Most people fall in to their careers purely by accident. Suddenly they get to a stage in their lives when they think “how did I get here? And “how did I end up doing this?” More often than not, it isn’t what they really wanted to do in the first place and it seems almost impossible to think about doing something else now. So they continue along the path they were on at the risk of becoming more and more dissatisfied with their own career choice.
Could this be you?
What is important to remember, is YOU choose your career direction – it is not made for you it is created BY you.
Everything you have done until this very moment, whether it has been a conscious or unconscious decision, has been your decision.
The biggest and bravest decision to make now is whether to continue on this path or take a different direction.
To find out if you are doing the right job, ask yourself these 3 simple questions:
- If all jobs paid the same, what job would I do?
- If I knew I couldn’t fail, what job would I do?
- If I was given a magic wand and could create the job of my dreams, what would it be?
These questions give us permission to dream, to knock down the barriers we create for ourselves and to open and honest with ourselves about wht we really want.
What do your answers say about you?
If you are doing a job that really interests, motivates and inspires you, not only will you enjoy it and feel happier than you ever have, but you will ultimately become a success! Studies show that success does not necessarily translate in to financial reward (thought it’s always nice!) but is about doing something you enjoy, that gives you a sense of satisfaction and personal reward.
If your answers are indicating you are not doing something you want to do and you would like to do something different, well, why not start exploring what that might look like and think about how you can achieve it?
Career Coaching is about helping people to explore their transferable skills and identify what motivates them. It’s about exploring all the options and eliminating many of the barriers preventing them from realizing their career potential.
Here’s another little exercise you can try for yourself. Draw your ‘personal life line’ from left to right on a page and mark an “X” to show where you are on that line now. How far along the line is the “X”?
Consider what you have achieved until now and think about how much time has passed? What jobs have you done? What did you enjoy and what were your successes?
Next, look at what remains on the right of the “X”. Ask yourself, what do you want to achieve? How much time do you have to achieve that? If your earlier answers to the 3 questions indicated you’re not doing a job that really makes you happy, then perhaps it’s time to start thinking about what you would like to do and how you might be able to achieve it.
Career Coaching is not an overnight fix, and magic wands are in short supply. However, if you really want to change – you can. You are in control of your own career and ultimately you can always change direction.
Remember you only get so many trips around the sun, so make the most out of your life!
