My guiding career principles following burnout

BurnoutMental healthpersonal growth

Jun 25

Written By Peta Sitcheff

“What’s my next career step?” the candidate asked eagerly in our interview.

There it was. The question which rarely failed to make an appearance.

We had work to do.

My response is always the same, “Perhaps you can tell me. What’s the impact you’d like to make on those you serve?”

The blank look sitting opposite me clearly indicating this was not the response they expected.

Time to toss the inflatable rescue ring.

“It’s ok.” I said with a warm smile.

A long, grateful exhale instantly relaxing their panicked facial expression.

I went on, “This isn’t a trick question, I didn’t expect you to have a prepared response. Consider it a different way of thinking. Would you mind if I took you through an exercise?”

“Of course.” they curiously replied.

I went on to ask three questions:

Who are the people who benefit most from what you do professionally?
How would those people describe the difference you make in their lives?
What does success look like for these individuals?

Meaningful work is significant work[1].

It’s work which is less about what we do and more about the difference we make on those we serve - the beneficiaries of our efforts.

When I left my thirteen year corporate role in 2016, I was deeply moved by the comments and sentiments expressed by the customers I was leaving behind. Well expressed in my work well-being memoir, My Beautiful Mess.

“You are like my Valium,” one said. “When you are here, I just know everything will be ok.”

Another hung up in my ear when I broke the news. “Don’t be stupid.” he said. Clunk. Knowing the masked spinal surgeon in question very well, I wasn’t surprised. All I could do was smile. His actions spoke volumes.

In no way was I prepared for how this emotional outpour would make me feel. Honestly, I buried it all for six months and pretended it wasn’t there. Burnout doesn’t let you feel.

Reflecting and dissecting years later, I realised their words were like one final departing gift.

My customers were describing the difference I made in their professional lives and why it mattered, in their words.

They were gifting me my impact. My value.

This realisation instantly changed the way I saw myself. It gave me strength, courage and inspiration.

It made me realise, I was enough.

Suddenly my fear of other people’s opinions, of not being good enough, of not knowing enough - disappeared.

I was no longer waiting for anyone’s permission to progress.

I was in the driver’s seat.

This awareness changed the way I lead my professional life. Today, my mindset very different.

Rarely do I think about the title under my name. It’s almost become irrelevant. They are merely words.

Nor do I relentlessly obsess about numerical performance targets, or falsely believe achieving these makes me successful.

It doesn’t. They are merely numbers, and numbers can be manipulated.

This led to one of the most confronting lessons from my corporate selling career;

Sales numbers themselves never motivated me. It was my fear of not hitting those numbers which became my motivation.

I was driven by fear.

The realisation of this lesson was accompanied by overwhelming relief.

Relief which has today transformed into a fierce determination to explore and uncover alternative ways of working for the sales profession which; is kinder to the mind, a continual investment in well-being, and delivers results.

Successful results a by-product of professionals deeply connected to, and motivated by, the impact they make to those they serve.

My governing principles explained;

Our purpose refers to our values and passions.

Brought to life through our strengths and preferences.

Found through giving, learning and connecting.

Our impact is our professional roadmap.

At its heart are our values, guiding us through the ebbs and flows of our motivation.

Passions ignite our interest and create motion.

Strengths and preferences bring these beating hearts to life in ways which come to us naturally, through our habits.

Giving aligns with our spirit.

Connection aligns with our heart.

And finally learning, aligns with our mind as we continually invest in growing, and amplifying our impact.

When all are honoured, our intentions align with the way we are perceived in the eyes of those we serve.

We are always enough.

It’s a contemporary train of thought, fully engaging us; mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. All necessary in protecting us from falling out of love with our job, and our life.

Burnout is an absence of love after all. For our job, our lives and ourselves.

We meet force with force, eventually nature will take over and force us to stop.

My parting question to you;