How to Pivot to Passion & Purpose

Many of the senior leaders I coach have reached the top, achieved a huge amount in their field and find themselves at the top of the ladder asking, what’s next? What do I do now?

It’s a place I found myself before my pivot to my new career. It’s a place that can be unsettling.

If you’ve always had another rung on the ladder to climb, it’s strange and, for some, it can create feelings of ‘it’s all over’ and ‘I’m over the hill’.

I’m here to say ‘whoa there Nelly, let’s not get out the pipe and slippers just yet because there’s plenty of life in the ol’ metaphorical dog yet’.

Because once you reach the top in any given field, you tend to have at least a couple of decades of professional experience and expertise under your belt, as well as the wisdom that comes from a lot of life experience.

You could pretty much do or handle most things that were thrown at you. They may not necessarily be what you want to do but you could work it out and do it. Am I right? (Yes, Tracy)

I think this crossroads is a wonderful opportunity to stop and work out how to pivot to a role (or roles) centred around your purpose and passions.

How and why it’s good to reframe failure.

Like most self-critical over-achievers, I have - in the past, because I now like to think of myself as a happy over-achiever - done my fair share of kicking myself when I’ve made a mistake or wallowing in the sometimes excruciating after-effects of putting my foot in it or feeling despondent when things haven’t worked out how I wanted them to.

And over the last three years as I’ve transitioned from a TV career to setting up my own coaching business there has been a lot of trial and error and quite a bit of putting lots of energy into something only to see the result seemingly fall flat.

But, you know, you gotta kiss a lot of toads before you find your handsome prince. Don’t all shout at once about how outdated that line is. I know, I know.

But in that journey, I’ve developed new wisdom, I’ve realised that even when things didn’t fly straight away, those things still had wings elsewhere, further down the line or gave birth to new chicklings in due course (yes I love to stretch a metaphor…)

What I’ve realised is this:

Failure is just development in disguise.

What do I mean?

Do you just plonk your CV up on LinkedIn or talent databases and hope to be found. Or do you believe that if you work hard, put your head down and do a good job, you’ll be noticed and promoted?

Well, I want to challenge that belief!

I think earlier in your career that approach can work. But as you go up the ladder or the pyramid where there is stiffer competition for fewer jobs, I don’t believe you can rely on that approach.

Tracy was a guest of actress, podcaster and writer, Cressida Bonas on her podcast Fear Itself to talk about how to overcome fears at work: fear of speaking up, imposter syndrome and inner critics.

As someone who made a huge shift from a leadership position in a big corporation to running my own company at the grand old age of 49 I know first-hand what it’s like to make a career pivot. What it’s like to face a blank sheet of paper and work out what I wanted. To go through the uncertainty and self-doubt of starting again / starting over / making big changes despite having big financial responsibilities. It’s been a fascinating journey and yes, there have been some sticky moments! BUT…..

I’ve never been happier or more fulfilled.

Have you ever felt as if you’re trying to be someone else to get to where you want in life, but for some reason it’s not working? You could be holding yourself back from achieving your dreams because you don’t believe you’re good enough or are afraid what others might say. But what if you were able to banish imposter syndrome once and for all by becoming Fearlessly You? Tracy Forsyth is a certified Executive Coach and Career Consultant (www.fasttracktofearless.com) and believes that to do this – you need to harness self-belief and confidence.

Are you a woman who fears being called bossy or pushy? If so, I think it's time to change the narrative. 'Bossy' means to act like a boss. So what's wrong with that. 'Pushy' reframed means passionate, determined, enthusiastic and driven. Who wouldn't want to be that? Time to shake off the social conditioning about how women are expected to behave and just use our talents to best effect. Am I right?

Thank you to Equality Check for interviewing me for their #SeenAndHeard campaign about my work to change the narrative and stop talented women holding themselves back. 9 minute read!

Be fearlessly YOU!

When I was younger, I was very reserved about speaking in big groups. I felt that I was surrounded by more confident people who all knew what they were talking about. If I wasn’t 100% sure of what I wanted to say, I wouldn’t say it. I would stay silent. And it didn’t feel good.

When I reached a management position, I knew I couldn’t stay silent. I had to lead from the front, represent my team and, on a personal level, get noticed by the 'powers that be'! The only problem was, I was worried about publicly saying something stupid.

The Time I Cried On The CEO...

I remember one company I worked at wanted to have ‘an environment where people did their best work’. At the time I was a senior executive, managing a large team in a global matrix. At times it was difficult to get things over the line because of the amount of stakeholders. For someone who likes action and achievement, it was, at times, frustrating.

We’ve all had those moments of putting our foot right royally in it. Saying the wrong thing in front of an important client. Blurting out something we shouldn’t. Mis-reading the situation with a key buyer and getting it really wrong. And when it happens it feels awful. Your face and neck go hot and red, your stomach plummets, you freeze and inside all you can feel is sheer unadulterated panic. You are a rabbit stuck in headlights, blinking and unable to move.

So, what should we do when we mess up?

Here are my top five tips on how to recover gracefully and with your dignity intact.

Having a Chinese mother meant that I grew up thinking that money was never something to be awkward about. Of course, not all Chinese mums are the same, but my mum would never buy anything without asking for a discount, she would barter in Marks & Spencer and use her considerable charm, wile and the chutzpah to get the very best deal possible.

In my work as creative mentor and leadership coach, I often come across people who are uncomfortable at the thought of talking about their achievements for fear of looking arrogant or appearing boastful. These are people who are otherwise ambitious, driven and talented but instantly clam up when asked to talk about what they are proud of and what they have to offer. They know they have to be able sell themselves to get new jobs or that promotion but just can’t do it without feeling awkward.

So, how do you boast about yourself without feeling that you are showing off? Here are my tips….

The tribe I love coaching and mentoring most are what I call the Self-Critical Over-Achievers. Of course, a true Self-Critical Over-Achiever won’t actually self-identify as one because they won’t believe they over-achieve!

How do you know if you are a Self-Critical Over-Achiever?

Here are my criteria…

I think 50 is an age when you have decades of professional and life experience, hard acquired skills and a whole lot of achievements that you've probably thrown them over your shoulder without a second glance (but they are there). It can also be a time when you care less what people think about you - very liberating and are more confident to speak your truth.

The question is - what are you going to do with all that?