Finding Meaningful Work Beyond Career ‘Success’
Many professionals reach a point where traditional success loses its luster, even while they excel in their roles. Helen Hanison, a seasoned PR executive turned leadership coach, calls this the "success trap." Despite high achievements, individuals often feel misaligned with their work, craving a sense of purpose and direction. Helen shares her journey from the heights of corporate success to discovering meaningful, purpose-driven work. She reveals how her experiences now inform her approach to coaching professionals seeking aligned career transformations.
From Corporate to Career Clarity: A Personal Journey
Hanison spent over 20 years in top PR firms, managing renowned brands and leading teams in London. From the outside, her career seemed exemplary. However, the role's demands soon began clashing with her personal values. As her responsibilities grew, so did her disconnection from what had once brought her joy in her work. After becoming a mother, she realized she could no longer sustain the career she had once championed. "I didn't understand about values at the time," Hanison reflects, "but immense career conflict was what I was living with."
After years of navigating her own path to fulfillment, Hanison pivoted to psychology, earning a degree and eventually shaping her leadership coaching practice. This experience led her to create a three-act formula, featured in her book Unstuck: A Smart Guide to Purposeful Career Redesign. Through this structured process, she helps others find alignment, design careers that resonate, and ultimately transform their professional lives.
Three Acts for Lasting Career Transformation
Hanison’s career redesign formula is broken down into three transformative stages, or "acts," that guide individuals from self-assessment to action and, ultimately, a purpose-driven career.
Alignment: Establishing a Career Compass
The journey begins with a thorough alignment process, or as Hanison puts it, "calibrating a career compass." This step encourages individuals to uncover their strengths, values, and sense of purpose—elements she considers vital to crafting a fulfilling career. According to Hanison, this involves "interrogating what matters most to you" and examining how these core principles interact with professional goals.
Redesign: Prototyping New Career Paths
With alignment in place, Hanison’s formula shifts toward actionable steps in career redesign. Here, she introduces what she calls the "what next quest." This stage emphasizes real-world experimentation, where clients explore small pilot projects and roles aligned with their purpose. Instead of taking drastic leaps, Hanison encourages a structured exploration, creating opportunities for growth and minimizing risks. "This isn’t about making one huge career change," she explains, "but testing out paths through experiential learning to see what truly resonates."
Transformation: Developing the Resilience to Stay on Course
The final stage tackles the mental and emotional resilience required for sustained career transformation. Through techniques like narrative therapy, Hanison helps clients identify and overcome limiting beliefs or “inner critics” that can hinder progress. The goal is to foster a mindset prepared for change and unafraid of the unknown.
"We all carry inner characters that can hold us back," she says, "and these need to be recognized and addressed if we’re going to stick with our transformation.”
Building Purposeful Careers in Organizations
Hanison’s work also extends to companies, where she supports leaders in fostering a culture of purpose. She highlights that purpose-driven cultures not only increase employee happiness but also drive business growth and loyalty. “It's not just a nice-to-have,” Hanison notes.
“For companies, fostering purpose is integral to growth.”
By aligning company missions with employees' personal values, Hanison believes organizations can create more engaged and committed teams, essential in today’s competitive landscape.
Key Takeaways for a Purpose-Driven Career Path
Align Your Core Values: Understanding your values, strengths, and purpose is crucial to navigating a fulfilling career path.
Experiment Before You Leap: Take incremental steps and test different career paths to discover what resonates without overwhelming risks.
Transform Through Mindset: Cultivate resilience and address limiting beliefs that may impede your career transformation.
Helen emphasizes that purposeful career redesign is not only achievable but also essential for sustained professional satisfaction. For those interested in learning more about this transformative approach, Helen’s website offers resources, including the ACT quiz, workshops, and further guidance on aligning career and purpose.
For more insights on career alignment, visit Helen Hanison's Website and connect on LinkedIn.
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