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You may think you have no skills that are transferable beyond academia. My mission is to help you Break Through… the BS, the glass ceilings, the gatekeeping – anything holding you back from seeing your absolute magnificence.  This is why I create free masterclasses, free resources and I meet with people like you on  Career Audit Calls.

You can create impact beyond the ivory tower!

Create a new fulfilling life with a meaningful career and with less stress.

Ditch the academic BS and find a job where you will be appreciated – financially, too – for your damn-valuable skills.

Life After Academia

This is the mentoring I would have paid thousands for back 5 or 6 years ago!

✔️ Build a professional identity that exposes your valuable skills for the FIRE they are

✔️ Position yourself as a leader in your industry in a way that feels natural so you don’t burn out

✔️ Speak your power confidently and build a vision for a fulfilling career

✔️ Figure out what truly matters to you and do more of it

✔️ Create new ways of working while rejecting ways that no longer serve you

✔️ Rise above the academic tidal forces that inundated you with BS about your worth!

All with clarity and purpose!

This program includes…

  • 🖊 Weekly tailored and personalized action points for guidance on your journey
  • 💻 3 one-on-one coaching sessions with Luna
  • ⏰ 3 drop-in online office hours per week with Luna
  • 💬 Private Voxer texting access for the group
  • 📑 5 self-guided modules; step-by-step processes for all things related to a successful career pivot – including CVs/resumes, interviews, & healing from trauma, imposter syndrome, and cultivating your confidence.
  • 📣 Transformational content by guest experts – monthly – all recorded!
  • 🤸‍♀️ Clarity through bodily awareness sessions – weekly
  • ✨ Healing and unlearning workshops that put all of the BS we were fed on a f**k-off rocket – monthly

Plus dozens of guest expert content on building a consultancy side gig, self-love, grief, instructional design, PhD to Industry etc. 

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Life After Academia Mentoring program that helps academics to land non-academic jobs while designing work around a fulfilling life!
Why I left academia

My Family

I’m a first generation university graduate. My parents made huge sacrifices for me in leaving Puerto Rico for a better life. After being in academia in the US, UK, and Europe, I realised that academia was exploiting my need to fit in and my need to prove that I could succeed. And for those of us from intergenerational poverty, your ancestral knowledge has been invalidated by the systems. Don’t repeat those messages to yourself. Don’t beat yourself up based on that indoctrination. I’m so excited that I’m unlearning and breaking through those limiting narratives.

The membership for academics prioritizing joy and balance while building a new career/ business

Building Beyond Academia is the monthly membership for academics dismissing the doubt & finally scratching the itch to ditch the academic pipeline!

Membership Waitlist

Why I left academia

Greater Impact

I obtained my PhD in Applied Psychology in 2005 and had consulted on evaluations on interventions then. Recently, I had also delivered Bystander Intervention Programmes for Gender Based Violence in multiple Latin American countries with UN Women. I left so I could have a greater impact out of academia – away from the pressure to get grants and publish as well as all the administrative work. You’ve impacted many lives and you’ve made an enormous contribution already! Recognize that you can quench your thirst for more… more money, more freedom, more fun and more challenging experiences!

Change your career as easy as changing your hat   and escape from the academic mindset  

Why I left academia

My Health

In 2020, I submitted a dozen papers, applied for 1M in grants, got 30 doctoral trainees to finish and publish, plus multiple senior leadership roles… I didn’t realise I was in burnout. When my job was then under threat, I fought for 8 months until I accepted a deal. It then took more than 6 months to get over burnout.

I started consulting and I loved it, and it was more flexible and felt more ethical than working for government. I’m a radical, a rebel, but a cheerful hippie with the energy of a miniature jack russel and the strategizing talents of someone who has lived a dozen lives!

So, I turned down Director of Research roles in non-profit foundations and opened my own business. Since I had been a coach and a trainer in coaching in academia, I also started mentoring and coaching! I also started dancing and traveling for fun rather than combining a holiday with a conference!

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Need more info? Check out our most frequently asked questions.

Do I have to be 100% ready to leave my job to do this?

You don’t need to be mentally ready. We work on your mindset because part of the program is clarity, confidence, and decolonizing your mind! You might choose to stay in your job but you will have new leadership, negotiating, and boundary-setting skills in the process!

What if I’m still unsure what I want to do next?

It’s fine, you can find your purpose and your mission within the program. I help you to find your values and to understand what lifestyle is best for you and your needs. As a psychologist, I help you to do the deep dive into your specific needs. My clients come from diverse backgrounds with diverse needs.

What if I’m too old to change my career?

You are the correct age to be the VIP in your own life! You can invest in your own growth as a person! Life is too short to be unhappy and unfulfilled in an exploitative system. It’s tiring and it strains your integrity. Instead, you can create your own story with the impact you want to make!

What if I get a job before completing the monthly payments?

You may get a job offer within weeks of joining this program! AWESOME! This sometimes happens because we make a full investment in ourselves (beyond the monetary) when we invest financially. You make a commitment that transcends into the job market! So, your payments will continue until the end of the contract period. This means you can work on your mindset, your leadership skills, and your identity and confidence, so you fully recover before you start your job. You have indefinite access to the program content/ templates/ group coaching meetings. And you can always come back for a refresh!

What if I don’t find a job within the time I’m investing?

You may not get a job offer within months of joining this program! We can’t guarantee your results, that’s for sure! The job market is difficult to predict. What I can predict and control is my investment in you! I will be your Jiminy Cricket. Once I know you and what you’re looking for, I’m your advocate and guide to the job search. So, if you invest, I invest and want to see you succeed. People say I’m like the Energizer bunny (if you’re a child of the 80s). You also have indefinite access to the program, so you can complete the sessions as often as you want. You also become more confident and self-assured about networking with robust self-efficacy, so you step into positive energy and belief. This counts as gold dust for job searches!

What if I don’t like the program? Can I get a refund?

You can get a refund within 2 weeks of investing in Life After Academia as long as you have not taken me up on 1-2-1 coaching. However, I am very open to feedback, requests, and I love growing with you in my practice! I keep up to date with new coaching practices, I share my growth vulnerably, and I take pride in developing my practice with continuing professional development programs, e.g., social/ racial justice in coaching, therapy & coaching, and trauma-informed coaching. Full terms are here