Hello May. Chapter 5 of 12.
May is named for the Roman goddess, Maia, who is known to be the goddess of spring and fertility. With May comes the budding flowers, bees pollinating and nature doing its thing -- slowly and perfectly on time.
One of my best sessions recently was with a client about the concept of building a plan to start looking for his next role. He had a vision and needed support creating a plan. An avid gardener, my client really connected with the stages of gardening -- preparation, planting, maintaining & harvesting. So, in the spirit of May & creating fertile opportunities, I’ll share how we broke it down.
Preparation -- Setting a vision for your garden. If you just start planting stuff, it’s most likely not going to go that well. There’s a lot of factors like: soil quality, sunlight, germination time, pest management! Job quests are very similar and the preparation is often the hardest part. When you jump into a job hunt without preparation, you can easily be swayed by a fancy title, marquis company or ‘what someone else thinks you should do’. You need to tap into your values to get clear on what’s driving your desire to look for a new opportunity. Here are a few things to think through:
-- Understand why you are looking for a change
-- Understand your vision, timing & when to start
-- Type of role/company/salary/culture
-- What tools/skills do you desire
-- Your values (aka what is most important to you at this stage of your career and life): ex: balance, financial security, flexible schedule, diverse leadership & equality, leadership opportunity, mission driven company, etc
Planting seeds -- Networking came up a bunch when we thought about planting seeds. To my client, it felt daunting, awkward and needy to connect with people after time had lapsed. We got curious about how planting the ‘networking’ seeds can be fun, easy & enjoyable. He responded that if he could be catching up with old friends/colleagues, it would create momentum and not feel like networking. He also said that if he could do it while walking outdoors, it would help him be more physically active -- another goal of his. Two birds.
Maintenance -- The hard part of creating a garden is having patience. Vegetables take a lot of energy and time to grow! There is also delayed gratification -- something that we’re not used to these days. So, when things are taking their sweet time, you need to know yourself enough to not lose hope or fizzle out. You need to know the signs -- what will make you procrastinate? Will you convince yourself that work is too busy and its not the right time? Or even worse, that the problems you see at work will go away. You need to trust that your timing is perfectly aligned and when you take the steps to get there, you will be rewarded.
Harvest -- This is an exciting time when you witness the growth and are ready to pick your crops. But, when is it the right time to harvest or accept the offer? You put a lot of pressure on yourself to get it right! This moment is when anxiety and doubt creeps in. Again, it comes down to knowing your true desires and what will be fulfilling to YOU... and no one else. You feel excitement, not nervous when your potential boss calls you. You want to learn from them. You would sit next to them on a plane ride. You have asked the important questions - without fear or shame - to make the best decision for yourself. And... if something doesn’t feel right...wait. I promise you that waiting will reveal more information.
So, my clients plan looked a lot like this:
Prep/Vision: He wants to enjoy the summer, travel & be with his family. He wants the job quest to be calm, strategic and focused on the right type of opportunities. He wants to be able to say no to roles that aren’t aligned with his values.
Planting: He wants to start interviewing in October for a potential Q1 start. He’s committed to working on this job search for 2 half days per week. This includes doing 2x ‘walk and connect’ dates per week. This also includes research on companies, leadership teams, moves his network is making, etc.
Maintenance: Consistency is key here. Asking for recommendations and referrals makes it action oriented for him. He is also very clear that he wants to approach people in a state of curiosity, not desperation. Also, by maintaining his physical/mental fitness, he knows that he will be overthinking less and taking more action.
Harvest: To be open for opportunities... he needed to know what he didn’t want. He didn’t need a large company to provide stability. He didnt want a transactional sales role. He wanted a stable role, direct connection to leadership team, strategic relationship with clients & flexibility as he raises his two small children with his wife. Damn, sometimes it can be so simple, right?!
Fast Company found that the majority (52%) of U.S. workers are considering a job change this year, and as many as 44% have actual plans in place to make the leap. If you need support getting clear on your next step, reach out to me for a complimentary session. https://schedulewithAliRay.as.me/intro
