This week, I noticed an interesting theme emerging in my coaching sessions that I felt compelled to share with you. Several of my clients found themselves facing what we might call career crises - one had experienced unexpected resignations in his business, another faced similar disruptions. These moments, particularly when you're already questioning your direction, can really throw you off balance.
A different approach to crisis
Despite my usual emphasis on long-term vision work, I've observed that when we're in these moments of career turbulence, fixating on the bigger picture isn't always helpful. Instead, what I'm seeing is the vital importance of acknowledging that these situations take something out of us.
The recovery pause
I was working with a client recently after an IPO didn't materialise. The team wanted to maintain the same intense pace they'd been working at, but here's the thing - sometimes we need to actively choose to operate at normal capacity, or even slightly under, for a while. As I've seen repeatedly in my coaching practice, if we don't take this pause, we risk:
- Losing our motivation
- Becoming detached from our work
- Showing those early warning signs of burnout
The strengths question
Once you've handled the immediate situation and given yourself that crucial breathing space, I recommend asking yourself this key question: "Am I using my strengths every day at work? Am I using my signature strengths each week?"
We often get caught up in what our work 'should' look like or what feels worthy, but I've found that when our daily work utilises our best strengths - our 'zone of genius' - we can find deep satisfaction in our roles. It connects directly to what we know about intrinsic motivation and self-determination: those core psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and belonging.
Practical steps forward
If you're not sure about your signature strengths, I'd recommend two options:
- The VIA Strengths Finder - a free online assessment that looks at your full-life strengths
- The Gallup StrengthsFinder - a paid option that's particularly good for workplace context, giving you your top five strengths in professional language
A final thought
If you're at that stage where you're tempted to "throw out the baby with the bathwater" when it comes to your work, try this approach:
1. Take some genuine space to regroup
2. Explore whether you're getting to do what lights you up each day
3. Give yourself time to build more of these strength-based activities into your role
I've seen this work time and again - when we create space to use our signature strengths, we're in a much better position to make those bigger picture decisions from a place of clarity rather than crisis.
If this resonates with you, or if you're facing your own career crisis right now, do connect with me on LinkedIn. And if you'd like to explore your signature strengths more deeply, my Vision Builder programme might be just what you need.
To catch up on the full episode, you can listen to the podcast at:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-executive-coach-c-suite-career-planning-goals/id1463542602 (Apple Podcasts)
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