As a North American in the United Kingdom, one of the biggest adjustments to make is to the idea of how to do the whole parenthood thing in a different culture. We speak English over here, but it’s a different code. I’ve mastered the obvious boot, petrol and trousers, but sometimes an unexpected language gap trips me up.
Like the other day when I was trying to figure out which kind of ‘nappy cream’ to use. I had written down a brand name that another parent had suggested, but I ended up writing it down phonetically instead of how it actually was written. And, so it took a helpful lady in the chemist to direct me to the right nappy cream.
So it is true when we pivot in work. We may be facing a transition into a new role or stepping out to grow our own company some more and think we know the right path and the right direction, but could be slightly off, just like my UK English spelling.
Here are three lessons I’ve learned from pivoting in different stages of my career.
- Think and take small baby steps with a big vision.
Earlier this week I interviewed a mentor for a series I’m doing about how to start your own passionate side gig. His conclusion after running several successful businesses since 2005 was to take ‘baby steps’ each day but to keep the big vision in mind.
It’s when we panic and take big actions too quickly that we get caught again in the day to day trap of survival living. And it’s when we get stuck in the minutia our to do lists and plans that we miss the big opportunity.
2. Think transferable skills. You’ve got more than you realise.
Just like America and the UK are united by a common language but divided by spelling, there is more inside of you than you think that can translate from one field to another. It’s helpful to ask a few people familiar with your work about your strengths in different areas. Or, sometimes using a skills checklist or assessment can highlight strengths you didn’t know you had.
3. Be confident and actually, dare to believe in your own success.
Right now, it’s a pretty scary and uncertain time in the economy. People aren’t sure of what is going to come down the pike, especially in the next few months. But, what if, actually, it all worked out better than you imagined, if you just took that first step?
Sometimes, my clients end up stuck because they are afraid to try something new, but it actually could be very similar to what they used to do, but just in a new way. If you’d like to have a chat about taking your business to the next level or defining your leadership success, I’d love to connect.
