Take yourself back to when you were a child and were asked “what do you want to be when you’re older”. It was aspirational and magical (randomly mine was to be a ‘mummy clown’ whatever that is?!). And then as you progress through education into your first job, change companies, get promoted and potentially become a leader, the goal has always been ‘more’. A more senior title, more responsibility, more direct reports, more recognition and let’s be honest, more money.
But what’s missing from that equation? More for you.
Over recent months I have increasingly been having conversations where less may be more.
What do I mean by that? As careers develop, typically people are looking upwards through the business hierarchy and looking for that next step up. Heck, businesses are often built around ‘levels’ of their people. This may mean a bigger team, more visibility in the business, more commitment from you as an individual.
So what if we refined what success and progress is?
Perhaps being in a job that fulfils you is more important than a seemingly more senior title?
Is working 4 days a week to pursue your own interests, family time or hobbies more important than a pay rise?
Is having total flexibility and autonomy more important than climbing the ranks of leadership in a company?
Is being able to go and watch your kids school play on a Friday morning more important than meeting societal norms of being a successful business owner with huge teams & profits?
This trend appears to be a knock on effect from Covid. That time when we all had to stop in time, look inwards and reassess how work plays a part in our lives. And since then people are questioning is my job everything about who I am. Should it consume 80% of my brain power and or time? Should it dominate my life rather than just be a component of it that fulfils me rather than drain me?
In these conversations with my clients many have struggled to establish, accept and create a plan on what this means for them as it’s just such an alien concept of what we’ve been taught throughout our career. This has been further enhanced by an interesting book ‘Company of One’ where it brings to life the idea of smaller may be better when it comes to running a business.
Through coaching I have been helping people to identify what your motivators truly are, how they are achieved in your current life and what changes you may need to make to bring those aspirations to life.
Ultimately, I think it’s time for us to start to give ourselves permission that more doesn’t always equal success, and perhaps a career that is different to what we were taught as young adults is no longer what is best for us.
If you’d like help to establish what success looks like for you, get in touch and we can discuss how 121 coaching can help you redefine your career to work for you.
Fresh Edit LTD offer individual and business coaching specialising in female leadership. We offer 121 coaching to help with career development or career changes.