One evening, in the middle of a pandemic, after teaching my graduate Career Counseling course virtually, I quit my full-time job.
Why? Because I spent so much of my time working on the wrong resume. I was hyper-obsessed with achievement and the way other people perceived me. I had taken a job with a great title, excellent salary, and a level of prestige I thought was important. You see, I thought this would look good on my resume. Over the next year and a half, I realized that I was focused on the wrong resume.
After quitting my job (without a job to go to), I leaned into curiosity and exploration. I "tried on" so many different jobs. I taught, counseled privately, did forensic work, and even worked a stint as a coach in higher education. I used all of those experiences as opportunities to reflect deeply.
I read books, listened to podcasts, and completed career assessments. What I didn't realize at the time was that I was creating a framework that would eventually help my future clients and graduate students as they thought about the career and life they wanted.
I slowly realized that those searching for a different career were missing something: the time and space to reflect on what really matters to them. I began to shape a program that allowed my clients to "zoom out" and think far beyond their next job. I stopped asking questions like "what do you want to do" and began asking "what do you want your life to look like?" and "what do you want to feel each day?" I began to push my clients to consider their strengths, gifts, capacities, and values. I challenged them to consider purpose vs. passion, to consider their "why", and to write their career narrative.
Through all of this work, I created a new resume that my clients use - the reflective resume. At the end of a student's time in my class or a client's time in counseling, we compile all of the deep reflecting in one place. We spend our final class/session looking at their reflective resume and using this as the cornerstone of the decisions they make moving forward.
Little did I know that just over 2 years ago, I was not only setting out on my own journey to discover what my purpose was, but also creating a framework that would help many others moving forward.
I push you to think beyond the "what" and start to consider the "why". And when you're ready to engage and build your reflective resume, reach out. I'd love to support you through that process.
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