When to Jump

The title of Mike Lewis’s first book is not about jumping off bridges, but When to jump. If the Job You Have Isn’t the Life You Want. Mike now lives in San Francisco but his folks, Michael and Betsy Lewis, live in Montecito half the year. Mike’s publisher is Henry Holt. Not too shabby!

Mike recently had a book signing at a rather unusual venue, the Santa Barbara Athletic Club. He wrote his how-to book based on his own life. At 24, he was working in a prestigious finance job but he really wanted to be a professional squash player. Before making the jump, he decided to talk to people who had done it – lots of people. After interviewing hundreds, he chose 40 stories for his book. But before he wrote the book, he started playing squash professionally.

One interview that impressed me was Jeff Arch’s story. You may remember a little movie called Sleepless in Seattle. After having no luck writing, Jeff earned a black belt in karate and opened up a karate school but the little voice said, “This isn’t what you want to do,” so he sold the school and the “rest is history.”

Mike has a four-step program: Phase 1, Listen to the Little Voice; Phase 2, Make a Plan; Phase 3, Let Yourself be Lucky; and Phase 4, Don’t Look Back. There are personal examples about each phase.

Mike is also CEO of When to Jump, a global community of people who have left one path to pursue a different one. Good luck, Mike, with your jump.