So, do you have a favourite road sign? I realise this may be considered a strange question. My favourite road sign is the one that says “Keep Two Chevrons Apart”.

Why I love it is that it’s visually interesting - you’ve got the car, the road, the two chevrons, the 3D perspective.

I love the word ‘chevron’ - you don’t really get to see it very often. And I love that the instructions are a bit of a challenge. “Keep Apart Two Chevrons”. I immediately focus on counting the chevrons between me and the car in front and seeing if we are indeed keeping two chevrons apart. It takes concentration to maintain that pace. And being mindful.

Did you ever that old saying ‘May You Live in Interesting Times’?

Well, wow, I think we’ve been living in interesting times.

6 years of Permacrisis (pandemic, Brexit, War in the Ukraine, the cost of living crisis). And most recently a change in UK Prime Minister and the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

Worry, stress, change, sorrow… the thing about interesting times is that they can be emotionally exhausting.

We can plough on, one foot in front of the other, getting through the day to day life because we have to - we have to pay the bills, we have to put food on the table and so on but at what personal cost?

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.