Is Changing Your Career Really What You Want?
October 22nd, 2011
Recently I’ve been attending very specific coaching training. Naturally, part of the training was to practice our coaching skills. It was quite fascinating to watch, how each and every participant chose their career/business development as the main topic to be coached on.
So there we were, plodding along with the career and business goals for a couple of sessions until such time when the “surface reality” was gone and we started getting deeper information. And boy, what we discovered was quite fascinating.
Low-and-behold, underneath all those grand business plans were plain and simple human needs, successfully and, may I say, masterfully covered up by the years of practice.
Overall, there was a big cry for recognition, validation, self-worth and love.
There were people who were lonely and instead of addressing that need they threw themselves into a gigantic career transformation. There were people who didn´t feel appreciated by anybody, so the thought of a higher and more important position seemed like the right remedy.
Basically, the change and advancement in their career was supposed to provide an instant plaster to their emotional needs.
The trouble with this approach is that once you get that further promotion and once you achieve your company´s financial goals, there comes the time when those emotional needs re-appear. You didn´t deal with them; you merely kept yourselves busy, hoping they would vanish by themselves.
If you are in the midst of changing your career or considering starting your own business, do yourself a favor called “due diligence”.
Open your heart and ask yourself what the real reasons for this new direction are. Will this new career be in-line with your values? Will it truly reflect who you are? Are there any issues from the past that you need to deal with first, before you commit to the whole process?
The answer to all of these questions is full and total self-acceptance. When you are ready to accept and embrace yourself for who you are, including all your imperfections (you should know by now that we are all full of them!), the following will happen.
- You will be able to see your priorities more clearly and maybe, just maybe, it will turn out a new career is not one of them!
- If, as a result of your newly found emotional freedom, you still believe that changes in career are necessary, approach them with this new perspective. I can promise you that half of the requirements you were after will be gone!
- If your choices are in-line with your true personal values (and you will make sure they are), your next steps will become much easier to define and take.
Most importantly, enjoy the process. It might not be the easiest one but it is highly rewarding in the end.
Thank you, Chris, for your comment. I think it is really important that people go beyond the obvious and search deeper when making big life decisions, should it be in their career or in other areas of their lives. All the best, Natalie
You a so right. People often jump into major life changes thinking that the outcome will lead to a perfect life. Sadly these choices are often misguided. Unless change is forced on you, then there’s always a fundamental reason behind it. Identifying what the reason is and planning around can not only help you make the right decision, but like you said can sometimes avoid these major changes completely. Most people who jump from job to job or even relationship to relationship are searching for something without really knowing what the something is. It's never as simple as "more money" or "better recognition". Often, it's all about who you are and what you want on a much deeper level. Great post!