Do you think then do or do then think? How do you become?
“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he,” says Proverbs 23:7. But what if the heart tells you, you have outgrown your role, feel stagnant, are ready for change, yet you are unsure how different should look like? What if neither your heart nor your mind tells you what to do next; what then?
I have met colleagues and clients who felt that way. Looking for a way to help them find their path in those situations was one of two reasons I began to learn how to coach.
Accepting the above statement (Think>Do/Become) stipulates that thinking is the foundation for our actions, choices, and identity – for what we become. Following that thought, I encouraged clients to reflect, use diagnostic assessments, participate in visualisation exercises. While helpful on many levels (appreciation of strengths, identification of values, realisations of the options they did not want to choose, or a picture of the future they desired), at times these exercises were not sufficient. Introspection can take us only so far if we are aiming for a big turn. We do not know what we do not know. Sometimes, to make progress, my clients had to take action first – their commitment became to experiment, experience, and explore new identities (Do/Become). Then think and reflect on lessons learned. The importance of experimenting was even more profound when they aimed for a career change, as crafting experiments is one of the cornerstones of building a new identity.
Herminia Ibarra, a professor at London Business School, wrote a fascinating book on the topic: “Working Identity”. If your reading list is already long, I recommend you make yourself a cup of team and have a 5-min read of one of her articles: Reinventing Your Career in the Time of Coronavirus.
Reinventing Your Career in the Time of Coronavirus (hbr.org).
Enjoy, but more importantly – START DOING SOMETHING NEW THIS WEEK – craft your career options!
And if you do give it a try, let us know what you have been up to!