The power of owning your career

Owning your career means stepping out of autopilot and making intentional decisions based on your evolving values, goals and definition of fulfillment. Without that clarity, it’s easy to drift into roles that no longer fit.

I’m currently watching “Julia” on HBO, which has been truly delightful, especially after the slew of intense shows focused on egotistical tech titans.

What I find most inspirational is Julia Child’s determination, resourcefulness, unwavering optimism and growth mindset. She published her first cookbook at 49 and started her TV show at 51. She truly embodies the belief that “It’s never too late to follow your dreams…”

Most of the people I work with are looking for greater fulfillment in their career. Many have had an organic career where they’ve taken roles that came from recruiters, former managers or colleagues. Some have taken a promotion because it seems like the natural next step.

Others have stayed at a company well beyond their expiration date. They’re comfortable because they know the culture, leaders and how things get done. They also have limiting beliefs that they may not get the flexibility, work-life balance or compensation they currently enjoy. Or even worse, they doubt if they can be successful elsewhere.

No matter the situation, there’s a common thread: most people do not take the time to reassess their career goals and core values. As humans, we constantly evolve, so of course, our goals evolve too.

When we take one job after another without creating the time and space to ask what’s most important to us now, we risk having a mid-career crisis. One where we “wake up” and wonder how we got here and where to go next. It’s confusing, distressing and overwhelming.

An intentional career starts with clarity

Fortunately, there’s good news: there is a better way, and that’s starting an intentional career.

An intentional career is one that you create based on what’s most important to you. It’s taking a proactive approach to your career and leads to a series of rich and meaningful roles and experiences.

Assess your experience

List all your jobs, reflect and answer these questions:

• What did you like and dislike?
• What skills and expertise did you gain?
• What challenges did you face?
• What would have made the job better?
• What did you accomplish?
• How did you feel about your colleagues, leaders and culture?
• How did you feel about the products and services?

Then zoom out and draw insights. For example, you may notice you’ve been happier at smaller companies or enjoyed scaling processes more than building them from the ground up. You can use this to identify must-haves and dealbreakers.

Define your career vision

Your career vision or North Star can be an ultimate job you’d like to attain, but for most people, that isn’t always clear. It’s often more helpful to think about a vision that’s title agnostic.

It can be aspirational and achievable within a few years, or more descriptive like “leading an operations organization at a unicorn company” or “becoming a thought leader in AI/ML.”

It can also be higher level, like “empowering people to realize their full potential” or “creating tools and processes that help businesses scale growth.”

Write your current story and new story

One of the most powerful tools is writing two versions of your story. The first is your current situation and the second is your desired situation.

Your current story:

• Where are you in your career and how do you feel about it?
• What job do you currently have and at what type of company?
• What do you like and not like about it?
• What is the culture like and are you satisfied with your compensation and benefits?
• How do you feel about your manager, colleagues and company?
• How do you feel about your overall life including health, relationships, finances and growth?
• What are you grateful for?
• What feels lacking or missing?

This helps paint a clear picture of where you are today and may surface things you weren’t aware of.

Your new story:

Describe what your desired situation looks and feels like and how it impacts other areas of your life. Focus on:

• The scope of your job and core responsibilities
• New opportunities available to you
• The type of company and culture
• Your colleagues, manager and leaders
• Your health, relationships, finances and growth
• How it aligns with your career vision

Define the most important criteria

By doing these exercises, you’ll likely identify what matters most in a job and company. Writing these down creates clarity and helps focus your efforts.

Consider criteria such as:

• Job: scope, level, visibility, individual contributor or team leader, team size, location
• Company: size, maturity, funding, industry, business model, reputation, products, leadership, culture, benefits

It’s essential to adopt a company-first mindset. If you join a great company, you’re more likely to be set up for success, receive the support you need and have growth opportunities.

I’ve stayed in touch with over 100 clients and have seen many get promoted or move into an even better job within 6 to 12 months. In high-growth companies with strong cultures, people tend to do their best work and create opportunities that excite them.

Own your career to create meaningful work

Once you’ve done these exercises, you can proactively pursue jobs aligned with your career vision, new story and criteria. This significantly increases your chances of landing a job you’ll love and thrive in.

By taking this approach, you make more strategic career moves. Most importantly, you own your career and experience more meaningful and fulfilling work.

Whether you have 5, 10 or 15+ years left in your career, you still have time to build an intentional path that gives you purpose and reignites your passion.