Are you desperately in need of a change – Career or otherwise?
Despite having the spouse, the house, the kids, and the show dog, you feel guilty and frustrated for not being totally satisfied
Don’t worry, you are not having a midlife crisis!!
You are just experiencing a turning point. It’s is a natural thing that happens to us all every 7 to 10 years.
Don’t panic and don’t ignore that feeling of discontentment. And whatever you do, please ignore your friends and family who keep telling you to be happy and stop complaining. You will have to forgive them. Because, honestly they don’t know what the hell they are talking about.
I do. I’ve been there. More importantly, I’ve helped many clients through this safely.
So let me share what I’ve learned along the way. A turning point is a powerful signal from within that an important part of you needs more expression. What is crying for attention is an underutilized strength or natural ability. Maybe its is an important value that you are not honoring, like creativity or authenticity.
The good news is that it does not require a huge change to find the fulfillment for which you long. The bad news is there is no magic pill or quick fix. It will require some careful introspection and thoughtfulness. Don’t do like the faint of heart and screw this up by ignoring your gut on this.
That nagging feeling of discontent is exactly the energy you will need to power through to get to some important clarity.
Below are three things that the smart and persistent will do to emerge happier and more fulfilled:
One: Go Inward and do the self-reflection work.
Here is a great tool, the Career Navigator to get you started. I also encourage you to check out this book, Don’t Waste Your Talents. It will walk you through steps to find more clarity and fulfillment. At times it will feel like a long and lonely road, but it is worth it.
Two: Go get professional help.
Yes, for those of you who want a Sherpa to guide you on your self discovery journey, I suggest finding a qualified career coach. I recommend the Highlands Company because they have awesome consultants trained on using the Highlands Ability Battery (HAB) which will help you to identify with laser sharp precision your natural abilities. Disclaimer: I am a Highlands Certified Consultant. This investment is a little bit more. The payoff, is walking out the next 7 to 10 years doing work you love and probably making more money.
Three: Go find your tribe.
Because most of us learn when we are surrounded by like minded people, I recommend you find a good support network for this journey. Your current friends might lack the objectivity and patience to properly guide you. You will need a dedicated and objective support group to make the most progress. I will be putting together a mastermind group for those who are looking for a tribe to take the ride with.
So what’s the bottom-line? Most people will ignore their own voice and internal signals of distress to just go along and get along. The result is they fall into the masses of people who have no passion for their work and live for the weekends. Do you really want to work another 33,000 hours only partially fulfilled.? God, I hope not.
Step out of the pack. Take one of three actions I outlined above. You will absolutely thank me for this.
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