Transitions can be challenging. They can also oftentimes be exciting and full of growth opportunities. Sometimes we choose them ourselves and sometimes they happen to us. The transition to a new and exciting job where our strengths and skills are utilized is very different than children leaving home and becoming an empty-nester. What is important is that we take time to reflect on what is working for us in this transition and what feels challenging or is not working. To really ask ourselves how we are doing from multiple perspectives.
Developing self-awareness takes intentional effort and work. One lens that can be used to understand how we are doing in our current transition is through our own values. When we know our own personal values, we can use them as a diagnostic tool to reflect on what is working and what is not – which values are in alignment with our current situation and which values are possibly being compromised. For example, if I know that I thrive best in a fast-paced environment, then I can ask myself if my new environment is giving me the pace I need to thrive.
Another possible lens to view ourselves through is that of the WHAT and the WHO. A person who has a new job as, for example, a Director of Customer Service in an industry that suits them perfectly and with responsibilities that fully utilize their strengths and skills, may have challenges with the culture of the organization they work in. The individual may bring culture, expectations, habits and beliefs that are not in alignment with their new organization. The WHAT is in alignment and the WHO is not in this example.
Transitions can be facilitated through consciously describing a goal and a journey with the transition. Asking ourselves how we want things to be when the transition is over and how we want the transition to look like, can help enormously in effectively utilizing a situation as a growth opportunity.
Are you utilizing your transition as a growth opportunity? What are your conscious intentions with the transition period? How have you articulated those intentions and how are you working on them consciously?
MindKatalysts AB 