Career paths are never straight lines…so learn to appreciate the curves
It’s almost mid-year. Will you have a career change before 2022?
Last year in the midst of WFH, I worked with many tech and finance professionals going through career transitions. Some had doubts about next steps, others turned down plum roles from competitors. But almost all had never taken any time to reflect on what they truly wanted or why they’d turned down a tempting role.
As I continue to work with clients navigating mid-career transitions, I’ve seen an array of resilience techniques to manage both positive and negative career events. A few bounce back well while others replay their perceived errors. Instead of arguing with reality, we should be more open to a transition -good or bad — and remember we’re more than one emotion.
What’s that old saying,
‘Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you react to it.
There are a number of ways to develop resilience, some predetermined by individual character, others can certainly be learnt. Here’s what I’ve observed this year:
· Optimism: seeing the best in situations
· Self Awareness: having confidence in your abilities
· Problem solving: viewing a situation as a problem to solve
· Support Seeking: connecting with a network of advisors or experts
Learning optimism — even when your job disappears — can be done. In Jane McGonigal’s book, SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully, she shares about the power of online gaming to combat stress, anxiety, depression and pain. The University of Pennsylvania found that playing the motivational app SuperBetter (a series of games and challenges) for more than a month increases optimism and can result in greater achievement of goals.
When in the throes of a job search, try a mental power up. Follow McGonigal’s suggestion to walk away from anything with a screen — (phone, tablet, computer, TV,) for ten minutes. The consider, what captured your attention in those ten minutes? Or shift to a strategy goal focusing your attention on learning something new. Use either one of these exercises to build greater mental resilience. A ‘gaming’ approach may sound escapist, but it goes beyond momentary relief; researchers found SuperBetter provided a structure to reduce anxiety and increase optimism.
These mental power ups develop your ability to gain a new perspective, by challenging your inner critic and re-framing pessimism. If you look back on your career, you’ve had many achievements, many experiences. If you’re in the middle of career change, McGonigal suggests to ask ‘’what’s been the most energizing and inspiring moments in my life so far?” Such a question can help you hone in on previous challenges which led to growth. When you’re feeling stuck in your career, go through a list of ‘power up’ exercises and see how it feels.
So what motivates resilient people? I’d say it’s adopting a challenge rather than viewing it as a burden or threat. A guarded mindset increases anxiety, whereas a challenge mindset gives the power to reach your goals with less stress or anxiety. Use any one of McGonigal’s exercises to stay the course with your career goals.
If you’re not a gamer, try a classic positive psychology hand-writing exercise. At the end of your day, write down, ‘’three good things” and make this a daily habit for one week. Based on another UPenn researcher, Martin Seligman and colleagues found this activity had positive impact on building resilience and well-being.
Each time a major (or minor) shift occurs: WFH, a promotion, losing a job, lock-down, — we’re off balance, which results in separation, transformation and emergence. When this happens, think back on a setback — either recent or past — in your career. Which resilience techniques did you use to get through? Which ones came easily that served you well?
We all have a preferred resilience mechanism. But even though we may have a natural inclination toward one tendency, it would be wrong to view them in isolation, as we all use multiple techniques to overcome setbacks. I’ve written about taking the path of most resistance, but that’s not for everyone, admittedly. Knowing how to appreciate and negotiate the unexpected, rather than shadow box, helps us balance more often.
