First, Rediscover your own story!
The longer you can look back, the farther you can look forward. Sir Winston Churchill
What are the reasons behind your career move? In the previous blog we shared understanding what fuels the move. This is a crucial part of the discovery process. In this blog we will look at the next crucial part, your unique story until now.
As Winston Churchill mentions, one has to take stock first before you can look forward and design your next move. This looks back is all about rediscovering your story. You have a beautiful story. Whatever the next chapter will look like, it will still form part of your story. Our stories are not just inspiring but reveals golden nuggets of wisdom. This wisdom helps us make future decisions, especially decisions connected to our careers. Rediscovering your story will do the following:
- It reveals your inner motivation. Inner motivation goes beyond salary increases and job perks. It is what drives us internally, in times of turbulence and crises and even beyond this.
- It reveals our unique potential. Your story until now reveals a beauty you created. It exhibits the potential you lived until now and highlights possibilities for the future.
- It gives you hope. Maybe you do not know where to turn. Your working environment is toxic and you just want out, but you do not know where to go. Rediscovering your story will give you hope.
There are some key areas to consider when rediscovering your unique story.
- Take stock of your experiences. Experiences are as valuable as qualifications and degrees. Make a list of all your work experiences. Dive deep into the detail and write down the facts of these experiences and the value add that grew from the experience. You might just find new motivation from these experiences you forgot about.
- Take stock of your successes and talents. Success does not just happen. Success comes from the application of our talents. What are the talents that made you successful? What motivated you to achieve this success? Was the motivation, external or internal? Make sure not to distort talents from character traits. Discipline and perseverance are character traits, talents are strategic thinking, managing, mechanical skills, etc. Contact us if you want to buy the skills assessment or game.
- Take stock of your career crises. We learn as much from crises, if not more, than from successes. What crises have you had and what did you learn from it? What are the lessons you take from your crises?
- Take stock of your values. Values are the inner drivers of our life decisions, actions and habits. What do you value in life? Why do you value in life?
Now that you have rediscovered your story, summarize the key nuggets. From your story, choose your top 5 in each of the 4 areas mentioned above. The top 5 should be the things that stand out the most for you. It is the elements that energizes you the most. Take time to embrace what you have written and accepting your story as your story.
In the next blog we will start looking into the future. For now, enjoy rediscovering your beautiful story and sharing it with others.
Order your copy of Creative Life Planning today and start exploring your next career move. Contact our office at office@xpand-sa.com for more information on career coaching.
