What to Do When You’re Swirling
When you’re designing your next career step – whether that’s applying for a new job, exploring a side hustle, going to grad school, or something else –
It’s easy to feel like you just can’t take it anymore.
The uncertainty. The not-knowing. The waiting around for something to happen.
It’s easy to feel like your thoughts are just circling the drain, swirling and swirling, with no end in sight.
How (and when) will this get figured out?
What should I do next?
Am I making the right choice?
After years of guiding my clients through career transitions, I can say with complete confidence:
We all get stuck like this.
Your situation may be unique. Your goals and non-negotiables may be different. And still, you can take comfort in knowing that every career and life designer out there has grappled with these obstacles and roadblocks.
Even me.
This week I was presented with scenarios (in both my work and personal life!) where I felt stuck.
Where the ambiguity just felt too uncomfortable, too much to bear.
Where my doubts about “what’s right” got so loud, I couldn’t hear or think about anything else.
Where I felt so out of control, so untethered, that all I wanted to do was throw my hands up and call it quits.
So I did what I’ve learned to do in these situations: to get quiet, and listen.
One afternoon, during a particularly tense moment, I sat down at my kitchen table – and did nothing. I didn’t pick up my phone and scroll. I didn’t eat or drink anything. I didn’t talk to anyone. I just sat there.
It only took a few minutes before I started to notice what I was actually feeling: quick breaths, clenched jaw, swirling thoughts.
“I’m anxious,” I realized. Truly, it hadn’t become clear to me until that very moment.
This led me to pull out my journal and ask myself: “What am I anxious about?” Not in the broadest, gesturing-wildly-to-the-world kind of way… but specifically in that moment, what was making me feel anxious?
I made my list, looked it over, and for the first time in a while, I saw myself clearly:
My wishes, my frustrations, my uncertainty, my aspirations, all of me. “Oh!” I thought, “with all this going on, of course I feel anxious!”
Finally, I pulled out my Little Deck of Sweet Reflections and drew three cards.
And suddenly, I knew what I needed to do next.
Try This Out
Looking at these three cards was like a soothing balm on an anxious wound.
Rest. Connect. Commit.
For any number of reasons, I’ve been drawing the Rest card a lot lately, and interestingly – it’s often the first one I pull. In that moment, I took it as my permission slip to move a bit more slowly, to tend to my body and my heart first – before pushing forward.
Next, Connect reminded me to step away from my desk and reach out to my people. Ask for help. Share my worries to feel less alone. Seek inspiration from people I respect and trust.
And then, Commit. At a certain point, we all need to take a step forward. The commitment doesn’t have to be permanent, or drastic. It can be small and incremental (in fact, it should be). But the intention stays the same: pick a course of action, and move.
By the time I’d finished reflecting on these cards, my entire energy, my outlook, and even my physical body felt different. I took an afternoon nap. I reached out to one of my business besties for a check in. And I made my plan for the rest of the week.
Now, it’s your turn:
When you look at this spread of cards, what meaning do you make of it – for you?
What does Rest look like for you these days? Fruitful and abundant? Fleeting or absent? What Rest are you craving?
Where are you going it alone, when you could instead Connect with your people? How does your outlook change when you allow yourself to be in community and receive support from others?
What direction, decision or action are you willing to Commit to? It doesn’t have to solve everything – but it gets you moving. What are you choosing to move towards?
What To Do Next
The more I practice pulling cards, the more awe-struck I am at how clearly the guidance I’m seeking comes through.
A big part of me believes that these cards (or any intuitive tool) help us open up our connection to, and our conversation with, the Divine.
But another part of me knows that these cards are simply a reflection of what we know, deep down, is the right and true path for us.
It’s not an off-the shelf, step-by-step plan, or a silver bullet solution.
But when your thoughts are swirling and your worries are mounting, tapping into your intuition is the closest thing you can get to your unique Truth.
Are you ready to give it a try?
Onward,
PS: If you’re ready to go from stuck to strategic – in just 4 weeks – check out my Career Strategy Intensive program. It’s the perfect career boost to get you clear and taking action, all with me by your side.
One recent client told me, “In a nutshell, I feel like I've bloomed back into life! Check it out and get in touch with any questions!