Q: Our company is in the process of eliminating employees who cannot perform at its new standards. It keeps changing things daily. I am 46 years old, and I really don’t want to have to start all over again. I do my best, but I don’t always feel I’ve done enough. What should I do? – Elizabeth

J.T.: First, go back and get clarification on the new standards and on what quantifiable steps can you take to ensure that you’re meeting them. Ask your manager for a definition of a successful employee in your position. That way, you have recourse if they decide to fire you.

Dale: Let’s not talk about “recourse.” We don’t want you to just be getting by, Elizabeth – we want you to thrive, to be given bonuses and promotions. And you can’t get there by focusing on not getting fired. Instead of asking your managers to define minimum acceptable performance, ask them what it takes to be a star. Ask them who they consider the top performers, and then study those people.

J.T.: Also ask for as much feedback as possible, to ensure that you are doing a great job. But that said, my bigger concern for you is your fear of losing your job. I suggest that you take steps now to alleviate this. To start, get your resume updated and register at a staffing agency. They’ll be able to tell you about the various job opportunities available to someone with your skill set. I’ve known people in your position who end up finding an even better job that they never would have considered if they hadn’t been pushed to check out their options.

Dale: I can practically feel you cringing at the thought of testing the job market, Elizabeth. But you can’t think of a new job as having to “start all over again.” The best careers are evolutions, gracefully easing from one job and interest to another. It’s not starting over; it’s growing and learning. So, work at learning and growing within your current job, but never forget that you’ll probably have several more jobs before you’re done. If all goes well, none of them will be “starting over.”

Q: For the past three years I tried to make a go of my own photography business in a storefront. I racked up some serious debt. I’m trying to find work to help get us back on our feet financially, while running the business out of our home. At my most recent job, working as a bank teller, I felt like I couldn’t breathe. – Tom

Dale: Yes, the old corpo-claustrophobia. There are bosses – if they could get away with it – who would have policies on breathing.

J.T.: But back to the point. After reading your qualifications, Tom, the first thing to come to mind was teaching a continuing-education course.

Dale: Except that part-time teaching seems like a better way into debt than out of it.

J.T.: The idea is to do what you love and make contacts. Teaching is a way to get paid to build the business, which might also work with photo editing, perhaps specializing in online applications. Many Web-site owners are now opting to incorporate more visuals. We just did so on www.jtanddale.com, and it has doubled the number of people who click on the various pictures and read the postings. So, I see the trend toward visuals growing rapidly.

Dale: Back up – I loved what you said about getting paid to build the business. In essence, the idea is to redefine the business to include new part-time endeavors, such as photo editing. Take that redefining even further, and instead of moving the shop to your house, you might find a related business (a print shop, say) that would house your equipment and take orders in exchange for a percentage of revenues, freeing up more of your time to offer new services. Thus, you don’t find a boring, just-for-money job; you use your skill at visualization to see jobs within a new, broader business. That’s breathing fresh air.