I'm Mariam, a mid-career professional. I spent the last 10 years leading growth and running operations in tech startups, doing everything from leading strategic growth, business development, marketing, running sales operations, service design, content creation, partnership, and investor relations. As you can see, the list is long (if not exhaustive), but that’s the reality of working in a startup—you do everything and anything. Which is, depending on the type of person you are, great or horrible. For me, it was amazing! I never got bored and got to dive deep into very exciting things, learn skills, and see them at work.

Nowadays, I run my own service company, Thindo Labs, also working on an exciting product. As great as my list of “can do myself” is, there is also a long list of “oh crap, where do I start with this one?” Anything from building an operating model for this phase to managing my weekly priorities.

The thing is, I am too old to hang around student entrepreneurship groups, and I have lost the capacity for pizza and beer evenings, or another AI evening. But I’d still like to be in a community of like-minded people, to learn and share.

So, if you are a:

• Mid-career professional, looking for a community of like-minded people with similar mid-level energy :D

• First-time manager

• First-time entrepreneur

• Individual experiencing career transitions

• Professional seeking practical advice for daily work challenges

Let’s make one!?

I know there are lots of communities for different niches, like marketing or sales or product design, etc.

However, most of us at this stage are no longer working in departmental silos; we are all working cross-functionally, leading people with completely different skills, and so we can’t just hang out with our marketing or product design community only. High-fiving ourselves, “Oh yeah, we are the best; sales have no idea,” or the product gang, “Marketing has zero understanding of our product; they just do their stupid marketing things.”

So what is the answer?

Welcome to Middlers!

We are a community for mid-career professionals across functions, designed to inspire, educate, and entertain. We're kicking off with "The Mess in the Middle," a podcast dedicated to the often overlooked middle stages of career and personal development.

“The Mess in the Middle”

"The Mess in the Middle" focuses specifically on the less glamorous, often overlooked middle stages of career and personal development, with emphasis on practical, hands-on advice and relatable experiences for mid-career professionals.

For those:

• Transitioning from individual contributor to manager

• Leading a small functional team to a cross-functional team

• From deep subject matter expert to consulting

• From consulting to industry

• Crossing from private sector to public sector

The podcast will take the format of:

• Interviews with successful mid-career professionals and entrepreneurs

• Case studies of career transitions

• Practical showcases of day-to-day operational challenges and how to solve them

• Role deep dives - How to prepare for a CEO role

• Q&A sessions with audience participation

Join us as we navigate the messy, unpredictable terrain of mid-career growth. Together, we'll tackle the challenges and celebrate the victories of this unique phase in our professional journeys.

👉 Subscribe to "The Mess in the Middle" Podcast and become a part of the Middlers community today!

Let's make this journey together. We can't wait to connect with you!

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