Now What?® Coaching
from Laura Berman Fortgang
One big clue that it’s time for a career switch comes in the form of repetitive thoughts of “I just don’t care…” Odds are at one point in your current job you cared … you may have even cared a lot – about the work, about the goals, about the mission you were on. When this fizzles out, it is likely time for a change.
The good news is you’ve noticed! And, more good news — you don’t have to stay stuck on a path just because you put yourself there years ago – get yourself back to caring!
Got a gut feeling that it may be time to make a move to a new career?
Here are some signs to help give you a little more clarity – take a minute to check it out and see where you land.
As a new year is on the horizon, this might be the perfect time to start putting some things in place and finding the support you need for whatever changes are in order.
Here are great guidelines to consider as you turn your dream about reinventing yourself into a realistic approach to do just that. Many of the points we work through in Now What?® are part of this process:
Are you stuck?……
It was nice to hear from so many people who saw the first video that debuted on Monday. I hope I’ve answered your questions here in video TWO which is about the second block to clarity: IDENTITY.
Do you allow who you think you’re supposed to be get in the way of what you really want?
I know I have.
I spent years dragging my feet to make a career change because I felt so many people were invested in me doing what I did before. So many other people’s hopes pinned to me pursuing and achieving my Broadway dreams. It took me longer to leave that chapter because I was attached to the IDENTITY of the artist before I realized I could be an artist in other ways.
If you or someone you know is stuck not knowing what to do next in life or career, this could be part of what’s stopping you.
Watch the second video HERE and join me for some upcoming events that will help you find your way out of the hell of second guessing and into the new future you’re longing to create.
Thank you for taking part in the 10th Anniversary celebration of Now What? 90 Days to a New Life Direction!
Please comment on the blog to let me know your thoughts.
You are NOT what you do or have always done……
by Now What?® Coaching Founder, Laura Berman Fortgang
We all know to say please and thank you and send those post-interview thank you notes. We all know that Thanksgiving is the tim
e to give thanks for all we have.
These are good habits and fruitful ones. However, there are more ways that gratitude can make life easier if you are in a transition in your life.
Lessons Learned
It’s easy to be bitter or get depressed when a lay off has occurred or money is tight or your life is in crisis for any reason. Robert Frost once said: “The easiest way out is through.” In my opinion, there is no better way to ‘get through’ than to find the good you can be grateful for even in the bad.
When we scan our past work, past bosses, past triumphs, and past losses, we need to unhook from the negatives and find what we can be grateful for. So if somebody was cruel or unfair, thanks goodness! They taught you to persevere. Or they taught you how to speak up or they taught you that you belong in an environment where you are appreciated.
Give thanks for lessons learned.
Skills Gained
Similarly, even the worst of scenarios can hold a gift inside of them. What skills did you gain? What resume nuggets can you add? What hard skill or soft skill learning did you take on?
None of these things can be taken away. They are yours to keep. Find gratitude for that.
Coming up in my professional life, there were certainly assignments I took on ‘just for the money’ that were not necessarily satisfying or life-affirming. Nonetheless, at the time, I got through them by being grateful for the income, certainly, but also for the tid-bits of industry knowledge they gave me. Thanks to the varied exposure, I can now carry on an intelligent business exchange in dozens of areas. Thank goodness for those less than ideal assignments.
Going deeper
Beyond pleasantries and etiquette is deep, deep gratitude. —Gratitude for the people who have shaped you along your way. Negative influences and positive, both call for gratitude. Whether they were grains of irritating sand polishing you into a pearl or they were fuel that rocketed you sky high, they have made you who are today.
Think of those that have influenced your career path. Think of those that believed in you when you did not believe in yourself. Think of the person who was selfless on your behalf and the one that was selfish and got you angry enough to learn how to stand up for yourself.
Whether it was a parent, co-worker, boss or stranger everyone has had a hand in your growth and for that, being truly grateful will reap its rewards. Being at peace with past relationships, keeps the new ones free from baggage. Appreciating those you crossed paths with makes for easy communication if you run into each other in other circles or find that you are to work together again.
Going deeper with your gratitude is not that selfless. It actually serves you very, very well.
So go forth and celebrate Thanksgiving. Rejoice at your holiday table and keep the gratitude going for a long, long time.
“Choose to see the world through grateful eyes. It will never look the same way again.” Doe Zantamata