Last year, after nearly twenty-three years of having worked in the corporate sector, I decided to move on and set up my own private practice as an Executive Coach. It's been a little over a year and so I decided to reflect on my first year off the treadmill of corporate life.
First, let me reflect on what has changed:
1. Greater control over how I spend my time: One of the most significant changes is the control I have gained over my calendar. Earlier, there were a number of meetings scheduled by my colleagues directly into my calendar. In the matrixed cross-functional and international role there were several days of back to back meetings, resulting in the feeling of being on a treadmill which I am sure many of you are familiar with! One of the ways I tried to balance my time, was by blocking space in my calendar for thinking and doing the work! Now, it is a lot easier since all the meetings with my coaching clients or certification programs or building the network are more in my control.
2. Doing more of what matters: I spend a lot more time reading, listening and learning about my areas of interest. I was sharing with a friend recently that my waking hours are broadly divided into three parts: one-third for coaching related activities, one-third for reading, listening and other forms of learning, and one-third with my family. What has reduced is a lot of time spent in business meetings.
3. Freedom to redeploy time: One of the things I have noticed is that moving out of the corporate world has allowed me to follow my heart more easily. I signed up to co-lead a coaching program, we recently adopted two dogs in our family, I have joined the management committee of the apartments where we live, and I am writing this blog during a month-long road-trip with my family. I might have done these things earlier as well, but perhaps with a lot more trepidation.
While these are the biggest changes, let me also point out a few things that have remained the same:
1. My level of happiness is the same: I told my last manager when I was leaving "I am going from a happy place to a happy place". I was very happy with the job I had. (That's why I had stayed with the company for twenty-three years!) And I feel equally happy about my new Executive Coaching practice. In fact, the two are very closely related: I learnt about coaching while I was in my corporate job, and I had started offering my extra time to coach colleagues within the company. And now, I leverage my business knowledge and experience for most of my coaching work.
[As a corollary, if you are not happy with your current career, look carefully at the underlying factors before you seek to change. Sometimes those factors might travel with you into your new career.]
2. My thoughts on money are the same: I had grown to believe while in my corporate journey that "if one does good work, the money follows." This conviction allowed me to confidently move from a regular monthly pay check to a private practice without any guarantee of a regular income. And one year down the line my conviction remains equally strong: "if one does good work, the money follows!"
3. My high respect for Learning & Sharing is the same: I had realized in my corporate career that we enrich our lives through constantly learning and sharing. In my Second Innings as an Executive Coach, this belief has only deepened as I have come to appreciate a whole new world of experts not only in the coaching industry but across multiple industries through the diverse set of clients that I work with. It is a virtuous cycle in which we can continuously learn to pay it forward by sharing with others.
In summary, I look back at my first year off the treadmill with great joy and satisfaction because of both what it has allowed me to do differently and also because of what has remained the same. If you are looking to make a shift in your career, and would like to chat about it, give me a shout at anuj@threecircles.co.in
#CoachingLife #Offthetreadmill #entrepreneurship #ExecutiveCoaching #learningandsharing
Photo by Jenny Hill on Unsplash
The author, Anuj Chadha, is a Life & Executive Coach, Founder of Three Circles. At Three Circles, we build a deep understanding of what it takes to navigate the challenges that life throws at us. We partner with our clients, listen to their life aspirations, and support them to break through the obstacles that seem to be holding them back. Life is too precious to be unhappy, unsure, or unfulfilled. Partner with us as you re-imagine and re-create the Life that you Love!
Comments