// BLOG
Transitioning with a Team
February 2, 2010
Don’t feel like going it alone? Then don’t. Consider the benefits of participating in a support group while making your transition.
I started such a group two days after my job was eliminated and it just ended this week, approximately 10 weeks later. From little or no business structure I managed to (with the help of others) re-launch two websites, establish a 3rd feeder site, set up social media on Linked in, as well as to connect with an extensive personal network of colleagues, referrals and other resources.
The group I joined was a Creative Courage class offered by a friend and colleague, Gail McMeekin, www.creativesuccess.com and I was joined by 4 other women, from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Colorado and North Carolina. Joining these artists and writers, I signed on to gain the courage of my convictions in launching this business. They were there to increase their confidence and develop new skills to advance their individual goals.
For me, the beginning and ending of this group marked the three stages of transition. I ended my job and previous identity as an employee with one agenda for performance and professionalism, and entered the transition period. I experienced the neutral zone, where I received support and acknowledgement of who I had been and more important – who I was becoming. As I went through the stages of grief (loss, doubt, and the gradual opening to the new) I knew I had their support as well as the structure of a guided group experience to make a successful transition. That I accomplished so much in 3 months is a small miracle to me, as it would have been just as easy to fall into 3 months of on-going doubt, inertia, and fear as I wondered hopelessly – what steps to take next.
The group served several purposes – as a mini-think tank and focus group I heard myself say the words “I am a career transition coach” and “I focus on serving those who want to move through a transition and work with the powerful personal energy available at this time” and the words became my new reality. This “first” transition has ended and I know another will soon begin again, as the ebb and flow of starting and endings becomes my new reality as an entrepreneur.
Consider the benefits yourself of a support group:
- There is a place to speak your truth to total strangers.
- There is a place to set your goals with the intention of being accountable to others within a distinct period of time (3 months)
- On-going homework assignments and 6 tele-seminars kept us focused constructively in dealing with the dimensions of psychological growth, such as addressing limiting beliefs, the identification of role models and re-examining the saboteurs that could hold us back.
- I renewed my appreciation for giving and receiving feedback from a group of committed, intelligent, passionate women.
- I learned with the others, how important is self-care, learning to achieve balance in our daily lives, and staying focused on our purpose and commitment to our goals.
- I learned to trust the flow of business and networking that brought unexpected opportunities to me which allowed me to open to new possibilities while holding firm to the vision I had shared with the group participants.
If you’re ending an old role or job and starting a new journey, consider the personal benefits of a support group. Though we chose not to continue with this group at this point in time, the relationships are established, the support is there, and now we know of each others’ strengths and weaknesses and can call on each other in the transitions ahead.
Thowing the Old out with the New
January 19, 2010
Into the middle of January and I’m in an unexpected, but wonderful place. I got my first training project from an “unexpected” but reliable source that really resonates with the work I’ve done for the last 6 years. I was hired to train loan officers in consultation and business development skills. A group faciliation that went very well, and more to come!!
That threw me off the track of goal setting to set up the business and I am gradually now integrating that experience into the rest of my life. Working on a website, setting up the social networks is a job in and of itself. Whatever I send out comes back exponentially greater in scope and richness. Sort of like my life these days, I guess.
Losing a job, moving through a major transition and I feel more as if I am firmly planted in the New Beginning Stage of the Transition model.
I’d love to hear your comments on how you are transitioning as we move further into the new year.
END OF THE YEAR BLUES
December 30, 2009
This is what I call the “week between worlds” – between Christmas and the New Year.
It’s always been a time of introspection and reflection, and REAL down time - reading books, going to movies, sleeping, doing NOTHING. But there are always the expectations aren’t there, of all that could be accomplished with this “down time.”
What a year it’s been and what a decade. Nine years since I relocated from New England, and I spent 6 years staying grounded working in a local non-profit. I’m nostalgic for what is in the past – distant and close. Recently I miss the relationships the most, and the habits of working a 9 – 5 routine. There are parts of it I loved and parts I hated. So, now I have the opposite – being self employed again.
We really only are self employed when you think about it. We are responsible for the work we do (and don’t do). We are the ones who make it up everyday whether creating new ways of doing things or fulfilling a routine that serves others. We receive a regular paycheck – some benefits and there is a routine that defies description. (including the regularly occurring crises of the week!) Some people thrive on that.
Not me, I’m more of a loner than I realize. I like making it up as I go along and taking the risks involved. I like being in charge of my time, my priorities and my life/work balance. I’m staying on track; accomplishing objectives; getting feedback from knowledgeble people and trying not to be overwhelmed. I like noticing when I’m excited about an idea and can play around with how to take it to another level. And I remember what I love most about being self employed is being able to really have fun with what you do. Because there’s no reason not to do that. Figure out what’s fun for you and get out there and do it.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Risk Taking: The Advantages
December 21, 2009
If you’re wanting to get out of a bad situation think of the possibilities of increasing your comfort level in risk-taking.
1.Increase your ability to sniff out, sense or recognize an opportunity (often from unlikely sources) which is why it often feels like a risk
2. Not having all the information about either the pros and cons requires dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty. Life is not certain – learn to increase your comfort level with not knowing for sure.
3. Knowing that if successful you’ll be pushed into a new window of opportunity for self expression of some sort and that can always be a good thing.
4. If something really excites you and yes scares you – and you can’t imagine doing it or not doing it. That’s a risk.
5. You know enough to do the necessary research in order to make an informed decision. Know your strengths as well as the potential downside. No matter what you’ll learn something and that’s all for the good.
The Price of Settling
December 21, 2009
Do you think of yourself as a risk-taker? And if so, what kind of risk taker are you? Are you “high risk”, eg, willing to jump in with both feet confident all will work out. Or are you a moderate risktaker – who gathers information and weighs the pros and cons and then makes a positive choice not knowing for sure what the outcome will be, but having some sense of what the options will be.
To my mind risk-taking is the opposite of “settling” which often means accepting what is until hopefully something better comes along. Settling in your career choice can provide a sense of personal satisfaction and we all know about the value of “trade-offs.” First there is the regular paycheck and maybe there are some other benefits, such as health insurance or a pension fund. And don’t forget those personal days and/or vacation and sick days. They all add up to keeping us in a job sometimes when we’re ready to take a risk.
Consider the following “costs” of settling for less than what you know is possible, or where the risk-taking might take you.
Sponataneity – if you’re focusing all your energy on fitting in one box all the time (and the fit is a little too tight) you become satisfied with the status quo and are less able to respond to what’s outside the box.
Confidence – this can increase or decrease depending on your circumstances. If you’re able to use your knowledge and expertise it will increase, but if you’re constantly frustrated by not being able to do more it will most likely decrease.
Connections - you can lose your valuable connections if you’re not in touch with with a particular network you value. The energy and enthusiasmthat comes from others needs to be nurtured or they’ll be lost.
So, the price of “settling” needs to be weighed by asking yourself? Am I settling? Are the “trade-offs” worth it? And if you were to take a risk, what kind of a risk-taker are you?
