Feeling like you are one of many, no way to see a path within the landscape you find yourself. You know you are not completely fulfilled in your career. You pick a direction, any direction to find an alternative out of the same.
You start interviewing, within your company or outside. You ask, why am I not getting that job interview? Or after getting the interview, why did I not get the job? Even if you are working in the same company and in the same position, are you asking why you are not progressing in your career?
“You can’t get there, the same way you got here” or “doing the same thing and expecting different results is the definition of insanity”, no matter how you say it, something has to change if you want different results.
I hear, from clients, how hard it is to find a new position doing something more challenging. My first question is what jobs are you applying for in your search? The common response, the ones that match my skills and experience.
If the client is in a company, they will tell me how hard they work and how their performance is better than average. Here my question is, what are you doing that shows you are ready for other opportunities? This is often met with “I don’t know”, “I thought doing well in my job would give me those opportunities” or “everyone knows I do a great job”.
Do you see a thread here?
If you are doing the same thing, no matter how well you do it, no one will see you differently. If you want something different in your career, you have to do something different.
Let’s say, you dream of being in a more strategic role. To date, you have been very operational. You seek positions that you can prove you have what it takes to do the job. Do you apply for a strategic role? Do you ask to be part of that new project at work? Are you thinking right now, how can I do that when I don’t have the skills and/or experience (are you crazy)?
Now let’s look at why you want a more strategic role. You remember when you were asked to get involved in a project and you had an opportunity to be part of a strategic conversation. It lite you up like fireworks on the 4th of July. You were so energized, you thought, this is what I really want to be doing. You got a taste of something different, some exposure to another possibility to earn your living. Something woke up inside you to make you start asking yourself, what is possible for me? Is there more than what I am doing?
Understanding, what I call the characteristics or attributes of a position, which truly excites you is more important than your skills and experience. Don’t get me wrong, no one is going to hire a business person to be a medical doctor, just because that is what they truly want. It also doesn’t mean that an accountant can’t become a professional leadership coach. Oh, that’s what I did. In fact, I changed my career 6 times since leaving college. No, I won’t tell you what span of time that entailed.
Back to the point, what you really want to do will take reflection. As a coach, I ask many questions and will take the time to truly understand where you want to take your career. Some people know in general what they want, yet still, need to understand what is driving that decision. Others know what they don’t want, and they need to understand what they do want in their careers.
When you are clear on your purpose, calling, or whatever you want to call it, you begin to see a path. The path will show you how the experience you have can be transitioned into the new career. The skills you have may be very useful in the new career and applied in different ways. You may have skills you are unaware you acquired while gaining experience doing whatever it is you have done in the past. You start seeing how you can get out of the forest!
Now armed with a true understanding, you are ready to present yourself for the position you truly want. You will have the passions others don’t to differentiate you as a viable candidate. You will ask more questions about how the position fits whom you want to be and that will result in a level of confidence about achieving your ideal position. The power to b.limitless is within you. Fulfill your potential by investing in yourself to discover what you truly want in your career and your life.
I would be honored to support you on your path to fulfill your potential. Remember when you rise, you raise those around you to be a better version of themselves. Please contact me.