There are times while you’re “in transition” where you’ll feel stuck. Zero steps forward, no prospects and very few conversations. We’re told to always step forward (including by me) but here’s an opportunity to look back and document, for yourself, the bounding strides you’ve made. You’ll discover you’re not the same person and braver than you ever thought you could be.
Look Back to Move Forward
Go back 6 months and check your calendar or notebook. How many people did you “network” with? Not only that, how many were people you never knew before? How many of those conversations led to other conversations with people you didn’t know? Now, ask yourself, “would I have ever done this expansion BEFORE I was in transition?” That’s growth!
It Gets Easier
I recently did an experiment with a support group I facilitate for people who are “in transition,” like myself. I asked them to tell their “exit” stories, but to concentrate on what emotions they were feeling while telling it. Two things happened. One, nobody felt alone in their experience. Everyone’s story was unique, but how they felt about it was shared and almost universal. Two, after everyone had a chance to tell their stories, I asked them to compare how they feel now to how they felt when they were let go. EVERYONE felt more positive about where they are now. That’s growth!
Celebrate Yourself!
There are some great ways to help build up your self confidence when you feel stuck. Writing down ALL your skills, professional and personal, is an awesome way to confirm how much you can offer AND how awesome you are. Don’t hold back either. Do you make a great omelet? Can you fix a leaky faucet? Are you a karaoke master? It all counts! You also need to realize that anything you do now that you would have put off or never done before you were “in transition…” is a victory! So, get used to patting yourself on the back, even for just one conversation or webinar that you knew, deep down, you would have never done the way you were before. That’s growth!
Use Your “Down Time” Wisely
If you feel your progress is slowing, then it’s the perfect time to watch a webinar, do some online learning, check who’s in your network you haven’t reached out to yet or haven’t heard anything from in a few months. Do the things that give you your confidence back, including looking back at how much you’ve grown, to inspire you to get unstuck. The truth is, you’re never stuck. And, as you look back, even in your “stuck” moments, you’ll see how much you’ve changed!
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