How To Get Your Career Off The Ground

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How can we get our careers off the ground and going in the direction we want?

My son Ian left Dublin on Saturday morning for Orlando on his first ever business trip! He has two weeks of learning and adventure ahead. I am super excited for him.

With a few tears in my eyes steaming up my sunglasses, I said goodbye and gave him a big hug.

His trip prompted me to write about something many of us face in our lives. How to get our careers off the ground and going in the direction we want?

At present, you might be feeling a bit "meh" in your role. You might be feeling somewhat undervalued. You know you are capable of so much more but are stuck with what to do next or what direction to take.

That is okay! You are not alone in this regard.

A quick question for you staying in line with the theme of travel before I dive in.

When you are planning your holidays, what is the first thing you think about?

Destination, right?

Where do you want to go and why?

Who will you be when you get there?

What will it look and feel like?

Many people including myself in the past do not allow themselves to take off in their careers. The reason I see show up most is because they do not know who they want to be.

People ask you over and over since you were a kid, what do you want to be when you grow up? We should make a point of not asking kids this anymore. It is one of the worst questions you could ever ask a young person today.

Because the future of work is changing daily. Our attitudes towards our careers need to keep evolving.

What we should be asking is whom do you want to be when you grow up?

Or as most of us are grown-ups here now we should be asking ourselves on a regular basis:

Who am I?

The answer to this question will take its shape on the foundation of our values and beliefs.

Then the direction in which we choose to go will also lie in acknowledging that careers are non-linear. Non-linear career paths are now the norm.

You know that dream job, that one job for life, is actually kind of done, it’s over. Your career can go in any direction you choose if you are prepared to do the work and research needed to get it to take off.

Today it is quite possible you are not going to have one career, one dream job and one profession. We need to consider our thought process around who we are and how our work needs to evolve to compliment this.

Instead of looking at career paths or job titles it makes more sense to look "underneath" these derailers.

Consider what binds us and our careers together? 9 times out of 10 it will be our values and who we are.

Soon many jobs will face disruption or transition in some way. A former role could unlock many others career paths. Ones to world of opportunity and new direction.

Research has shown that when a person trains or works in one job they gain skills for 13 other jobs.

Many young and older generations are stuck training for and working in jobs that may not exist in the future. It is not a reason to be fearful or disheartened. We should look at it as an opportunity to learn more about who you are and what you can bring to the future of work.

The good news is we have moved on from this mindset and ladder of succession:

"Go to school, go to college, get a good job, work hard and if you’re ‘living the dream’, retire when you’re 65.”

You don't have to climb that ladder anymore. The world is our gym and playground to discover more. We are more inspired and open to change than ever, and more interested in what’s happening around us.

We all have the head and hearts to negotiate the direction our careers can go in and overcome any challenges that may show up in the process. Once we stay grounded in our values and who we when we start to take off.

How can you transfer your skill set and reach another career destination?

What direction do you want to go in?

What is the fist step that will allow you to get off the ground?

The sky’s the limit.

To finish consider this for reflection.

Perhaps the real question to ask ourselves when we wake up in the morning and as this new month begins is:

"What is the world that I want to create by being who I am?”

For more details on consulting packages see here . To book a ten minute complimentary call email me at pauline@paulineharley.com

Why It's Important to Create Purposeful Pivot Relationships.

How do you craft purposeful pivot relationships that keep you motivated and moving forward?

It's so important to have the right people around you in life and business. But even more so when you decide to make a significant transition. Whenever I’ve gone through a major life or career pivot, having these types of people by my side has been pure gold.

1. Someone who’s doing what you want to do.

I always try to surround myself with people whom I admire. Professionals who gain satisfaction from their work, and people who achieve their vision. To do so, I have had to be brave enough to reach out and ask for their help and advice. These powerful conversations provide me with a clearer picture of what I am getting into. But they also help me draw a more realistic road map of what it takes to break into my chosen industry. 

I am still pursuing my career in coaching and consulting building my practice day by day. One successful career coach suggested I invest in getting more business mentoring and skills. I was ready to spend more time and money into gaining more coaching credentials. But I don't need these at present. However, I did need business mentoring. I missed that piece for a while! It's okay I am only human.

I completed a digital marketing qualification to further my branding and message. This has been of great benefit to me and the business. It has informed my work and also reinforced my credibility. It has been valuable advice. I have gained more knowledge thanks to their advice and perspective.

2. Someone you admire who has followed an alternative and different career path.

Everyone’s career path is individual to them. There’s no right or wrong way to go about your career. You have to trust your gut. Reality is employers and recruiters can favor candidates who have clear-cut career stories. Ones that don't take a lot of explaining.

But who wants to be boring? I teach people how to tell their career stories with a good narrative to grab the right kind of attention!

So have you’ve decided to step off a traditional career path? Then connect with people who have taken courageous steps in their careers. It will help remind you that what you’re seeking is possible. They can remind you that the difficulties you’re running into are normal.

3. A good friend who doesn’t work in your chosen industry.

When I decided to walk away from my insurance career in 2015, there were people in the industry who didn’t understand why I made this choice. They wondered why I would not return to the profession in another role. 

Working in any environment for a significant period of time can mold you to think a certain way. Often in ways, you don’t realize at the time. We can all fall into the trap of focusing on a job title or having a certain salary defined as a measure of success. 

That’s why reconnecting with a good friend outside your industry is key. A friend who plays by a different set of rules and can help you gain a fresh perspective. And one that can help you determine whether what you’re focused on matters to you.

I have had many conversations with good friends that help ground me in my true aspirations. A good friend can remind you of who you used to be when you were happier and more energised. They can help you reality-check whether the move you’re considering is in line with the person you want to become.

Navigating any transition is a very personal journey. I am someone who’s not always great at asking for help. I sometimes feel like I have to figure it all out on my own. During these confusing times when I’ve made a point to reach out to the people above, I gained more clarity and focus.

As Jim Collins advocates in Good to Great, first, if you begin with “who,” rather than “what,” you can more easily adapt to a changing world. Remember having the right people in your circle can speed up your change.

For more details on consulting packages see here . To book a ten minute complimentary call email me at pauline@paulineharley.com

The Life-Changing Magic of Losing Your Shit and Getting It Back Again.

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Have you lost your magic? Do you believe you can get it back?

Despite all the courage I can muster, the fact is that losing your health and happiness for over 12 years sucked. I work with people on life and career pivots and transitioning because of my experience. I always say don't let my past become your future. 

The irony is though without that past I would not be here sharing this blog post with the world. 

Truth is, however, something of this magnitude is traumatic. Years on from it all and having regained it all back I still feel the panic. Even when I write about my experiences there is a tightness in my body.

It is still there the reality that I could lose it all again. You take nothing for granted but you grant yourself space and grace to keep it this way. 

But that takes hard work. It takes showing up even when you don't want to. It takes being vulnerable. It takes being able to adapt to change. I am always evolving for the better on a physical and emotional level.

I compare myself to shapeshifter! A bit magical and mystical in my ability to transform my physical and mental shape or form.

It comes with my nutrition and training knowledge! Every time I train to build or cut similar to my former bodybuilding background I reveal or add on layers.

In each of these layers, I discover something more valuable about myself. Being able to manipulate my training and nutrition to achieve a certain physical shape is probably more science than magic! But in my world that magic is my medicine.

I am privileged to be able to do that. I have the backup of people who believe in me to sustain and maintain this state of well being. An important point to note here is to stick with the people who pull the magic out of you and not the madness! 

I take full responsibility for losing my shit. The truth is, losing things that matter most is a harsh reminder that circumstances can change in an instant. 

For me, it’s left a long adrenaline hangover that makes my thoughts frantic at times and my focus a bit distracted. 

It makes life uncertain. But, isn't that the way it is supposed to be? Without uncertainty, there is no risk. Without risk, there are no answers. I ask myself these questions a lot about my life, health and my business. The fear is real. 

What if I lose it?

Will I get it back?

I replay how it might happen in a thousand different ways. But somewhere amidst the fear and frustration and guilt is the adrenaline fix of having to start all over again. 

And I know I can. So can you.

As I grow older, my transitions from one stage of my life to the next have become less hurried. Rather than full-on restarts, change now looks like layers. The layers I spoke of before. Ones that I add on in a slow and controlled manner and then peel away. 

This grounds me in the reality that anything worth having takes time but is possible.

It is also a reminder of what’s fragile, and what’s robust. We as humans are resilient if we reinforce our belief in ourselves. I remind myself that losing my shit even though it sucked is the ultimate version of reinvention. 

Life can be brutal at times. It takes things away at random. Then it makes you fight to get them back so that you remember and reaffirm the value of each one. So each new week and month, I start over and over again, and I peel away more layers to reveal something new and more magic as I write this. 

What magic have you lost that you want to work on getting back? 

For more details on consulting packages see here .

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