Hi there Reader,
Welcome to this edition of Meaningful eMail with the most recent takeaway and updates linked here at the top, and then a full article for your consideration.
Grab what's helpful today, then save others for future reference. You never know when you or someone in your network could use a boost!
Recent Takeaways & Updates
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Top Takeaways: Presence by Amy Cuddy
Excellent book for owning your story, building confidence and presence!
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Support For Helene Survivors
For those affected by Hurricane Helene, I'm offering pro bono coaching sessions. If it's you, or someone you know, just get this email back to me in a reply or forward and I'll do what I can to get the right support for the person and situation.
Let's Explore
What's your story?
For years, you've been at the top of your corner of the industry. People know you for your expertise, you're sought after for advice and counsel. Your resume & LinkedIn profile tells us about your past, yet you want a different future.
A future where you can stretch your wings, have a more authentic fit between you and your work, where you can make a positive impact - even if it means a change in direction, role, industry.
As you move through that process, being able to make sense of this change - for yourself and as you talk to others - turns out to be a pretty big deal. How do you describe what's happening? How do you tell others what you want when you may not even know yourself?
Let's take a look at that today, starting with why having a story is important, some ideas to put into action and some resources to go deeper.
What a story can do for you
1) Your story helps you believe in you.
Stories help us make sense of the various events we go through, the questions we ask and the future we're creating.
Any career shifts we go through seem to challenge our identities and perceptions, but certainly the bigger the shake-up the wider we seem to wake-up. We see, feel and think differently. We question just about damn near everything.
Framing these identity and perception shifts in a story help us find some sort of reason or common thread to hang on to.
2) Your story helps others believe in and then help you.
Our network WANTS to help us. They see us daring to push limits. They admire our courage to go for it. They want to be a part of it in some way. Having a story they can hold on to, a story they can tell others even, will help them connect you to others. And not just any connections, but connections who resonate with your story.
How to craft your story
(Spoiler alert) You're already doing it.
I get it - it's hard to craft the story when you don't know how it ends.
But it's crucial to craft your story even when it doesn't feel finished. You can't wait 'til it's got a happy ending. Heck at that point, you may not even need your network.
So crafting your story for now is what we're going for.
The events you're going through during this transition, the experiences & wisdom you've gained, the ways you naturally interact with others and the common threads tying them all together are all coalescing whether you realize it or not.
In Working Identity a book about strategies for reinventing careers, Herminia Ibarra tells us a good career reinvention story shares these elements:
- it explains why we must reinvent ourselves
- it describes who we are becoming
- it lays out how we will get there
It's evolving
Before those perfectionist tendencies kick in (what? a plan?! I don't even know what type of role yet?!), she also shows us these stories are always evolving. They start with the slightest bits of information and as we move through the career transition, as we share our story, that story will keep getting refined.
Each activity, event, person we meet, job shadow we go on, informs our options and refines our story.
She also reminds us that what we make of the event is more important than the event itself.
And often, those insights - the 'what we make of it' - come to us when we are relaxed, focused on something other than ourselves, or doing something out of character.
What you know now
You likely know the reason why you're going through this transition, so the first of those three elements is something you can put your hands on.
Who you are becoming is also something you have an idea of. It might still be vague and nebulous, but there's some shape to it. It's OK to talk about the idea of it to people, even share with them that it's still taking shape, but that you know you want something to change.
How you will get there can also start off with very broad ideas. Ideas like: learning, training, retreats, coaching, networking, interning, etc. As you move through the process and those big ideas get more refined, you can start sharing specific steps as a part of your story.
How to get started
- Get down to your core, your essence. Forget titles, skills, employers, industries. Look for the common threads throughout your career and your life - especially the moments, activities and interactions with others you enjoy and other people find endearing
- Collect 3 - 5 adjectives or qualities people most often use to define you
- List the habits or customs which are foundational to the reputation you wish to build
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Every week or so journal about:
- why you're wanting to do something different
- who you want to become
- how you see yourself getting there
Your story starts today
Celebrate what you've done to get to this point!
- Deciding to grow.
- Taking a brave, bold step to go for it.
- Doing the hard work of self-discovery, of facing uncertainty, all because you know you are not done yet.
There is so much more for you and for your impact. Grab your pen, brush or chisel & hammer and embrace your mid-career renaissance where it is right now. Craft your story and watch it become a work of art!
To go deeper
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Check out these books:
- Wisdom @ Work by Chip Conley.
You can start with my LinkedIn video or my blog post.
- Working Identity by Herminia Ibarra. Here's my LinkedIn video and blog post.
- Take advantage of my complimentary 30-minute calls to try out your story with me! Use this link to select a time that works best for you.
- Special coaching offer for the last two months of 2024: Unlimited sessions during Nov & Dec for one flat rate. Reply back to take advantage of the offer and you'll start '25 off strong!
