Seasons of Love: Handling Career Change Wisely

Pop open LinkedIn and you will see a variety of changes - jobs, industries, career direction, entrepreneurship. We reinvent and redeploy regularly. It’s what we do. We figure out what’s working and what motivates us, and we move towards those changes. Sometimes the change is out of necessity and sometimes out of opportunity.

These seasons can be quite liberating. We feel the exhilaration of a new chapter. There is something life-giving in these seasons. We feel alive because the blood is pumping differently, with purpose anew. We feel like we can bust through walls.

The wisest among us, however, does not settle for the momentum of feeling that is coursing through their veins. They know that the feelings must be met with form and function. The question of direction and endurance meet head-on. Do I have the staying power to move ahead in what I see as the new step forward, whether a small change or a complete about-face? Am I willing to put the work in for that success?

We can see this in life outside of work. Recently, my youngest daughter got married (Yes, the tears are still streaming down my face). She and her new husband did all the work ahead of the ceremony to prepare for the marriage. Well, as best as they could. They spoke with those who’ve traveled the road. They read books on grounded marriages built on communication, faith, sacrifice, encouragement and more. They shared their fears, their excitement, and their dreams with each other. And yet, they won’t really know what it will be like fully until they get started.

This season of early marriage where you’re figuring each other out and what a combined path will look like is very similar to one where we are trying to forge a new path in our work. We have great ideas, the formulation of a plan, a passion for success and a hope for its fruition. We embrace the fear as a motivation not a restriction. We work smartly to apply tools, resources and knowledge to our devotion and drive. The marathon is just underway, and we learn to pace ourselves.

Some will learn the hard way that expending energy and cash at too robust of a clip at the onset can expose unrealistic expectations of return. We struggle to maintain the momentum when we burn up too quickly. The passion is not enough, and often, that is one of the hardest lessons to learn. We want to believe that our will for success is enough. And while it is important, it cannot last on its own. We need to align it to a healthy plan for endurance, purpose and market penetration. We have something that others need, and we know it will take a minute for the masses to respond accordingly.

So, embrace the season. It is meant to be one of love - love for the new/augmented direction, for the motivation that comes from fear, and for the success stories yet to be written. As I shared with my daughter and son-in-law, each day is a gift. Hold it carefully, use it wisely and tackle it enthusiastically. Even when it’s hard, it’s good.