What's going on in your career curious brain?!

The most common feelings hampering your career redesign

When someone gets in touch to arrange a free Zoom chat I always send them what I call a "Braindump" to complete before we dive in.

It's a series of ten questions to encourage you to 'get it all out' - where you're coming from, what's going on in your life and career, where you're getting stuck and what help you're looking for.

It gives me a lovely messy, colourful splurge of background before we chat. And it helps you focus your mind on what you think the PROBLEM is.

(There's always a problem, at least in your mind. For me, there's simply a situation into which to insert a series of curious and at times bloody awkward questions).

I love reading what comes back in these Braindumps.

So today I wanted to share a really powerful sentence that someone wrote this week that said a whole lot more than she probably realised.

See if you recognise the feelings she shares (and hello to the marvellous woman who wrote it, she's on my mailing list. You can join it too if you head to my About section).

First, here's the question I asked:

"How do you think Coaching can help you - what support do you think you need?"

Here's what she replied:

"I need external, impartial reassurance that what I am planning is not ridiculous"

BOOOOOOM!

In thirteen words, an exquisite exploration of what goes on in your head when you contemplate a career move.

It's all there:

* Self-doubt

* Fear of looking daft

* A need for clarity

* A desire for certainty

* A yearning for support

* A wish for outside approval

* A reluctance to move forwards

Which of those do you recognise?!

Let me tell you in a nutshell what I said to Sally (her name isn't really Sally obvs and my answer, if I'm honest, was far less nutshelly). 🥜

"Sally, it would be very easy for me to sit here and tell you your idea is not ridiculous, but that's not really the point.

What I think is neither here nor there, unless perhaps your idea is to sell ice to eskimos, in which case I have bad news.

There are essentially two things we actually need to do together.

One is to get you motivated and confident about your career idea so you believe it isn't ridiculous.

And the other is to devise a coherent plan to ensure you have the skills you need for this plan and have tested your idea among the people who actually matter - like potential clients, industry specialists, people already doing the work.

I'm not the external reassurance you need. I'm the person who's going to motivate, support, challenge and guide you to take effective actions and hold you accountable if you start to flag".

Reading that back, I sound terribly serious. (If you hadn't guessed by now, I'm really not.)

But my point is, it's not me who has the answers, tempting though it is to set myself up as some kind of Mystic Meg.

Too often we hold ourselves back waiting for someone else's permission or some magical solution we think they will have.

SPOILER ALERT.

You have the solution.

You just need the courage, curiosity and commitment to find it.

And that's what I can absolutely help you with if you're struggling to do it alone.

If you fancy a go at my Braindump, fill in my contact form and I'll send it to you before we have a chat.

Can't wait to see what you've got going on inside your head.

#careerreturns #confidence