Carina’s Story: No Longer Going in Circles
Needing a Change
I liked some stuff that I was doing at work, but not a lot and not enough of it to justify staying where I was. With the full understanding that no job is perfect, I wanted a job where I didn’t go in everyday and just feel drained and exhausted. I was dealing with a lot of burnout. And I think part of the burnout was because I wasn’t being fulfilled by a number of the things I was doing.
It takes a lot out of you to be trying to figure out what to do next. I was asking, “Do I just not like where I am? What do I want to do? How do I know?” I didn’t really have that sense of direction.
I realized I just kept going in circles of getting into figuring things out and getting stuck. On my own I just hit a bunch of walls.
Cost was always a thing with the coaching, but I kept reasoning that if I find a job that I like that will eventually pay me more then that’s an investment in myself for the long term and also for my mental health.
I thought it would be helpful to have some kind of support system to get guidance to really just know what questions to ask to get me on the right path. It’s like people who get a personal trainer at the gym. Could you go to the gym? Yeah, but if you have to report to somebody and actually do something, that just works for me personally.
Also, when you talk to friends and family they have their own experiences and they’ve known you for so long. Despite anyone’s best efforts to give you an unbiased opinion, having a neutral 3rd party certainly helps.
Finding a Sense of Direction
I wasn’t starting from zero. I know some folks probably come into this like I have no idea. I had some idea. Through the process I was able to find a related field to what I thought I wanted to do. It’s super helpful to have that sense of direction. Now I’m applying for jobs and I feel comfortable that I would like this. I have some sense of direction rather than just looking for jobs and being like anywhere but here.
What helped me was having that structure and having some guidelines to follow and someone to bounce ideas off. I personally found that even when I didn’t have a call I would at least email my coach on a weekly basis so it was nice to check-in to share where I was at and where I was going.
The other thing too that I’ve found in retrospect is having someone recognize your own success throughout your journey. It’s hard for me personally to step back and go, “Oh, I’ve come a long way.” It’s nice to get that validation that you’re making progress because I feel like with most things it’s hard to see your own progress along the way.
Career coaching is like having a cheerleader with you to remind you of your success and to have someone to talk with you when you’re feeling stressed. Having that support but then also having the structure and the accountability. With something like this you get out what you put into it, so I tried to make sure I was really putting into it.
Right now I have a good sense of what I would like to do. I have that path ahead. I’m in the job hunting stage. The field I’m pivoting into isn’t too far off and I have some transferable skills. I feel comfortable looking for jobs.
I always got the sense that if I had other questions or needed extra help the coach was there. My coach has been there even after my program. The fact that they’re still there for the final stretch has been nice.
Would You Like to Get Unstuck?
