Recently, I was coaching a client that was really struggling with her next career move. She had decided that she didn’t want to continue in her current job and industry but couldn’t figure out how to take a next step.
She had talked to friends, scoured the internet but hadn’t come to any conclusions. You may find yourself in a similar situation.
I need a change but I don’t know what I want!
It’s important to know what you’re good at, so take the aptitude test. It will provide you interesting data but it’s not the WHOLE story. In order to find that next best thing, it’s critical to investigate what you like, love and want. This might sound mushy but it’s not.
Back to my client. Let’s call her Charlotte. As Charlotte spoke about trying to solve the mystery of what to do next, her face showed her concern. Brows furrowed. Eyes searching. She looked lost.
So, we refocused the conversation to what she knows, rather than what she doesn’t.
• What does she like about her current role?
• What are her favorite things to do in her current role?
• If she were designing a new role, what characteristics would be important to her?
• In general, what does she love to do; that time disappears when she does it?
• What does she value in life?
This conversation provided a wealth of information about what she needs to consider in her next role.
• She likes being in a position to help others achieve their goals.
• She likes to be challenged. She likes goals and drives to achieve them.
• She likes to be active and finds time disappears when she’s physically active.
• She values developing close relationships.
• She loves to be creative.
• She’s highly motivated by learning.
• She wants to maintain financial stability.
She can use this information to ask the right questions in job interviews to understand whether the role will be something she likes in addition to something she will be good at.
BUT we discovered more. Charlotte’s been tinkering around with candle-making and lotion recipes. You should have seen her face change as she talked about what’s she’s been up to. She was a different person. Her face exuded energy. She smiled. She talked more quickly.
This hobby also “ticked” a lot of the things we discovered she wanted in a future role: helping others, challenges, goals, learning, creativity, relationships. But, exploring it was scary because she couldn’t see how this would provide financial stability right now.
This is what we discovered:
• Charlotte’s job would feel more tolerable if she were pursuing candle-making on the side, so we wouldn’t feel so desperate about escaping it.
• She doesn’t have to have all the answers right now. She can “baby-step” her way to the future.
• She doesn’t have to risk stability to explore something new.
So, Charlotte left the session with a new checklist of things to look for in new roles and some assignments related to her future candle-making empire.
• Create a concrete goal related to candle-making
• Do one thing every day to future her candle-making empire
• Find an accountability partner that will help her stay accountable for her goals
If you would like to figure out your next step:
• Take the aptitude test
• Order and complete the Guide to Knowingness Workbook
• Schedule a coaching session
