Meet Jane, who found her dream job + intuition
My clients do amazing things, and I want you to hear about them. One of my favorite coaching concepts is Expanders, or people who are doing what you want and help you “see to believe” that what you want is possible. They should be the people who have absolutely mastered the path you want to go down. In other words, a role model on steroids. You can find Expanders within your professional network, friend group, social media or within this community!
As I was leaving my full-time job to build my coaching business, I used Robin Arzon, the head instructor at Peloton, as one of my Expanders. I read every article I could about her choice to leave a cushy corporate career to pursue her passion. I didn't aspire to be a Peloton instructor, but I drew inspiration from her bravery and success creating a flourishing career that allows her to be 110% fully herself.
I want to help you find Expanders – other ambitious, millennial women making big, bold and brave moves – so I will be profiling my clients every so often. I want you to “see to believe” that you can do the same.
Without further ado, meet your first Expander…
This client, let’s call her Jane, and I started working together this winter. Jane had left a lucrative, fast-track job in finance a few years earlier to do more meaningful, mission-driven work. She got a grad degree in Economic Policy and landed her dream internship at a prestigious government agency, only to realize the work that she thought she would love was dry and mired in bureaucracy.
Jane had no idea what she wanted to do next, given her dream job wasn't a dream. We worked together to figure out what she truly wanted, rebuild her self-trust and get comfortable saying “no” so that she could secure her new dream job. Here is Jane's journey in her own words:
Q. What were your goals for coaching? How did those evolve?
My goals for coaching were centered around figuring out my next career step. I thought I knew what I wanted to do after getting my master’s degree, but when I started at my dream institution I quickly became disillusioned. Our work quickly moved from "what job do I want" to "what do I value". I realized how tied up I was in external validation and how little attention I had been paying to my internal voice. The self exploration that Cydnee guided me through helped me learn how to listen to my intuition and build my self confidence. Coaching became relevant to all dimensions of my life rather than just my job search.
Q. What was the biggest lesson you learned from coaching?
How to tap into my intuition and build trust in myself.
Q. What was the bravest thing you did as a result of coaching?
I learned how to say no and to trust in myself that I could find a better opportunity. Before coaching, I was more likely to settle for an option in front of me instead of relying on my ability to achieve something greater. I learned to become more comfortable sitting with the uncertainty that comes with saying no. This became easier as I started to listen to my gut instead of my inner critic or external validation. As Cydnee put it, our energy is finite, and every time we say no to something we are saying yes to so many other things, including respecting our internal self.
This lesson helped me say no to multiple opportunities that crossed my path during my job search. Though they had elements of what I was looking for, they didn't feel right because of pay, stability, or culture. I chose to say yes to trusting myself and the process until I found a role I hadn't dared to dream of when I started coaching (mission-driven work in a private-sector company with a supportive team and good compensation).
Q. What was the impact of coaching? How do you feel today?
Coaching helped me clarify what I was looking for in my next career step after I made a huge pivot that ultimately did not pan out. While I wanted to work in a mission-driven role, I was disappointed by the job prospects and bureaucracy of the public sector. The job instability and low pay made me feel undervalued and would not allow me to progress towards the personal goals I had set for myself, like moving to a new city and saving for the future.
My sessions with Cydnee provided a safe place to dive into deep questions about what I wanted my life to look like and what was holding me back from getting there. Today I feel grateful to have a stronger internal compass to tap into as I build my life in an intentional and authentic way.
Q. As an Expander, what do you want the rest of this community to know?
We all face so much societal pressure in what we are "supposed" to be doing in our lives, and coaching is a useful tool to cut through that noise and listen to your own internal voice. Through this journey, I was able to forge my own path to a role I did not think I could qualify for when I started searching. Saying no and losing out on a potential opportunity can be a scary prospect for someone as indecisive as I am, but it becomes easier when you have built trust in yourself and reflected deeply on what you really want. You are capable of so much more than you think.
So there you have it: Jane is your Expander who found her dream job, one that she is passionate about, has a great team, compensation and lets her fulfill her personal goals. She did it by getting super-clear on what she wanted, reconnecting to her intuition and trusting herself to say “no” to the good-enough opportunities so she could say “yes” to the absolutely-right opportunity.
What other Expanders do you need for your current goals? Where can you find them in your friend group, network or on social media?
