Why I created my online career change course
The next round of The Career Change Formula is coming up soon, and I wanted to share with you why I created this online programme.
Six years ago I started my career coaching business. I went part time in my old job at first, seeing clients on the days I had free. I started to get a sense of the clients I loved to work with and who loved to work with me.
They were mostly mid-career women, some with kids and some without, who were incredibly hard working, and had a lot to offer their organisations and the industries they worked in.
They also really wanted to make a difference and find work that they cared deeply about, as well as creating a better work life balance for themselves and their loved ones.
However, they were often plagued by self-doubt and lack of confidence. They weren't making time to go after their dreams, their potential wasn't being recognised at work and they weren't finding ways to express and share their ideas.
And this was hard to see as a Coach. And as a woman. Because there were many clients, and indeed friends of mine, who were in a similar situation.
And I recognised it in myself too. The self-doubt at times, the negative inner voices, and the holding back from going after deeply held goals and dreams.
So I decided to really niche in to working with women who want to find meaningful work they love.
I ended up broadening the scope of what I worked on with clients, so that we considered their lives and careers as a whole.
My 1:1 programme took them along series of steps which look deeply at who the client is, what their values and strengths are and what gives them a sense of purpose. They also work on how to build their self-confidence and lean on their most 'powerful self'.
And I lengthened the amount of time we spent working together, because a career change and self-discovery journey takes time and reflection, and isn't something that can be 'fixed' in a handful of sessions.
A few years in, I was getting more and more feedback from women saying that they would love to work with me 1:1 but really struggled with finding the time and juggling everything else in their busy lives.
So I started to wonder if I could create a self-study online version of my programme especially for them, which offered more flexibility and still gave them the coaching support from me which is so crucial to staying on track and working through any obstacles along the way.
And so The Career Coaching Formula was born! A 12 week online course which you can study at your own pace fitting it around your job, kids or general busy life. And crucially it includes access to a closed Facebook support group for people on the course, where you can ask me questions and also network with other participants on a similar career change journey.
Over the next two weeks I'll be talking more in-depth about what's included and how it all works, so stay tuned! xx
How to gain the one thing you want most in your career
How’s your July going so far? Are you following the Olympics? 🏅
I watched a documentary on BBC iPlayer the other day about the rower Helen Glover, called The Mother Of All Comebacks. It follows her journey to retrain for the Tokyo Games after having retired in 2016 to start a family. Her training schedule is absolutely gruelling, especially when you throw 3 young children into the mix including breastfeeding twins!
It’s an absolutely inspiring watch which I highly recommend, and it made me stop and reflect on personal drive and determination. What does it take to keep pursuing a goal, despite all the obstacles and challenges that life throws at you?
Can you think of a time when you went after something you really wanted and made it happen no matter what? How did you deal with any setbacks? How did you feel when you finally made it?
Reflecting on your past achievements can be a really powerful way to boost your confidence. And by remembering what has worked for you in the past, it can help you build a strong foundation for the future.
Tell me, what are you really proud of achieving?
Are you living reactively or consciously?
I was chatting with a client recently who had made the big decision over the festive period to go for it and start her own business after spending many years in the corporate world. Around the same time, she was also approached by a rival to her old employer, who offered her a very similar role to her previous one and which was also based closer to where she lives.
Initially she was flattered and excited. She knew she would be able to perform the role well and it was a tempting prospect to have a shorter commute. However something didn't feel right.
She checked back in with her values. And her newly discovered strengths. She thought about her clear vision for her future, and the kind of career and life she wanted to purposely create. And she realised that going back to this role would be precisely that... going backwards.
And she herself had changed. She had more confidence now. She understood what the fears in her head were that had stopped her before. She could identify them when they cropped up and had strategies for dealing with them. She felt excited about the future and wanted to see what she was truly capable of.
And so she turned the job offer down. Which wasn't easy. Sometimes it's hard to say "no" because we feel like we're letting others down. But if you spend too much timing pleasing others and saying "yes" to them, that can come at the cost of saying "no" to yourself.
She said YES to herself and is now getting her brand new business ready to launch. She made a conscious choice, based on her new goals and her vision for the future, and feels 100% more empowered because of it.
There's a quote I love by baseball Yogi Berra which says "If you don't know where you're going, you might end up some place else".
What that's really about is making conscious choices about the kind of life and career you really want to have, instead of reacting to daily events out of fear, insecurity, or worrying about other people's opinions.
So this week pay attention to the opportunities and decisions which come your way, and each time just pause for a moment to consider what you REALLY want. After that, you can make a conscious choice instead of a reactive choice, and will feel 100% more empowered because of it.
Speak soon,
Juliette
