In this episode of the DevReady Podcast, host Anthony Sapountzis is joined by Natalie Tran, Founder of Transition With Purpose and a highly regarded Transition and Business Coach. Based in Melbourne, Natalie supports mid-career professionals to navigate pivotal career changes with clarity and confidence. With a background in finance and over nine years of coaching experience, she now focuses on guiding individuals from unfulfilling 9-to-5 roles into purpose-driven work, portfolio careers, or entrepreneurship. Natalie’s holistic approach combines mindset work, strategic planning, and practical financial considerations, empowering clients to redefine success and take meaningful steps forward.
Natalie opens up about her personal journey from chartered accounting to coaching, a shift catalysed by the sudden collapse of an international career opportunity following the events of 9/11. Raised in a Vietnamese refugee family, Natalie originally pursued a “safe” and stable career path, working at Deloitte and later in funds management. But despite lateral moves and professional milestones, she felt unfulfilled. A series of life events, including the birth of her children and the limitations of part-time work in finance, eventually pushed her to resign without a plan B. This turning point sparked the beginning of her coaching journey and serves as a powerful example of embracing uncertainty in pursuit of purpose.
Throughout the episode, Natalie identifies common themes that emerge in her work with clients, from a deep sense of misalignment to unfulfilled creativity and a longing to make meaningful impact. Many of her clients come from migrant backgrounds and wrestle with the burden of family expectations and financial responsibility. Natalie advocates for the concept of portfolio careers and flexible income streams as a way to de-risk career transitions. Drawing on her background in finance, she helps clients map out sustainable pathways, often starting with side projects and testing new ideas before making the leap into full-time entrepreneurship or consulting.
Natalie also explores the mindset barriers that keep people stuck, particularly the fear of starting, the fear of failure, and the belief that it’s too late to change. She stresses the importance of cultivating daily habits that build resilience, such as exercise, structure, and staying connected to community. These small but consistent actions help restore agency during periods of uncertainty. For Natalie, personal growth often begins not with major breakthroughs, but with showing up in the face of discomfort and reframing failure as learning.
Finally, Natalie shares how her first coaching clients weren’t from her previous finance network but from her time teaching yoga and working in the fitness industry. This unplanned pivot became foundational to her entrepreneurial journey. By leveraging her wellness background, she learned how to facilitate, profile clients, and run a freelance business, skills that seamlessly transferred to her coaching practice. Her story is a testament to starting where you are, using the resources you have, and being open to where the journey might take you.
Topics Covered
- Natalie’s transition from finance to coaching
- The emotional impact of career pivots and reinvention
- Common reasons people seek career change (misalignment, purpose, creativity)
- Mindset barriers and overcoming fear during transitions
- Redefining success and building resilience
- Practical steps for testing business or consulting ideas
- Importance of earning “bread and butter” income during change
- The value of side hustles and portfolio careers
- Leveraging existing networks and starting where you are
- Lessons from early entrepreneurial experiences in the wellness industry
Important Time Stamps
- From 9–5 to Purpose-Driven Career: Natalie Tran’s Journey (0:07 – 4:08)
- Plane Tickets in Hand, Dream Job Cancelled: What Natalie Did Next (4:09 – 14:01)
- The Real Reason You’re Stuck in That Job (14:02 – 18:45)
- Life Didn’t Go to Plan? Build Resilience, Not Regret (18:46 – 23:35)
- Thinking of Quitting Your Job? Start Here First (23:36 – 29:53)
- Start Where You Are, Use What You’ve Got (29:54 – 33:08)
