“Career Transitions" Take Many Shapes
When most hear the word “career transition” they immediately think of doing a 180 degree turn on their career: from accounting to nursing or from software engineer to sales. While these definitely are career transitions, there are so many more transitions that may not seem as drastic from the outside but still require a large investment of intentionality, energy & support. Let’s explore those:
Moving into Leadership / Management
Leadership can be an exciting goal to reach, yet the skills to be a strong leader are rarely the skills you’ve been using in your individual contributor role. Just showing up on day 1 and being reliable regarding the tasks requested of you often isn’t enough. Strong leadership & management requires intentionality, planning and, perhaps the most missed, dedicated time to pull your head out of the day to day & reflect.
What is your communication style? How are you going to adapt that to those you are managing?
How do you create a vision that the team doesn’t roll their eyes at and how do you drive behaviors towards it?
What is the most effective way you can be giving feedback? Is it driving the behavior change you need?
Where to invest your time between under-performers, over-performers and those in the middle of the pack?
If you’re managing your former peers, does that mean you have to stop being friends with them?
Becoming a Parent
There are so many transitions with becoming a parent that are also career transitions:
First time conversations around leave: clarifying what you need & want when it comes to your time away from the office and asking for that.
Taking leave when the baby arrives (many have never taken a leave from work before!)
Transitioning back into the workplace after leave (also something many have never done before that comes with a range of emotions)
Navigating how to balance your role as a parent and an employee (adjusted schedules, investing your energy differently, etc.)
Everyone’s experience is drastically different and hard to predict. Utilizing intentionality, mindset and a strong support system can have a huge impact on these parental transitions.
Navigating an Internal Promotion or Role Shift
Perhaps you’ve already got a good thing going, but are itching for the next step, whether that is an internal promotion, more responsibility in your current role, or shifting onto another team at your current organization. Many think this just requires a conversation with a “person with power” to make that change happen, and sometimes that can be true. But, more often than not you need an action plan to make it happen.
What is the proper timeline to start having conversations?
What skills will you need and how to prove you can handle those skills?
How to navigate the conversation as a benefit to the business vs a benefit to you.
Understanding how business opportunities and needs come about and developing patience & mindset shifts during that time.
These are just a few of the most popular career transition shifts I help clients make, but there are so many others that come about. If you’re curious to learn more about a coaching program to support these (or others) apply for a free consultation & we can chat more. I’m here for you!
- Kaitlyn