When You Feel Off-Track, Dust Off Your Compass

Ever feel like you’re lost in the fog?? You can’t see the way ahead, and you’re not even sure how you ended up where you are.? You’ve invested deeply in your education and career.? You genuinely care about making a positive impact in the world.? But somewhere along the line, things got off track.? You’re not where you want to be, and you have no idea where to go from here.

This experience of being in thick fog is one of the scariest experiences. ?The world around you is hidden and blurred.? You reflexively slow down or stop moving altogether because you can’t see the road ahead.?

You.? Are.? Officially.? Stuck.

If you find yourself in this situation, of course, talk to people, gather information, and research options if you can.? But sometimes even this feels hard, unknown, or unsafe.? Consider that this type of wayfinding in life requires a different way of navigating.

Switch navigation systems

When the path is laid out clearly, you’re usually navigating with the equivalent of a GPS.? With a GPS, you know exactly where you are, you know exactly where you’re going, and you get step-by-step instructions on how to get there.?

This is often how we expect our career direction to unfold.? It’s like being in grad school, knowing exactly what classes you need to take and exactly how many semesters it will take to accomplish that lauded degree.

But for most ambitious, mission-driven, smart, creative professionals, a career GPS does not exist.? What is needed instead, especially when the inevitable fog comes rolling in, is a compass.?

Leveraging the earths magnetic field, a compass will always point toward true north.? When you can’t determine the way by sight, a compass has your back, keeping you from going in the wrong direction when the fog is thick and the way forward unclear.?

So, what’s your compass?

Your compass, when it comes to your career, is knowing your superpowers.? It’s staying aware of and grounded in your core strengths.? It’s self-awareness.?

It’s calibrating to your internal guidance system.?

Instead of looking outward for direction, you turn your sights inward.

Can you do this now??

Close your eyes.? Locate yourself. Feel the ground beneath your feet and the air filling your lungs.? Listen.?

Where do you notice any glimmer of lightness, interest, or energy? What’s most important to you?? What do you really (really) want??

It’s okay that you can only see a few inches in front of yourself.? Take a deep breath.? Now listen again.? Listen for where your interests, intuition or energy are leading you.? Do you notice any signs of joy?

Take small steps in that direction.?

As long as you navigate toward your true north – moving in the direction of greater alignment with your core strengths, your superpowers, energy and engagement, you will find your way (I promise).? The fog will eventually clear.

Trust your compass.? Trust yourself.

When you can’t see the way ahead, shift to an inner calibration. Inch your way forward one step at a time.? You’ve got this.

If you’d like help exploring the art and science of wayfinding in your life, please reach out.? Don’t go it alone!? Together, we’ll discover the nuances of your inner compass, you’ll gain wisdom and clarity from your self-awareness, and we’ll design your most powerful next steps.? I’ve been in the fog before, and I can show you the way out.?

You have a unique zone of genius and important work that the world desperately needs done.? Let’s get you out of the fog and up where the sky is clear!

Book your free consultation here.

Check out www.careerplanningstudio.com for more articles and information.? Sign up for my newsletter to get more actionable tips, and let’s continue the conversation!

Cheering you on!

Melissa Palmer, MS, CPC