Career paralysis (pt 2) - untangling your thoughts and finding your direction

Career ParalysisPart 2:

How to get unstuck and find your best direction.

Part 2 of a presentation designed to be downloaded and viewed in ‘slide show’ mode, by psychologist Rob Archer

New for 2014! (#Amazeballs!)

Hello there. Good to see you again.

Now, where were we? Oh yes...

In part 1 of this presentation we presented the idea of Career Paralysis: a feeling of wanting to change career, but getting paralysed by our mind’s

cognitive biases that combine to keep us exactly where we are.

Changing career is about more than looking at jobs ads and then wondering why we didn’t think of starting Innocent.

Changing career is about more than looking at jobs ads and then wondering why we didn’t think of starting Innocent.It’s also about the way we think. After all, it’s our usual thought processes that got us stuck in the first place, yet we rely on the same ones to get us unstuck.

It’s likely that if being stuck was purely a logical problem, you’d already have solved it.

Changing career is about more than looking at jobs ads and then wondering why we didn’t think of starting Innocent.It’s also about the way we think. After all, it’s our usual thought processes that got us stuck in the first place, yet we rely on the same ones to get us unstuck.

The purpose of this presentation is to explain how.

So to get unstuck we need to think differently, not harder. Unless we want to repeat our mistakes, we must understand the traps of human decision making and counter our brain’s cognitive

biases.

It’s likely that if being stuck was purely a logical problem, you’d already have solved it.

Suggested action:

Identify clear decision criteria

1

Cognitive bias:

Too much choice overwhelms us

Career choice can be overwhelming.

Identify clear and objective decision criteria to make decisions against.

So to prevent all options looking the

same...

This means OBJECTIVELY

identifying your skills, strengths, interests,

personality preferences, and

values.

Then turning these into

positive criteria with which you can

evaluate your job options.

Towards values

?Away from discomfort

Note: make sure your criteria are not just ways of avoiding short term discomfort!

e.g. “I want to feel happier”

Try this excellent (free) personality test to generate criteria. (But note personality tests need to be used in context!)

Try my Personal Job Ad exercise here.

Read about effective decision making models here (look – some people like this kind of thing).

You may have to download this

presentation and view in ‘slide show’

mode for these links to work.

Identifying Decision Criteria...some ideas:

Try my values exercise here.

Suggested action:

Identify your strengths

2

Cognitive bias:

We are negatively biased

It’s natural to think negatively

BUT

You should simultaneously gain clarity about your achievements and visualise them in detail.

Becoming fluent in your strengths will reduce your negative bias.

Get my free peak achievements worksheet.

Take Martin Seligman’s free signature strengths test.

Learn about Appreciative Inquiry (and answer some powerful questions) here.

Identifying Strengths...Here’s how:

3Suggested action:

Clarify your long term values

Cognitive bias:

We prioritise the short term over the long term.

In some ways, reaching our goals is the easy bit.

Climbing the career ladder can be very exciting…

But less so if it’s the wrong ladder.

Helen Keller was once asked if there was anything worse than losing one’s sight.

Helen Keller was once asked if there was anything worse than losing one’s sight.

‘Yes’, she replied. ‘Losing one’s vision’.

What’s your vision?

A vision is about working out how you will contribute.We’re used to thinking in terms of what a job will give us. But if you’ve already

done some thinking about your qualities it may be time to think about how these can – wait for it - make a difference to the world.

That’s not as fluffy as it sounds. I’m not suggesting you have to heal the world. It’s just that meaning in life can’t be found in isolation.

It’s like the meaning of a word. We may understand an individual word, but its true meaning is only found in the context of a sentence.

So how will you use your talents? What do you want to contribute to the world? I’m not talking about sacrificing your own interests, but identifying what’s important to you, what gets you going, what causes motivate you; this is what brings purpose.

Introspection Outrospection

It’s the same with ourselves. We can think about our strengths and skills, but these only have any true meaning in context.

Introspection is useful but it’s only half the battle. Now is the time for outrospection.

We’re not here for long...

So what’s your purpose?

How do you want to be

remembered?

How will you contribute to

the world?

Try this purpose generator exercise. (Note: you have to log in first).

Learn more about values here, or try the obituary exercise or the Valued Living Questionnaire.

Try my Heroes exercise to further explore values.

Explore Roman Krznaric’s outrospection blog here or read his excellent book.

Clarifying a vision...here’s how:

4Suggested action:

Think creatively about your options

Cognitive bias:

We think in linear patterns

Our present culture of careers advice encourages us to think in terms of what we’ve done in the past.

Then people ask us about our experience.

The first thing we do is write up a CV.

We think in terms of fitting our past to a role.

Yet we ignore our longing to do something more meaningful in future.

And no one even seems interested in our swimming badges.

Our present culture of careers advice encourages us to think in terms of what we’ve done in the past.

Then people ask us about our experience.

The first thing we do is write up a CV.

We think in terms of fitting our past to a role.

Yet we ignore our longing to do something more meaningful in future.

We’re encouraged to think in a linear way from the past to the

future, and that’s a trap.

And no one even seems interested in our swimming badges.

Our present culture of careers advice encourages us to think in terms of what we’ve done in the past.

Then people ask us about our experience.

The first thing we do is write up a CV.

We think in terms of fitting our past to a role.

Yet we ignore our longing to do something more meaningful in future.

After all, if youthink the way

you always think,

you’ll get what you always get.

Instead, examine each aspect of your

life in isolation.

By looking closely at something closely you will usually see it in a different light*.

* warning: minds often hate creative exercises – they want certainty!

Why do you work? (motivations)

What type of work appeals? (sectors and fields)

Who do you wish to be at work? (roles)

Where do you want to work? (geographies)

How do you wish to work? (working conditions)

Which types of organisations appeal? (organisations)

Look at your career in detail and examine:

Enter your preferences into the O*Net website – it will suggest careers to consider.

Download my free creative problem solving worksheet and read about creativity.

See what answers you receive in your 180 degree feedback exercise (download it here).

Identify a bold move to get into action – this should generate further options.

Creatively Generating Options...Here’s how:

5Suggested action:

Keep thoughts in perspective

Cognitive bias:

We trust our minds to fix the problem.

“There are no great jobs out

there”

Let’s examine the thought:

“There are no great jobs out

there”

Let’s examine the thought:

What is the real function of that

thought?

Is the function:

Or reduce your feelings of uncertainty?

To describe the truth?

Is the function:

Or reduce your feelings of uncertainty?

To describe the truth?

To spur you on?Or to comfort

yourself?

Is the function:

Is the thought moving you towards your values, or simply trying to

keep you safe from uncomfortable feelings?

Even in the event there really are ‘no jobs’, you still have choices

to make.

If you don’t make them consciously, you’ll be

making them unconsciously.

After a while, no decision becomes the

decision!

Here’s another thought:

Instead of trying to control your thoughts, or alter how you feel, focus

instead on getting into action in a direction you feel is worthwhile.

Confidence.

Confidence good performanceWe usually think:

Common definition: ‘A feeling of

assurance’

Yet confidence literally means ‘con’ (with) ‘fidere’ (fidelity).

leads to

Mini example:

Confidence.

Confidence good performanceWe usually think:

Common definition: ‘A feeling of

assurance’

Yet confidence literally means ‘con’ (with) ‘fidere’ (fidelity).

Acting with fidelity

Confidence good performance

What would ‘acting with fidelity’ mean for you, right now?

leads to

leads to leads to

This implies that confidence is acting with fidelity to ourselves.So confidence is more like this:

Mini example:

You have the choice to live a life in which you

do the things that are really important to you.

You have the choice to live a life in which you

do the things that are really important to you.

But the admission price will be negative thoughts and emotions.

*If it helps at all, I carry most of these balloons with me every day. But because I feel my direction is meaningful, I’m willing to do so.

The Big Question:

Can you be willing to experience your

thoughts and feelings as they are, if it means doing what you really

value in life?*

Download our workbook in Cognitive Defusion and Willingness.

Read further about the science behind this presentation. Get our recommended book list here and a list of free career resources here.

Get into action with the Values and Willingness Exercises we’ve run at the School of Life.

Preparing For Action...Here’s how:

Oh, I do hate goodbyes. If you’ve followed this Career Paralysis presentation from the start well I almost feel like we’re old friends. But what if the hoped-for nugget of wisdom has not materialised? What if you still feel stuck?Well, I understand your frustration. But could you be willing to slowly yet deliberately get into action anyway? Although this may be a long process, it’s one you can start right now:

So, what now?

1. Try the exercises in this presentation. They will inch you forward and build momentum if you let them. There probably isn’t a better way of starting, plus they’re all completely free.

2. Get in contact with The Career Psychologist. After all, we may be able to point you in the right direction. Or you could follow our blog, Headstuck for some further inspiration.

3. Have hope. Remember you are not alone. Plenty of people have beaten career paralysis and found meaning in their careers. Your noisy mind - with its worries and doubts - is just doing what it evolved to do, i.e. keep you safe. But if you can bear to listen, those thoughts may also be showing you the way forward...

By making conscious choices based on your strengths and values and using them for a

clear purpose, you can find meaning in your

career.

That’s not wishful thinking.

It’s the clearest reality there is.

The Career Psychologist is a careers consultancy based in

London.

We offer coaching, consultancy, training and assessment to help

individuals improve their careers for the better.

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Thanks for reading.