𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗶𝗱-𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗶𝘃𝗼𝘁 𝗜𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗮 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘀 — 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

Feeling panicked and ready to know clear next steps?

After over 12 years guiding established professionals through massive career transitions, I can tell you this: you cannot 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 your way out of a threat response. You have to 𝘢𝘤𝘵 your way out - with a structured system.

Coach Dawn ready for change.

Here are some steps, based on the model of our Signature Pivot plan.

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭: 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗧𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 "𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲."

Your first instinct is to make a huge, high-stakes decision:

  • "What's my next career?"

  • “How can I quickly tweak my resume to fix the market?”

  • “Should I just go back to school?”

Resist.

These often feel like the first decision, but they’re not.

You need to first get clear on your values, your priorities, the lifestyle you need, and what’s going to help you feel you’re doing work that is aligned, purposeful, fulfilling, and sustainable. The idea of ‘starting from scratch’ at this age is probably terrifying. But this process is almost always faster and more fulfilling then the alternative.

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮: 𝗠𝗮𝗽 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 "𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼-𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀", 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻.

The idea of a "master plan" right now is overwhelming. So let's not build one. Instead, we're going to look at three of the paths your mind is likely already cycling through, but we're going to approach them differently, and identify tiny, concrete steps that work with your brain.

Our brains are wired to fall back on your old familiar patterns, and generally when navigating a monumental transition, we either put our “fantasies” aside and grab the closest thing to waft across our radar (often leading us to repeat the whole cycle in a year or two), or dive into a longing we’ve had, overwhelm ourselves, then fall back on the familiar. Doing tiny action steps instead allows our brains to take in new information, then to build on exponentially without reverting back to our old ways.

𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝟭: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝗯𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 '𝗢𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿' 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵. This is the path closest at hand. It's generally some version of doing the same thing you've been doing, but for someone else. It looks good on a resume, and your inner critic will likely scream that this is the "responsible" choice.

𝗧𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: This isn't about firing off 50 applications. It's about finding one company that seems interesting and identifying one person you could have a conversation with.

𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝟮: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵. This is the one where you know, with the right contacts and leverage, you'd be brilliant at it. It's a stretch. It excites you and terrifies you in equal measure.

𝗧𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: It's not about quitting your job to pursue it. It's about booking a 30-minute call with someone who is already doing it. Just to listen. Just to learn.

𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝟯: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗹𝘆 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘀𝘆. This is the dream. Maybe it's what you wanted to be at 12, or the thing you mention as a joke after two glasses of wine. It feels completely out of reach, and you might be embarrassed to even say it out loud.

𝗧𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: We don't update our LinkedIn to 'Aspiring Astronaut.' We watch a documentary. We read a book about it. We take one tiny step that honors the dream without requiring you to bet the farm on it.

By taking a micro-action on each path, you're not committing. You're gathering data. You're quieting the panic and creating momentum, which gives you the clarity to see which path actually feels right.

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯: 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲.

This is the step most career coaches miss, and it's the reason so many people land in "better" jobs that still feel empty. Before you even think about your LinkedIn profile, you have to get radically clear on your core values.

I have clients reflect on this: "When I am the best version of myself, at my deepest core essence, I embody: _________, _____, and _____."

When you are at your best, do you exude warmth? Confidence? Leadership? Innovation? Creativity? Problem-solving? Love?

The next time you need to make a difficult decision, you can ask yourself which choice is likely to be in more alignment with these core values. 𝘈 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶. 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘪𝘷𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘴.

So honored that one client recently shared:

"𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘐 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘰 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵. 𝘉𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤, 𝘐 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯'𝘴 𝘱𝘪𝘷𝘰𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘈𝘔𝘈𝘡𝘐𝘕𝘎. 𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘮𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘱-𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘦? 𝘠𝘦𝘴. 𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘻𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨? 𝘈𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘺𝘦𝘴. 𝘈𝘕𝘋 -- 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘚𝘖 𝘔𝘜𝘊𝘏 𝘔𝘖𝘙𝘌. 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯'𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. ...𝘐 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘴𝘵'𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱....” — on Yelp

A layoff or unexpected transition can be a brutal shock, but can also be a rare opportunity to stop running on autopilot and build a career and a life that is an authentic expression of who you are.

This framework is the starting point. 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝟮 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗶𝘃𝗼𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺. Even though coaching is a process, we always start with one one-off strategy session first. We'll use this exact system to cut through the noise and identify your immediate, concrete next steps, then build out a plan to get you from here to there, with clarity..

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗵𝗼’𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, schedule a free chat today.