What if the career you’ve built isn’t the one you want to keep?

Whether you’re a senior leader questioning the cost of success, or a professional at any stage sensing you’ve outgrown the path mapped, this book is your roadmap to Uptick what comes next.

A career pivot isn’t about throwing everything away; it’s about harnessing your transferrable skills, experience, knowledge and credibility to create an uptick, a new, planned direction built on what came before, one which aligns more with who you are today.

With practical exercises, honest stories, and strategies that take you from reflection to action, this book will help you find clarity, overcome fear, plan your finances, embrace change and build a confident future that balances fulfilment with freedom.

If you’ve ever wondered ‘Is this it?’ – here’s your answer: it doesn’t have to be!

‘The no-fluff guide to redefining success on your own terms.’ – Ryan Hopkins, International Best-Selling Author of 52 Weeks of Wellbeing

‘Captures the essence of what it means to evolve –​ not react –​ in a world that never stands still…. a catalyst for personal and professional transformation.’ – Debs Madden, CITB, Executive Director, Customer Engagement & Operations

‘Reading Uptick is a powerful way to pause and look upwards.’ – Paul Russell, Business Coach (ex-​IBM Leader)

“Uptick: Clarity, Courage and Confidence for Your Next Chapter by Dr Claire Handby is an exceptionally useful and engaging guide for anyone navigating a major professional transition. Handby maps out a practical roadmap for pivoting your career by leveraging your existing transferable skills, wisdom, and credibility. This book was incredibly useful to me personally as I manage the transition from full-time employment into a portfolio role style of working. Balancing a schedule of keeping busy just 10 days a month requires a complete mindset shift, and Uptick provided the exact clarity and confidence I needed to manage that change smoothly. The book’s blend of honest real-world stories and interactive exercises pulled me from reflection straight into structured action. I highly recommend this book to senior leaders questioning their current path or anyone designing their own “next chapter.” It is a solid 5/5 stars for anyone looking to build a more fulfilling, self-directed future.”

Steve Leighton – Chairman at Altnets, Chairman at Jenson Ventures, Chairman at Loud & Clear Technologies, Chairman of the ISPA Council, Independent Director at AIAC1, Founder of Voneus and Ambassador at Zapgo

“I have the privilege of knowing Claire personally, so I wasn’t surprised to see the warmth, honesty and grounded wisdom she brings to her conversations coming through in her writing.

Uptick is a thoughtful, practical and deeply reassuring book for anyone who has ever found themselves wondering whether there might be something more — or something different — in their future.

Rather than promoting dramatic reinvention, Claire encourages readers to pause, reflect and recognise that the skills, experience and knowledge they’ve built over a lifetime still have enormous value. They may simply need to be applied in a new way.

Claire doesn’t pretend that change is easy, nor does she offer simplistic answers. Instead, she shares insights with humility, compassion and a healthy dose of pragmatism.

While reading Uptick, I could imagine myself sat across the kitchen table from Claire, with a cuppa, having one of our long chats about career, life and passions — sprinkled with laughs, the odd tear and an abundance of practical encouragement.

What I particularly loved is that this isn’t a book telling you to throw everything away and start again. It’s an invitation to stop, take stock and think differently about what your next chapter could look like.

Congratulations, Claire. This book is a genuine reflection of who you are — thoughtful, insightful, practical and deeply committed to helping others find their own path forward.

A fantastic achievement. ❤️ Disclosure: Claire kindly provided me with a complimentary copy of Uptick to review.”

Karen Aspey – GM People Leader; Exec Board; Bay of Plenty Regional Council; New Zealand

Foreword & Endorsements

Note from the Author

Introduction: Redefining Your Success – When Your Professional Life No Longer Fits

• Why the traditional career model no longer fits
• Recognising when your professional life feels misaligned
• Redefining success on your own terms

Chapter 1: Needing to Uptick – First Define Your ‘Why’

• Understanding your need for change
• Clarifying your purpose and values
• Building clarity and self-awareness before action

Chapter 2: Overcoming Fear and Imposter Syndrome

• Recognising and reframing fear
• Tackling imposter thoughts with evidence and courage
• Taking action before confidence arrives

Chapter 3: Do the Maths for a Dream Life

• Knowing your financial baseline
• Building a buffer and planning for freedom
• Using financial clarity to create confidence

Chapter 4: Leveraging Your Transferable Superpowers

• Identifying the skills and strengths you already have
• Translating experience across new roles or industries
• Rewriting your professional story with credibility

Chapter 5: Reframing Failure as Fuel

• Redefining failure as part of growth
• Learning from setbacks and using feedback
• Turning challenges into renewed motivation

Chapter 6: From ‘Stuck’ to ‘Strategic’

• Moving from reaction to intentional progress
• Cultivating curiosity and emotional resilience
• Embracing uncertainty as a driver for growth

Chapter 7: Crafting Your New Narrative and Personal Brand

• Rearticulating your professional story
• Aligning your behaviour, values and brand
• Building visibility with purpose and authenticity

Chapter 8: Networking Without the Ick Factor Shifting from transactional to genuine connection Creating meaningful conversations and relationships Building visibility through curiosity and reciprocity

Chapter 9: Taking Action Before You’re Ready

• Replacing readiness with small, consistent action
• Building belief through momentum and experimentation
• Accepting imperfection as part of progress

Chapter 10: Sustaining Success in a New Professional Arena

• Adapting to new environments and expectations
• Sustaining energy and focus through change
• Nurturing community and redefining long-term success

Conclusion: The Journey Continues – Understand Upticks are a Way of Life

• Embracing change as a continual process
• Recognising that success evolves over time
• Living and working with clarity, courage and confidence

About the Author

Author Contact Details

Acknowledgements and Thanks

References

Useful Resources – Websites

FORMAT / ISBN / PUBLICATION DATE / RRP

Audiobook / 9781805760726 / July 14, 2026 / £14.99

Hardback / 9781788609708 / July 14, 2026 / £24.99

Paperback / 9781788609715 / July 14, 2026 / £14.99

Ebook / 9781788609722 / July 13, 2026 / £7.99

Paperback and eBook Bundle / £16.99

Dr Claire Handby

Dr Claire Handby’s career journey spans more than 25 years, beginning in the construction industry where she managed trades on-site — hard hat on, steel-toe capped boots at the ready — before moving into senior leadership roles in Big Four management consulting with EY, Deloitte, and KPMG.

A chartered professional and now successful business owner, she has built a reputation as a trusted board-level adviser and executive coach. Today, she helps individuals realign their careers with clarity and confidence, drawing on her depth of personal experience within conversations.