Mike Manoske on Worthy Connections
Careers rarely follow a straight line. Mike Manoske’s certainly hasn’t.
In this episode of Worthy Connections, Laura Lasher talks with Mike about a career that has taken him from healthcare and technology leadership to recruiting, executive coaching, writing and community building. Along the way, he discovered that professionals need support at every stage — finding the right opportunity, succeeding once they get there, learning to lead and figuring out what comes next. That realization eventually helped inspire Career Circles, a community designed around a simple idea: people shouldn’t have to navigate their careers alone.
But Mike’s perspective on work goes deeper than career advancement. After facing serious health challenges, he came away with a different definition of success: professional achievement matters, but so does enjoying the life you are building. It makes for a thoughtful conversation about leadership, connection, resilience and what a successful career is ultimately supposed to provide.
Transcript Highlights
Meet Mike Manoske
Laura Lasher: We want to learn more about you, what you're doing and what you're building. You've been building this for quite some time. Tell us about your journey.
Mike Manoske: The journey goes back a bit. I've worked in healthcare as a leader. I've worked in tech far longer as a leader, and for the last 15 years I've been an executive coach focusing on the entire range of your career.
A big part of my executive coaching practice was spent at the Wharton Business School. I also spent 22 years in Silicon Valley as a recruiting leader, building organizations, and then became an executive recruiter.
I saw a gap. People wanted to transition in their careers or change to something else, but they didn't understand the process around job searching and what actually happens behind the scenes. I've personally hired more than 2,000 people, and my teams have hired thousands more, so I understand that process intimately.
What Happens After You Get the Job?
Mike: Then the next step happened. People would get the job and look at me and say, “What do I do next?”
My practice started evolving into helping people become successful in their new roles. Then, as my clients moved forward, the question became, “I've got to lead now. How do I lead effectively?”
What I've realized is that my practice, along with my career, has really covered this full arc: How do you work? How do you have a job? How do you build a business? How do you succeed at every stage?
Turning Experience Into Books
Laura: You published a couple of books. Tell us about that.
Mike: My first book wasn't a case of deciding, “I'm going to go write a book.” I was at the Wharton Business School and had helped develop a program that I was facilitating there. I co-designed and co-led that course for more than 10 years.
At one point Wharton came to us and said, “This is really successful. When's your book coming out?”
I confidently said, “No problem. We've got decks. We've got everything.”
It took about a year and a half to write that book.
We chose to self-publish, and it became successful and profitable. Later, I wrote a second book around the next part of the journey: how you succeed in a new role. Having written the first book, the second one took a lot less time.
The Loneliness of Building a Career
Mike: There's a loneliness factor around careers at every level.
If you're in a job search, it can be isolating. If you're trying to do well in a job or be successful in your career, there are points when you need to talk and process things.
It's hard to process everything on your own or even with the small group of deeply caring people in your life.
People I worked with eventually asked me, “Could you build a community?”
The answer was yes.
Building Career Circles
Mike: Career Circles is now three years old, and we have about 180 people in the community. It's been an absolute joy.
We've grown to the point where we're bringing more coaches in and talking with other experts in areas including health and wellness, entrepreneurship and leadership.
We have fireside chats, meetups and cohort programs, and we're planning on-demand courses.
The whole idea is simple: get people together. Don't try to do this on your own.
Putting the Best People in the Best Positions
Mike also traces part of his leadership philosophy to an unusual career path. He originally studied nursing before moving into hospital administration and health data, and eventually technology. In healthcare, many of the leaders around him were women. Moving into technology presented a noticeably different environment.
Mike: When I made the move into recruiting, I quietly thought: If I'm going to build these organizations, why don't I build them to look like the outside world?
For me, it's about getting the best people into the best spots and asking who we can grow and add to an organization who is going to be strongly additive.
When you do that, good things happen.
A Health Crisis Changes the Definition of Success
Later in the conversation, Mike shares the experience that profoundly changed his perspective on work and life.
In his 50s, Mike began experiencing serious heart problems and underwent multiple procedures. After an unrelated accident sent him to the emergency room, doctors discovered a tumor on his pituitary gland. The tumor was eventually identified as the source of his heart problems and surgically removed.
The experience changed the way he thinks about the time he has.
Mike: As far as I'm concerned right now, everything is extra innings.
Yes, I'm passionate about what I do, but I'm also passionate about the rest of my life.
That's another thing I try to bring into my practice: you've got to like your life.
It sounds very simple, but I think that should be everybody's North Star.
A Worthy Connection
Laura: You are one of those people who is truly a worthy connection. That's why we're building this — to bring on people that others need to know.
You're a connector, and I think that's a really important piece.
Mike: My honor. Thanks so much.
