Love your career like never before

The pandemic has seen a huge shift in people’s thinking. Now more than ever people are looking at their careers and questioning if it is the right career for them and their future selves. They are asking themselves do I still love what I do?

The ‘Great Reshuffle’

LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky has coined the phrase The Great Reshuffle perfectly in a recent article – it is a time when everyone is rethinking everything https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/navigating-great-reshuffle-ryan-roslansky and rightly so. Post-pandemic people are reconsidering everything from where they work, to who they work for and why and why they do what they do. They are more future-focused than ever. However, I believe it started before the pandemic; the pandemic just brought it all to life.

The forces of the Universe

It was almost like the forces of the Universe wanted to see a change in the way humans treated themselves. And change needed to happen on a large scale in the world of work.

Many people were on the verge of burnout; the corporate line of ‘do more with less’ took its toll on many. The stress, the fatigue, and the health of many were affected. I was one of them. I no longer loved what I did. I wanted more. And I wasn’t alone; many candidates I spoke to felt the same. They were feeling stressed, they wanted more of a work/life balance, and they no longer wanted to work the long hours. They wanted to spend more time with their family and friends, and the idea of commuting two or more hours a day became a chore.

In the last two years, we have all had a taste of a different way of working, some good, some not so good. And the common theme amongst all the women I have spoken to is that they want to change the way they do things. They want to take control of their careers, invest in themselves and work out what they actually want and why. They want to be more of who they are meant to be, do more of what they love, and have more in life.

What’s important to you, your career and your future self

It’s as simple as putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. 

Here are a few questions for you to consider when re-evaluating your career and life. The last couple of years would have given you insight into what you love and what you hate about your career, don’t hold back when you answer these questions. And be specific. The more specific you are, the clearer you will be on what you want. Don’t overthink it. Just write.

• Do I love my current role? Why do I love my current role? Why do I dislike my current role?
• When I perform my role, does it make me smile?
• What is important to me in my career and why?
• What do I need to be happy?
• Where do I see myself in the next five years? (a strange question I know given no one predicted this pandemic)
• What do I see myself doing in the next five years?
• What would I like to be doing?
• I don’t want to be working in xxxx in the next five years because………
• What am I prepared to compromise on when it comes to my career

So what’s next?

Create your very own career plan. 

Now that you have clarity on what it is you want, look at what you need to get there. For example, you can break it down into segments such as experience, learning, and exposure.

Learning – For example, do you need to update any certifications? Are there any tools, or systems that you need to learn to elevate your experience?

Experience – is there any on-the-job training you can do? Secondments? Volunteering?

Exposure – connect and work with a mentor at work or outside of work. Learn from other professionals in your industry via memberships, and professional associations and attend events or conferences.

You can have a career you love. One that you jump out of bed for and feel like you’re making a difference in the world.

I love that the women I work with prioritise their careers and future selves. They are discovering what has been holding them back and how they can work through it all. They all have a career strategy, and a job search strategy. They have clarity and are focused. They are thinking about their future self and working towards having a career they love. And they will be instrumental in paving the way for many other women who value their worth and their careers.

Intersted in chatting more about your career plan, click the link and book a no-obligation chat – https://calendly.com/hercareercoach/discovery-call-her-career-coach

Let your imagination run wild and imagine what your life would look like if you were in a career you love.

Images – Shutterstock