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Rachel Brushfield

Values – your inner compass

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“Happiness is not a destination, it is a method of life” Burton Hills

One of the most important things in life, in my opinion, is to live your life based on what’s important to you – your values.

So many people live life to other people’s agendas and values, whether it’s parents, teachers or society as a whole. This means that they are not being true to themselves. It’s not selfish to be true to yourself, it is wise, because if you are happy within yourself, you have more to give back to other people.

On aeroplanes they say “Put the oxygen mask on your own face first” – same principle.

Insights about values a key part of career change

Helping people understand their values is one of the key things I help clients with and then we design goals around these values. Everyone has different values, not better not worse, just different. I find that often people are feeling ‘out of sorts’ or unfulfilled in their careers because they are not honouring their values, i.e. what’s important to them.

When values aren’t honoured

Values not being honoured shows up in different ways. For example they have a partner for whom different things are important or their employer values tradition when they value modern. People can have the same value e.g. love but it’s honoured in a different way; one partner may like to hear their partner say that they love them 25 times a day, the other partner likes being hugged to feel loved.

Relationship issues are often about different values

One of the reasons that relationship issues come up all the time when I coach people is because different people have different values, but they haven’t articulated them. This is what causes the tension – not articulating/understanding values.

Check in with your values

I find values are a useful check-in. If I am feeling frustrated with a person or situation, it’s normally because one of my values is being trodden on. If I am lied to, my Honesty value isn’t honoured, if I feel forced to do something against my will, my Right to choose value is squashed. It’s like a framework to help make sense of life and to deal with difficult emotions. An inner compass.

Corporate values

The Credit crunch of 2007/2008 has taught us to question what we used to trust without question. Companies have values too and the good companies live and breathe them through their behaviour and how they act. They don’t just stick a list of words on the corporate wall like integrity, honesty, success and fun.

Clashing values – inner tug of war

Sometimes an individual has clashing values – it’s like having an inner tug of war. Freedom and Belonging is one example; part of you wants to be part of something but most of you wants to feel free, a direct inner conflict. Another example is Security and Adventure; part of you needs security and another part wants to break out and be adventurous. Understanding and managing your conflicting values is vital, especially in uncertain and challenging times.

Honour your values to stay centred

Without wishing to state the obvious, the post coronavirus period we are now living in are challenging times.

If you do one thing and one thing only, honour the things that are important to you and make sure that the people you care about are able to honour the things important to them. 

10 tips to live your values 

1)  Think about what’s really important to you

2)  Reflect on times in your life when you felt really frustrated – what was the cause?

3)  Get a coach to help you understand your values

4)  When you have a difference of opinion with people at work/home – analyse what value isn’t being honoured 

5)  Picture your ideal life – what would it be like?

6)  Think about people you really connect with, What is it about them that works?

7)  Be specific in your articulation of your values e.g. Expressing and demonstrating kindness rather than just Kindness 

8)  Explore whether your values are compatible before committing to a long term partner or employer

9)  Prepare incisive questions to get a potential employer to give examples to demonstrate their values and culture as part of your interview.

10)              Make a date with yourself and check in every month to review to what extent you have honoured what’s important to you 

How can we help you? Get in touch.

https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

Are you a thought leader?

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Over 23 years ago, a book by Charles Handy The age of unreason inspired me to start my own business.  He was ahead of his time in his thinking about how work would change and is an example of a ‘thought leader.’ I have often thought of this book in recent weeks, observing the world of work change very rapidly due to the coronavirus.

Charles Handy was and is a thought leader.

How is thought leadership useful?

Thought leadership can help you market yourself and stand out in a crowded and competitive market place. Many markets are becoming crowded and more competitive. In a global economy with the Internet, this was inevitable.

What is a thought leader?

“A distinguishing characteristic of a thought leader is the recognition from the outside world that the company deeply understands its business, the needs of its customers and the broader marketplace in which it operates.” Elise Bauer.

Thought leadership is ideal for lock-down!

In our digital world and the knowledge age we live in, thought leadership can make you visible to millions. What you write or record needs to be worth reading/listening to/watching, so making time to keep up to date with trends and contemplation is essential.  

Alot of content is being shared by millions around the world, so it needs to be good quality to stand out.

Content marketing

Thought leadership is part of content marketing.

Thought leadership is all about knowledge expertise, creating useful content and giving some of it away freely – this is key to success.

To catch a fish, whether a job or paid projects as a self employed person, thought leadership is like a ‘worm on the hook’.

The ocean is the whole world as a result of the World Wide Web which is an exciting if sometimes overwhelming prospect. By writing articles, blogging, creating videos and podcasts, and doing conference speeches and webinars, you can attract your target audience and opportunities to you.  

Indeed, content marketing formed a whole chapter of an 8 chapter book I wrote for the Law Society:

Smarter Legal Marketing. Practical Strategies for the Busy Lawyer

Self reflective question    

How could thought leadership help my career?

I love researching a new topic, learning and then sharing the learning to help others.

My mother once dedicated her first fiction book to me: “To Rachel, who always wants to know more.”

Being naturally curious, this Ellen Parr quote below is one of my favourite quotes!!

Inspiring quote

“The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.”

Ellen Parr

Five tips to develop thought leadership

1) What topics are you really interested in to develop your thought leadership?

2) Do a Google search on ‘thought leadership’ and your current/desired specialism. List 3 possible ideas.

3) Make sure you have clearly defined your personal brand, as it will make developing your thought leadership space easier. 

4) Review Malcolm Gladwell’s and Seth Godin’s content – how do they achieve thought leadership?

5) Choose a medium that suits you e.g. if you love writing, write. If you prefer speaking, do podcasts, or create a video.

Read our testimonials for writing (section 4) https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/energise-client-testimonials/

Writing, both paid and unpaid, has been a very strong thread throughout my career – books, chapters, articles, blogs, magazine columns, content creation etc.

Interested in developing your thought leadership? Get in touch. https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

Are you ready for career change?

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Some of our clients have been unhappy at work for up to 10 years before they contact us and in some cases, have are ill having resisting the change that they need to make – they are so ready for change.

The outcome for some of our other clients is that they choose to stay put rather than change career, and improve what they can influence where they are.

In a challenging jobs market with increasing uncertainty, taking responsibility for your career is not something you can afford to ignore.

Self reflective questions   

What’s stopping me from making the change I seek from work a reality? 

What’s the question I most need to ask myself?

4 tips to check if you are ready for career change 

  1. Identify your personal values so you know if there’s a mismatch between you and your organisation.
  2. Keep a diary of how you feel about work for 2 months and notice the patterns and factors that affect your highs and lows. Review what’s frustrating you and what you can influence.
  3. Do a satisfaction audit of the different aspects of your role. What does it tell you?  
  4.  Are there opportunities to progress in the way you want at work? Explore job redesign as an option with the changing needs of the organisation.

Get in touch https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

Exercising your entrepreneurial muscle

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More competition for jobs and consultancy work makes being entrepreneurial as well as resilient essential.

The word entrepreneurial can make people put pressure on themselves, as it is associated with entrepreneurs, and many people don’t identify themselves in this way.

Alternative words for entrepreneurial

Other words that you can use instead of ‘entrepreneurial’ that may feel more ‘you’ are:

  • Enterprising
  • Imaginative
  • Ingenious
  • Inventive
  • Pioneering
  • Resourceful
  • Creative

Coronavirus has forced entrepreneurial behaviour

The coronavirus has seen a massive amount of fast change and reinvention with on-line learning and teaching, for example.

Our local pub is planning to re-open in July re-organised to accommodate social distancing with an App to pre-book tables and pre order and pay for food and drinks. Food and drinks will be placed in a holding bay, for people sitting at tables to collect themselves, protecting the staff and minimising touch and risk of infection, instead of staff serving at the tables. This system will also enable more planning, and perhaps less waste, with prior knowledge of what ingredients are needed and in what quantity.

Invention and innovation

Entrepreneurial behaviour underlies the inclination to undertake invention and innovation, including the creation of something new, as well as the distribution and adoption of the new throughout society. Think Zoom and Team which are now the norm, when a few months ago, not everyone had heard of or used them.

Portfolio careers require entrepreneurial behaviour

Entrepreneurial behaviours are essential with a portfolio career, a career made up of different work strands, where you create different opportunities for yourself. As an analogy, just as with cookery, the more ingredients that you have – skills, experience, knowledge and contacts, the more ‘recipes’ you can create for yourself.

What are entrepreneurial behaviours?

Confident/’can do’ attitude

Proactivity

Learning

A mistake/failure is an opportunity to learn/relearn

Try different things

Curiosity

Assertiveness

Being inventive/enterprising

Resilient

A preference for change

Desire to change the status quo 

How would you rate yourself currently on these entrepreneurial behaviours out of 100%?

Developing entrepreneurial habits helps to develop entrepreneurial behaviours.

10 habits of entrepreneurs

What are the habits of entrepreneurs?

1.  Plan a day in advance

2.  Get proper nutrition

3.  Position themselves to serve others

4.  Set clear S.M.A.R.T. goals

5.  Take calculated risks

6.  Know their strengths and weaknesses

7.  Hire ‘A’ team players

8.  Are constantly learning

9.  Always look for opportunities

10.               Evaluate their actions and priorities every day

6 tips to develop your entrepreneurial ‘muscle’

  1. Block out time in your diary each week for personal and professional development
  2. Diarise a half day or whole day away day every 2 months to think, reflect, plan and create
  3. Read Charles Handy’s book The New Alchemists
  4. Learn to coach yourself – ask yourself open incisive questions e.g. for a trainer: ‘What trends are growing in the tech sector that I could adopt for the training industry?’
  5. Diarise ‘important not urgent’ tasks to make sure that they happen. According to Stephen Covey, author of the international best seller The 7 habits of highly effective people these tasks are:
  • Preparation
  • Prevention
  • Planning
  • Relationship building
  • Empowerment
  • Self awareness, learning, exploration & development
  • Learning new skills
  • Creative thinking
  • Networking
  • Prioritisation
  • Training & development
  • Exercise 

6. Push out your comfort zone each week – do something that you have never done before

Get in touch https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

Transferable skills – where next?

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A common theme amongst all of the career coaching clients I work with is a) they have a blind spot seeing their own skills and talents and b) how they can use them in other ways, i.e. possible new jobs or different careers to what they have done before.

I act as a pair of ‘wing mirrors’ to help them see their skills and be clear about where else they can use them.

In these times of redundancies and shrinking sectors caused by the impact of the coronavirus, this is a very important area to explore as part of your future-proof career.

What is a skill?

A skill is defined as: “cleverness at doing a thing, either from practice or a natural gift.”

Why do people find it hard to see their own skills?

Most people don’t think of themselves in terms of skills, and find it immodest to talk about their own ‘natural gifts’.

Common phrases that people express are: “I just do my job” or “it’s just what I do.”

It is not surprising therefore that people need support in seeing new career options for themselves. 

People are discouraged from saying that they are clever and our specific and unique talents are rarely acknowledged or recognised by others. Other people may have thought about you are good at, but not shared this information with you, so it is worth asking to elicit this useful information.

In employer engagement research, frustration about lack of feedback is a common complaint from employees about their line managers, so giving feedback to your direct reports is a good thing to do to boost morale at this time if you are a manager.

Articulating the benefits you bring

Awareness of your specific skills and the ability to articulate them, sharing tangible examples of the benefits they bring is crucial in career success, especially when you are competing against a lot of good candidates.

Spell it out

For people seeking a new or different career, being explicit in helping others to see how your skills are useful in a related context is a must to convince your potential employer that you are up to the task, and not a risk. Self-awareness, confidence and the ability to market yourself, plus overcoming natural fears about change enable a change in career direction to be within reach.

Self-reflective question

What’s my best skill and in what other contexts is it useful?

Inspiring quote

“Believe in yourself. Have faith in your abilities. Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy.”

Norman Vincent Peale

5 tips to help you identify your transferable skills

1) Get someone to ask you how you do your job and to write down what you say and then share their perspective of your skills with you.

2) Think about something you do well naturally and write down the specifics using the third person. Practice saying “I am really good at, for example when ….” This makes it feel more comfortable and not ‘boastful.’

3) Analyse the ‘process’ you use to do your work step by step. Most people have a process incorporating certain skills but don’t see this, as they are too close to themselves. This can be turned into a model or infographic to use on your CV, on social media or on a personal web site.

4) Ask people you work with or live with for feedback about your specific skills and do the same for them.

5) If you want to fast track your awareness, get a career coach who is trained to see your skills and help you to see opportunities where they are useful that you may be unaware even existed.

To receive a free report Personal Skills Audit, please get in touch: https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

How to future-proof your career

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The Brexit/political impasse and more recently the impact of the coronavirus has been very stressful for many people

With redundancies now likely to be on the horizon, and many companies currently having recruitment freezes, it can feel very challenging indeed to get a job/paid work.

Even in these challenging market conditions, a sense of moving forward and progressing is vital.

So how can you take steps today to future-proof your career for the longer term?

This blog shares some practical tips and further reading to inspire and help you.

V.U.C.A. world
The current world is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous, or V.U.C.A. This is the new ‘normal’.

Focus on how you can help senior management and businesses with the challenges they face, for example business agility and transformation, creating a competitive advantage, original communication etc.

The competencies of control, curiosity, commitment, confidence and concern are important to be adaptable in your career.

5 career adaptability competencies

  • Control – being proactive, decisive & taking responsibility for your career;
  • Curiosity – broadening your horizons by seeking options, possibilities and knowledge;
  • Commitment – passionately pursuing & taking action to move to the career horizon of your choosing;
  • Confidence – belief in yourself & that you can achieve your goal;
  • Concern – having a positive & philosophical attitude to mistakes or rejection.

How would you rate yourself on these competencies?

Here are some tips to future-proof your career.

Build your career adaptability competencies: If you think of the above career adaptability competencies as ‘muscles’, how can you exercise them? What S.M.A.R.T. goals can you set yourself and what CPD can you undertake to build these ‘muscles’? This will put you in good stead now and in the future.

Understand your transferable skills: Skills you possess are useful in many different contexts outside of your current sector. Investigate new work areas where the skills that you already possess are valued.

Look at trends: Keeping an eye on changing trends is very important at all times, and especially when things are changing fast, which they are at the moment. In any shrinking market, there will always be areas that are growing. What specialisms are growing, for example, cyber crime and data analytics? Where are there skill shortages?

Update your skills: There are lots of free on-line courses, called Moocs shared by universities all over the world. Take advantage of these to learn new skills and develop your knowledge. For example critical thinking is a key skill of the future. Change management and commercial awareness are also good areas to develop. What actions could you take to refresh and develop these specific skills?

Build your career capital: With more competition, you need to have a higher level of qualification to succeed, and add value. Consider new accreditation and building a specialism. Investment now can create more opportunities in future. Explore thought leadership and initiate key note/panel opportunities.

Widen your options: It is wise in uncertain times to develop a portfolio career. Rather than having all your career ‘eggs in one basket’, and just have one source of earning money, explore new/different options, and develop multiple strands to future-proof your career. This is called a portfolio career – it is ideal for uncertain times. You develop different work ‘strands’ so you can pivot as markets change and you change. As an analogy, as with ingredients and cooking a recipe, the more ‘ingredients’ you have of skills, knowledge and experience, the more you can create opportunities for yourself.

Become tech savvy: New tech tools can be daunting at first, but learning them satisfying. Being tech savvy is important so that you hit the ground running in work. If there are two candidates of comparable skill and experience, having superior digital acuity will go in your favour.

Broaden your network: In the digital age, it is becoming more important to have a large diverse network. Many networks are providing free Zoom sessions during lockdown – take advantage of this and attend some networks you wouldn’t normally consider to broaden your network. Join some new LinkedIn groups, and connect with the members.

Free resources: Take advantage of any free resources from your professional body. There may be webinars, case studies and other resources you can access on their website.

Do a skill swap: A skill swap costs nothing, and enables you to learn a new skill, for example Excel spreadsheets, social media, cashflow planning etc. When you’re worried about the future, skill swaps are a brilliant way to skill-up.

Consider retraining: Retraining into a work area where there are skills shortages is worth exploring to improve your security and prospects for the longer term.

Build your resilience: Some people are naturally resilient, but it is a skill that can be learnt. Persistence and not giving up are very important. Determination will take you a long way. In fact, according to Charles Handy, a pioneer in modern ways of working, in his book ‘The New Alchemists’, determination is THE no 1 factor for success. Don’t give up!

It can feel like very challenging times at the moment. Remember you are not alone. Keep going.

Contact us to receive a free report ‘Discover Portfolio Careers’ https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

Recommended further reading

Our articles for the award winning Future of Work Hub:

Future skills for a lifelong competitive advantage part 1 https://www.futureofworkhub.info/comment/2019/3/22/future-skills-for-a-life-long-competitive-advantage-part-1

Future skills for a lifelong competitive advantage part 2 https://www.futureofworkhub.info/comment/2019/6/26/future-skills-for-a-life-long-competitive-advantage-part-2

How’s your career capital?

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Career capital is the value of competencies, knowledge and individual personality attributes and other career assets that you have to produce economic value.

In competitive markets, career capital is even more important than usual.

In times of redundancies with supply of workers outstripping demand, the market will be more competitive. If the quality of two candidates is the same, what will differentiate them to be chosen?

What is career capital?

Your career assets combined = your career capital; the sum total of your time, talent and potential. You need to consider it in terms of its present and future value when considering your long-term career prospects. If the internet is an ocean full of ‘fish’ i.e opportunities, you need the right ‘bait’ to catch the ‘fish’ you want, whether it is a job or a self employed project. Career capital helps you to do this. 

What ‘fish’ do you want to catch e.g. employer or clients?

What will your ‘bait’ be?

Why is career capital important? 

The market for workers is changing. In future, employers will have reduced permanent headcount and resource up on an as needed basis with individuals and employers rated transparently on-line.

Are you ready for this new world of work?

Differentiation and visibility on-line is critical.

Career assets 

Your career capital is made up of multi-faceted career assets which accrue over time.    

Accolades

  • Patents
  • Awards
  • League table rankings e.g. Chambers
  • Who’s who listing

Academic 

  • Higher qualifications e.g. MBA, PHD, MSc/MA
  • Links with academia or prestigious universities e.g. guest lecturer

Endorsements

  • Client testimonials/employer references
  • Peer testimonials/endorsements

Published works

  • Articles
  • Chapters
  • Books
  • White papers

Talent

  • Multiple mastery areas
  • In-demand skills e.g. creativity, big data management
  • Languages
  • Good emotional intelligence e.g. empathy

Networks

  • Professional association involvement
  • Membership of respected clubs
  • Size & diversity of network
  • Quality of network e.g. senior decision makers, high net worths

Events

  • Hosting an event
  • Speaking at an event
  • Conference speaking
  • Conference chairing

Charitable

  • Pro bono
  • Trustee post

Career credibility 

  • Prestige/trophy employers & clients e.g. FTSE 100
  • Senior leadership positions e.g. C-Suite

Miscellaneous

  • Personal brand

What would you add? How would you rate your career capital?

10 tips for healthy career capital 

  1. Create a career strategy and ensure your career capital is aligned with it
  2. Define your ‘fish’ – i.e. target employers or clients
  3. Make time to think about what ‘bait’ is the best to catch your ‘fish’
  4. Audit your career capital quarterly and define career asset S.M.A.R.T. goals
  5. Ensure you have insights about what is important to and valued by your target audience
  6. Define your personal brand
  7. Measure stats for your career capital so you can monitor progress
  8. Monitor your reputation – e.g. set up Google alerts & track your name/brand on Twitter
  9. Use/monitor LinkedIn stats to evaluate the quality and profile of your network
  10. When, where and how will I make time to accrue my career capital?

Thought leadership is one of our specialisms. How can we help you develop yours?

Get in touch https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

What do our clients say? https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/energise-client-testimonials/

10 tips for happy self-employment – part 4 of 4

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Self employment is on the rise. This is a 4 part article series sharing 40 tips for happy self-employment.

Read part 1 https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/10-tips-for-happy-self-employment-part-1-of-4/

Read part 2 https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/10-tips-for-happy-self-employment-part-2-of-4/

Read part 3 https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/10-tips-for-happy-self-employment-part-3-of-4/

  1. Design and print high quality business cards – they speak volumes about you
  2. Networking selectively for your own specialism

3.  Have a superb support system e.g. bookkeeper, proactive accountant, IT, virtual PA

4.  Develop and hone efficient expedient systems, e.g. physical paper and computer file folders from the outset

5.  Back date purchases before you set up your business 

6.  Be adaptable and open to new avenues and opportunities – learn as you go along, learn then teach to embed new learning

7.  Create your own personal image – be authentic

8.  Have a plan but be agile – see what clients/projects you attract

9. Set continual professional and personal development S.M.A.R.T. goals

10. Diarise time for the opposite of what you naturally are drawn to do. E.g. if you are naturally positive and think about what you HAVE done, make time to think about what you HAVEN’T done

Get in touch https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

10 tips for happy self-employment – part 3 of 4

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Self employment is on the rise. This is a 4 part article series sharing 40 tips for happy self-employment.

Read part 1 https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/10-tips-for-happy-self-employment-part-1-of-4/

Read part 2 https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/10-tips-for-happy-self-employment-part-2-of-4/

1.  Follow up is key – don’t waste effort going for the ‘new shiny thing’

2.  Be clear on your attitude to risk

3.  Adopt smart tech to work expediently and plan IT reviews and updates

4.  Create a financial ‘cushion’ for quiet times 

5.  Design your business and working environment around your personality type e.g. extrovert or introvert

6.  Make the most of the quiet months (August/December/January) to think and plan, don’t worry that it is quiet – it is a gift! 

7.  Utilise the support of a Virtual PA – play to your strengths

8.  Be honest with yourself – what do you really want, rather than what you think you should do?

9.  Know the key words for your specialism – use Google Keyword planner

10.               Define your personal brand and personal brand assets, e.g. avatar – this is increasingly important in the digital age

Get in touch https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/

10 tips for happy self-employment – part 2 of 4

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Self employment is on the rise. This is a 4 part article series sharing 40 tips for happy self-employment.

Read part 1.

10 tips for happy self-employment – part 1 of 4

1.  Utilise social media to create awareness free – be focused

2.  Build your skills – gives you options to develop a portfolio career over time

3.  Co-opetition vs collaboration – there can be a fine dividing line between people who do similar work to you being an opportunity to collaborate and being competitive

4.  Protect yourself with legal docs e.g. web site terms and conditions, associate agreements etc.

5.  Create case studies to demonstrate how you can help clients

6.  Gain and share client testimonials

7.  Design your business around your personal values – what is really important to you

8.  Create a compelling verbal business card – what you answer when asked ‘what do you do?’

9.  Support your clients in their roles/careers and they will support you

10.               Timing is everything – monitor business and seasonal cycles which influence and affect decisions 

Get in touch

https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/portfolio/connect/