What kind of jigsaw is your ideal work?

People often find it difficult to define their ideal work because they can’t imagine the big picture or easily define all the elements that make up the grand vision.

I often liken finding your ideal work to creating a jigsaw without initially having the box with the whole picture on it. Because you don’t have the complete picture to work with you have to become more creative and use different rules, and in the beginning you have to let go of the question “what exactly is this a picture of”? If you think of the finished picture as the overall job title then you can see why people are held back in their discovery process because they try to define their job title first without having all the the pieces that make up the big picture.

Just forget for a moment, the need to know the specific job title on your business card or position in a company and imagine you are in a really fulfilling job. What are all the elements that make up that job? When you build your big picture up from the outside in, you can begin to gradually piece together the different elements that make up your ideal work. These will include:

• Environment – location, setting, pace
• People – With teams or alone, what types of people?
• Culture – traditional, fast-paced, growing, stable?
• Skills and talents – that you have and want to use or grow
• Passions
• Values
• Ideal Outcomes – what will make you feel fulfilled and satisfied at the end of each day?
• Contribution – What contribution do you want to make and on what scale?
• Lifestyle
• Responsibility – how much, at what level?

What does your ideal career jigsaw look like?

When you are stuck with your career and trying to make important decisions about which direction to take, it can be really difficult to work it out by yourself. And although friends and family are well-meaning it's difficult for them to be really objective and to ask you the kind of questions that will really move you forward and help you to create the clarity, confidence and courage you need to find the work you love.

If you are not yet ready for 1-to-1 coaching or you are looking for a low-cost solution to get you unstuck, highly motivated, confident and moving forward with a clear purpose and direction, then look no further!

This one-day Career Clarity workshop will help you to:

√ Understand your criteria for your ideal work and how to use them as your ‘compass’ on your career journey

What is your motivation direction and what triggers you into action? Do you move Towards an objective or Away From problems to be solved or prevented? Do you avoid unpleasant situations or do you know what you want and go for it?

Are you good at identifying all of the potential drawbacks of a plan or do you dive in and find out about the problems later?

The direction of your motivation is simply - do you move Towards good things or Away From bad things?

It's important to remember that your motivation may change in different contexts, for example you may have an Away From pattern at work and a Toward pattern in your relationships.

Understanding this about yourself and your team members at work is critical to great communication and team work. People with an Away From motivation can often be seen as overly critical and negative whilst those with a strong Toward motivation can seen as naive by others because they don't consider potential problems with a project or a plan. In any project or team both types have an important role to play in the overall success of a project and the business as a whole.

Toward

If you have a toward pattern in a given context, you are focused on your goals and think in terms of goals to be achieved. You are motivated to have, get, achieve and attain and you get excited by your goals. If you have a toward pattern you may have trouble identifying problems with a goal and not take potential obstacles into account.

Away-from

If you have a away-from pattern your motivation is triggered by solving problems and you will notice what needs to be avoided and got rid of. If you have this pattern you are likely to be energised by deadlines and threats (i.e. the stick as opposed to the carrot). You will be good at troubleshooting, solving problems and pinpointing possible obstacles during planning. Away from people have some difficulties managing priorities because whatever is wrong will attract much of their attention

Think about how you can use this information to understand yourself and your team better.

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Many people are surprised at the idea of a coach having their own coach and they imagine that purely by being a coach and having coaching skills you must have everything sorted! Of course having a powerful set of tools to help with your own personal and professional development is great, but just like anyone else we also get 'stuck' and need help with career & business direction, planning our future and breaking through any barriers that may be holding us back.

When I'm planning my business strategy or have a new idea for a product or service then It's really important for me to have an objective sounding board for my thoughts and ideas and someone who will gently challenge me to do and be more than I would on my own. It's also a huge motivator to take action on things that you may have been procrastinating on or things that you don't enjoy quite as much as others. It can often be difficult to see beyond our own self-imposed boundaries and a good coach can help you broaden your vision in addition to motivating you to 'just do it' rather than wondering 'what if' and doing nothing about it.

When I first experienced coaching, I found it difficult to see what it was the coach had actually done - one moment I felt confused and lost and the next day I felt that anything was possible, and it was only later when training as a coach myself that understood the HOW and the magic behind the 'conversations'.

Clients say that although friends and family want to help, it's hard for them to be objective and they are often 'advising' from their own personal perspective and values, and can find it difficult to really step into your shoes and ask the right questions. People often say that the same thoughts seem to go round and round in their heads without them ever reaching a conclusion or being able to decide what action to take. Sometimes it can be virtually impossible to find clarity and direction by yourself, you need someone to ask you the questions you haven't asked yourself, help you understand what may be holding you back and motivate you to take action and break through any fears.

So, whatever your profession, experience, skill or business a coach can help to move your forward in the way that's exactly right for you.

Are you in a career crisis? Many people describe a career crisis as a crucial or decisive point in their career, perhaps a turning point and a time when they have to make some big career changes - either forced or 'voluntary'. If you are reading this then perhaps you are at that stage yourself.

For me the word crisis is also quite an emotional word and one that implies some level of urgency about the situation. When we find ourselves in highly (negative) emotional states it can be hard to think clearly and objectively about the choices we have available to us and some often simple, but effective and positive action we could take to move us forward.

Sometimes it can even be difficult to define what we actually mean by a career crisis and personally I find writing down my thoughts and questions and ideas is a great way to determine where the problem actually lies. Why not try writing down what it is that's causing this pain or crisis and what options have that will enable you to change your situation for the better or at least takes positive steps towards it. Who or what can help you?

Ask yourself what does career success really mean for you personally and how could you achieve it? Success is very personal, and we often feel trapped or perhaps fearful by what we imagine to be the global meaning for success - i.e. material wealth, status, moving up the corporate ladder etc. For some people success just means enjoying what they do and looking forward to going to work each day, for others is may mean being home by 6pm everyday to have dinner with their family. Define success on your terms, what does it mean for you?

If you need help moving forward with your career then you may wish to contact me for a free consultation.

Warmest regards

Jenny

career advice  |  careers advice  |  career coach  |  career change  |           business coach  | surrey walks