possibilities are endless—as long as we're willing to pivot."
—Seth Godin, author of What To Do When It's Your Turn
"If you should trust anyone in the career space about the way to thrive in the new world of work, it is Jenny Blake. Pivot is packed with practical, actionable and repeatable ways to remain relevant and highly employable. Jenny shares her signature killer tools and processes for the benefit of us all."
—Pamela Slim, author of Body of Work and Escape from Cubicle Nation
"To pivot well is the difference between millions and failure. Former Googler and entrepreneur Jenny Blake (one of my favorite human beings) dissects the pivot, how to do it, and how to do it right.”
—James Altucher, author of Choose Yourself and Choose Yourself Guide to Wealth
"It's not a matter of if you'll need to pivot your career, it's a matter of when. Let Jenny Blake show you how with this wildly practical guide to the career changes headed your way."
—Jon Acuff, author of Do Over
"Changing jobs or careers can be daunting. Pivot is an invaluable guide for planning and succeeding in your next professional reinvention."
—Dorie Clark, author of Reinventing You and Stand Out, and adjunct professor at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business
“Feeling stuck? It's time to try something new. All that stands between you and your next adventure is a bit of strategy, planning, and preparation. If a change is in your future, Pivot is your guide.”
—Josh Kaufman, bestselling author of The Personal MBA and The First 20 Hours
"Pivot is a book you will turn to again and again, whether you're seeking a new career direction, a second career after retirement, or just on the lookout for new ways to use your talents. Jenny Blake takes a strength-based approach to managing the risk that comes with making a change and provides tons of helpful examples and exercises.”
—Daniel H. Pink, author of To Sell is Human and Drive
"Non-traditional career journeys are not only the new normal; they're how innovators throughout history changed their world and ours. With actionable insights and lucid prose, Jenny Blake illuminates the path to building your own destiny."
—Shane Snow, bestselling author of Smartcuts and co-founder of Contently
"Wondering what your next move is? Read this book! Jenny Blake is one of the wisest and freshest voices on the subject of career development, and this is her best work yet. In Pivot, you will hear the good news: that you can get paid to do what you love. It may not look like what you thought, and it may require some personal growth, but you can find the work you were meant to do. You just have to pivot."
—Jeff Goins, best-selling author of The Art of Work
"Are the tectonic plates below your sturdy career suddenly splitting into a deep abyss of unknown? Let this book be your rope ladder out."
—Neil Pasricha, author of The Happiness Equation and 1,000 Awesome Things
"If you think life is a highway, then you've got it wrong. It's more like a winding path through an unpredictable forest. Not only do you have to wade the swamp and battle the beasts, but time after time you come to a crossroads. Left? Right? Straight ahead? Jenny Blake's new book will help you find the wisdom and resources to make the best choices, move into the sunlight and end up where you want to be."
—Michael Bungay Stanier, Author of The Coaching Habit and Do More Great Work
“We live in a time of rapid evolution, and we develop skills quickly now by absorbing many shorter term work experiences, so we can become what Jenny Blake calls impacters in our careers. This book gives you a solid roadmap to making the right call about career changes that will help you discover what you’re truly built for. Courage, consciousness, and competence—that’s what Pivot offers you. It’s excellent!”
—Penney Peirce, author of The Intuitive Way, Frequency and Leap of Perception
"The book is fantastic. No matter where you are in your career, Pivot is provokingly relevant."
—Dr. Tom Guarriello, founder of RoboPsych and founding faculty at New York’s School of Visual Arts, Masters in Branding
"Today, the average person has eleven jobs and three to six careers, which is why Pivot is essential reading for every professional. Let Jenny be your coach, giving you the confidence and tools required to make your next career transition. Whether you're an employee, freelancer or entrepreneur, this book will help you identify the skills you have or need that will lead to your next opportunity. Jenny has been through career transitions and has successfully navigated them on her own, which makes her the perfect spokesperson for helping you do the same. Pivot is the book that you'll need to read multiple times through your life because change is constant and often times unexpected!"
—Dan Schawbel, Author of Promote Yourself and Me 2.0
“Whether you’re considering a career change, job change or figuring out what to do next, Jenny Blake’s Pivot is the book you need. It’s a comprehensive, practical, must-have guide to your pivot.”
—Susan RoAne, keynote speaker and author of How To Work a Room
"Well-researched, well-written, and well-organized, this book will appeal to those willing to invest time, energy, and effort into the process of "pivoting" their careers for the better."
—Library Journal
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Portfolio; First Edition (September 6, 2016)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 288 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1591848202
- ISBN-13 : 978-1591848202
- Item Weight : 1.06 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.25 x 1.08 x 9.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #602,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,461 in Job Hunting & Career Guides
- #2,767 in Motivational Management & Leadership
- #3,270 in Business Motivation & Self-Improvement (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
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Jenny Blake, author of the award-winning book Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One (2016) and co-creator of Google’s acclaimed Career Guru coaching program, is back with her signature blend of Heart-Based Business operating principles and practical tools. Her award-winning third book, Free Time: Lose The Busywork, Love Your Business (March 2022), will teach you how to set your time free through smarter systems and Delightfully Tiny Teams.
Jenny is an international keynote speaker helping forward-thinking organizations and individuals map what's next while moving from friction to flow. She hosts two top-ranked podcasts with over two million downloads combined: Free Time with Jenny Blake for Heart-Based Business owners (pod.link/freetime), and Pivot with Jenny Blake for navigating change (pod.link/pivotmethod). Jenny started her first website, Life After College, in 2005, which was later turned into a book and published by Running Press in 2011, featured in Target's nationwide new grads display the following year.
After two years as the first employee at a political polling start-up in Silicon Valley, followed by five years at Google in training and career development, Jenny moved to New York City in 2011 to launch her own media and IP licensing business. Jenny loves yoga and buys too many books. She lives with her husband, a contemporary artist, and their "angel in fur coat" German shepherd.
Learn more at ItsFreeTime.com and PivotMethod.com.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book offers helpful strategies and ideas for guiding life and career. They describe it as clear, well-structured, and easy to read. The real-life stories and practical tools are appreciated. Readers appreciate the framework for success and actionable steps to explore professional development. Overall, they find the book engaging and full of fun.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book's advice helpful and practical. They appreciate the strategies, exercises, and examples. The book provides a clear road map for guiding one's life and career, with timetables that fit everyone. The topics are meaningful to all professionals, and the advice cuts through fluffiness of most career development advice, providing clear and tangible steps.
"...This not only gave me a jump start, but it helped me move toward thinking about future change with whatever time I had at the moment...." Read more
"...The book does a good job mixing in the framework, key questions that will help you reflect, real-world people and their stories, nuggets of research..." Read more
"...She pushed me to think through my strengths, reflect on past experiences (which I was interviewing at the time, so SO helpful) and take calculated..." Read more
"...It offers resources, exercises, worksheets, and more to design a comprehensive guide for anyone who wants *more* from their daily 9-5..." Read more
Customers find the book easy to read and structured. They appreciate the clear, actionable plan and road map it provides for entrepreneurs. The writing is engaging and helpful, with useful exercises. Readers appreciate Jenny Blake's accessible writing style and her Momentum group.
"...offer similar resources, the collection on Pivot’s site is particularly robust and addresses professional challenges along with personal..." Read more
"...The book does a good job mixing in the framework, key questions that will help you reflect, real-world people and their stories, nuggets of research..." Read more
"Overall, it was a good book. Blake sets up a concise yet detailed recommended roadmap based on her experiences and research...." Read more
"This is an excellent book that provides readers a clear and easy to read road map for how to make an impactful change in ones life...." Read more
Customers find the book's storytelling engaging with real-life stories and resource recommendations. They find the conclusion masterful and inspirational, making the content more realistic.
"...I loved Blake's very human approach with empathy and real life experiences. The book affirmed a lot of feelings that I thought were very minimal...." Read more
"...connection and making sense of the content, thus making application of it more realistic. I highly recommend this book." Read more
"...change this book provides a great process to follow that is also realistic...." Read more
"...book walks you through a whole new approach to change, with amazing real-life stories, resource recommendations, and ways to keep engaging and..." Read more
Customers find the book practical and well-organized. It provides a framework for taking next best steps. They appreciate the resources, exercises, worksheets, templates, and checklists.
"...It offers resources, exercises, worksheets, and more to design a comprehensive guide for anyone who wants *more* from their daily 9-5..." Read more
"...and provides a framework for how to take your next best steps...." Read more
"...This book has given me all the tools I need to make a successful pivot into the world of freelance graphic design and entrepreneurship...." Read more
"...Jenny is the queen of useful templates and checklists for all of these things and more...." Read more
Customers find the framework for pivot success and examples useful. The method provides actionable steps to explore professional development. Readers appreciate that Jenny reclaims the pivot process to mean turning and moving. Overall, they find the book comprehensive.
"...That said, Pivot is incredibly comprehensive. Many of the exercises immediately focused my thinking and adjusted my perspective...." Read more
"...What I love about Pivot is that Jenny reclaims the pivot process to mean "turning and moving forward with your strengths"..." Read more
"...The framework for pivot success and examples are also useful for anyone who finds themselves in need of career reflection and a career or business re..." Read more
"...The Pivot method gives readers actionable steps to explore professional development...." Read more
Customers find the book engaging with step-by-step exercises. They describe it as technical and fun, full of discovery and change.
"...way of making sometimes-scary things like change and uncertainty, full of fun and discovery...." Read more
"...In this easy to read and engaging book Jenny Blake walks you through why and how to develop the skill as well as delivers several inspiring stories...." Read more
"Technical and engaging, with step by step exercises. An excellent book and resource" Read more
Reviews with images
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Pivot will create success and actionable change--guaranteed!
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2016For some context, I've spent all of my professional life navigating my career at a handful of large companies here in NYC. Grateful that I've always been gainfully employed, though not without a few bumps in the road…
I give Pivot five stars. It offers an excellent and well-organized set of tools and systems for self-assessment. It also provides plenty of guidance for thoughtfully evaluating potential opportunities and building or extending a network along the way.
Most critical for me is that many of these tools were immediately actionable with my tight schedule. If you're running out the door on a Monday morning and looking at a week crushed with meetings and deadlines, work through one of the plant exercises during your commute or lunch break. If you already have a few thoughts around what you might want to explore, jot down a few reminders to look up experts or organizations to learn more about.
This not only gave me a jump start, but it helped me move toward thinking about future change with whatever time I had at the moment. Of course, it makes the most sense to work through the process as outlined in the book. I did that as well when I could, but committing to a few exercises where time allowed gave me some momentum. The additional resources – podcasts, interviews, readings, references etc., offered by the author offer more perspective or a deeper dive on specific topics. While many recent career development books offer similar resources, the collection on Pivot’s site is particularly robust and addresses professional challenges along with personal enrichment.
In case it’s helpful, I’d like to acknowledge one of the three star reviews – because I totally understand that reviewer’s perspective. If you’re approaching change with a particularly complex (or thorny) professional or personal backstory, you may need a reset. That may include exploring a variety resources that speak to your particular situation as you ready yourself for a big change. In my experience, it makes sense to explore and embrace a variety of material - whatever collectively makes sense for your own development. The author actually provides a reference list at the end of the book and on her site. Your starting point and path will be your own, wherever this (or any other resource) finds you.
That said, Pivot is incredibly comprehensive. Many of the exercises immediately focused my thinking and adjusted my perspective. They addressed professional challenges with practical ideas and offered personal assessments for a holistic approach. I think they would be equally helpful to anyone – whether you’re on auto-pilot or in the weeds professionally (or personally) for long periods of time, or would benefit from taking stock and moving forward in a very practical and action-oriented way.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2017I've read Jenny's other books and was excited to hear that she would be writing another one. I finally had the chance to read this book recently and found it very valuable. I think it's safe to say that most of us in the workforce will have to consider or enact at least one (if not many) career change in the next couple years. Jenny's Pivot framework provides both strategic direction and actionable tactics to help guide you through how to use your strengths and existing skillsets to identify new career opportunities, whether it's finding a new job, finding a new career, or pursuing an entrepreneurial venture. The book does a good job mixing in the framework, key questions that will help you reflect, real-world people and their stories, nuggets of research and other key books, and pithy sayings and ideas that help drive home key points and learnings. I'll be recommending this to anyone I know who is going through or thinking about a career change.
As a Career Coach, I often fall into the trap of giving advice but sometimes having a hard time swallowing my own medicine. What's great about Jenny's book is that not only is she prescribing a method but she has humbly lived it through her own series of pivots in her own career. As someone who works in the tech sector I see everyday how innovative technologies are reshaping our world and our jobs. I think reading this book is a great way to help people identify how they can cope with the changes that are to come, and to help them navigate changes in the future.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2019Overall, it was a good book. Blake sets up a concise yet detailed recommended roadmap based on her experiences and research. I loved Blake's very human approach with empathy and real life experiences. The book affirmed a lot of feelings that I thought were very minimal. She pushed me to think through my strengths, reflect on past experiences (which I was interviewing at the time, so SO helpful) and take calculated risks vs. impulsive. I liked how it's a small amount of steps that aren't overcomplicated. When I first started reading, I was in the process of making a career pivot. I made the shift midpoint but still used the assignments (there are plenty) to think through my future shift into full time creative entrepreneurship. As a result, my very subjective flaw/recommendation is to read when you are double down ready for a significant pivot and very unclear on how. Once I made the pivot, I wasn't as connected which made it harder to read. There were also A LOT of examples that were hard to keep up with and the author consistently says "remember so in and so in chapter xx". The conclusion of the book was masterful. I'll definitely use when I'm focusing on the bigger shift.
Top reviews from other countries
- Mathieu RReviewed in Canada on January 20, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful Easy Read
Good book
-
FJReviewed in Germany on September 10, 2018
1.0 out of 5 stars Der typische, gehypte US-Schmafu
Wenn Sie so wie ich in Ihrer Karriere an einem Punkt angekommen sind, wo Sie denken "da geht noch mehr, ich muss etwas tun" oder der Meinung sind, dass eine Veränderung ansteht, dann finden Sie dieses Buch vielleicht ebenfalls interessant. Versprechungen macht es viele. Hilfe wird es allerdings keine sein.
OK, Jenny Blake sagt es selbst: Sie ist die, die mal bei Google gearbeitet und dann ein Buch geschrieben hat.
Scheinbar reicht bei Google gewesen zu sein in Nordamerika schon aus um von allen Seiten gelobt zu werden. Typisch amerikanische Effekthascherei ohne viel Gehalt. Der Inhalt wird den meisten sehr bekannt vorkommen:
- "Überleg dir deine Werte"
- "Überleg dir was dir Spaß macht"
- der Klassiker: "Such dir einen Mentor".
- "Networke!"
- "etc. etc."
Am besten aber hat mir der Vorschlag auf Seite 145 gefallen, für einen "pilot", also Ihre ersten Gehversuche in einem neuen Business oder in einer neuen Umgebung doch mal einen Job im Aufsichtsrat eines anderen Unternehmens anzunehmen. Wow! Weltfremder geht es kaum.
Fazit:
Hat man alles schon einmal gehört oder gelesen. Dieses Buch bietet keinerlei Mehrwert, wenn Sie schon einmal ein anderes Karriere-Buch oder von mir aus sogar -Blog gelesen haben. Wer noch nie etwas in diese Richtung gelesen hat, für den bietet dieses Werk möglicherweise Neues. Eine Hilfe ist es aber mit großer Wahrscheinlich nicht.
- Dawood VaidReviewed in India on March 3, 2017
5.0 out of 5 stars Truly rewarding
A very well written book. Pivot was a book, I read at the critical crossroads at my career. After shutting down my work of ten years, to be at the same dilemma was tough indeed. But along with the experience of my colleagues and lessons that are practical from Pivot, I was able to hold in my own. While the stages, from plan to launch can get little mixed, but it's the flow of the book, that is truly honest attempt for a career change.
I like the definition of pivot, as to keeping the vision same but using a new strategy. Five star material.
Caution - it is not your usual self help book.
- AnotherSpiderManReviewed in Australia on September 6, 2018
5.0 out of 5 stars A lot of good tips really help build up a smart career choice
A lot of good tips really help build up a smart career choice:) The best one is to have one or two year plan instead of 5 years as the world changing faster. Simple, reasonable and most importantly, effective!
- Hannah BraimeReviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Navigating Change in the Modern World
Change is an inevitable part of life, so how can we give ourselves the best chance of navigating big transitions as smoothly and constructively as possible? ‘Pivot’ explains how we can cultivate a mindset that will support us as we attempt to answer the big question “What’s next?”
This method is a 4-step framework that takes the start-up concept of pivoting and translates it into a set of actions we can use to face change head on. These steps are: Plant, Scan, Pilot, and Pivot. Jenny guides readers through each part of the process in detail.
Although this book is focused on professional transitions, it isn't just a book about career change. Part of the beauty of the "Pivot Method" is that it can be applied to almost any area of life.
Jenny illustrates the method using case studies, interviews and her personal experiences, and provides illuminating exercises. Unlike other books about similar topics, Pivot combines theory with interactive exercises that turn the experience of reading the book into a guided journey through current changes and opportunities in readers’ own lives.
This is a down-to-earth, optimistic book that doesn’t downplay the challenges that come with constant change but encourages us to view them as pathways towards growth. In a time when people tend to view the fast-changing nature of our world as a problem, Jenny shows us how it’s actually an asset and something we can use to our advantage to deepen our satisfaction in life and work.
Highly recommended to anyone who wants to develop a toolbox of questions and resources, plus the necessary mindset, to more skilfully navigate our fast-changing lives.