Let's Think About It Podcast

Episode 62: Taming the Inner Critic During Career Transition

• Morice Mabry • Season 2 • Episode 62

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Episode Summary 

What if the most powerful shift in your career started with one small step? 

In this episode, Coach Mo welcomes back Michelle Schafer, career and leadership coach and bestselling author of Cultivating Career Growth: Navigating Transitions With Purpose. Together, they unpack the emotional and tactical realities of career transition, especially during job loss, layoffs, and uncertainty. Michelle shares the inner hurdles she overcame to write her book—and how the same mindset tools apply to job seekers stuck in fear, shame, or procrastination. From battling the inner critic to redefining progress beyond job offers, this episode is packed with resilience-building, practical strategies for those seeking more purpose in their work. Whether you're navigating a career pivot, recovering from burnout, or updating your resume, you’ll leave this episode with renewed clarity—and the next right step.

Key Takeaways

  • “Just do it” isn't cliché—it’s strategy
    Learn how Michelle’s writing process mirrors the small-step approach that helps job seekers overcome overwhelm and take action.
  • Progress isn’t just job offers—it's daily reps
    Redefining success during job search: why asking for a LinkedIn recommendation can be just as meaningful as landing an interview.
  • Tame the inner critic with truth and structure
    Discover Michelle’s framework to shift from self-doubt to clarity and confidence in articulating your value.
  • This isn’t your forever place
    How reframing your layoff story and accepting support helps you reclaim momentum after job loss.
  • Articulate your value with 3 simple questions
    Use the “what, how, and so what” framework to build compelling resume bullets and reclaim your career narrative.

Bio:

Michelle Schafer is an ICF-certified coach, author and facilitator, specializing in career transition and leadership. She is the owner and founder of Michelle Schafer Coaching, empowering people to navigate career transitions with confidence. Michelle is passionate about people and inspired by their progress, working with clients at all levels of an organization and across sectors including federal and municipal government, high tech, not-for-profit and financial services. Michelle offers coaching 1:1 and in groups, is the proud author of the #1 best selling book "Cultivating Career Growth: Navigating Transitions with Purpose" and most recently was recognized as one of Ottawa's Top Coaches in 2024.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelleschafercoaching/ 

Website:  https://mschafercoaching.ca/ 

Free offer #1: A free chapter from my book - sign up here: https://mschafercoaching.ca/cultivatingcareergrowth/ 

Order my book Cultivating Career Growth: Navigating Transitions with Purpose here: 

https://mschafercoaching.ca/cultivatingcareergrowth/ 

Free offer #2: Download the reflection tool Career Focus Framework here: https://mschafercoaching.ca/gain-clarity-and-confidence-in-your-job-search/ 

Email me here: michelle@mschafercoaching.ca

Book a complimentary 30 min discovery call with me here:  https://calendly.com/coaching-with-michelle-schafer 


Speaker 1:

Welcome to the let's Think About it podcast, where we embark on a journey of thoughtfulness and personal growth. I'm your host, Coach Mo, and I'm here to guide you through thought-promoting discussions that will inspire you to unlock your full potential. In each episode, we'll explore a wide range of topics, from self-discovery and mindfulness to goal-setting and achieving success. Together, we'll challenge conventional thinking and dive deep into the realms of possibility. Whether you're looking to find clarity in your personal or professional life, or seeking strategies to overcome obstacles, this podcast is your go-to source for insightful conversations and practical advice. So find a comfortable spot, chill and let's embark on this journey of self-improvement together. Remember, the power of transformation lies within you, and together we'll uncover the tools and insights you need to make it happen. So let's dive in. Welcome to another episode of the let's Think About it podcast. I'm your host, Coach Mo, and I'm here with Michelle Schaefer.

Speaker 2:

Hi, Michelle. So good to be on your show again, Mo. We've had a few good episodes together, haven't we?

Speaker 1:

The last one we did was episode 50, my Milestone we're at 62 now. Oh my gosh, 50, my milestone we're at 62 now. So we're just I'm just moving along, trucking along.

Speaker 2:

You're getting closer to 100, every episode at a time.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely, and so I distinctively said that I wanted to bring you back, because in the very first episode you was preparing for a launch of your book and we didn't get an opportunity to dive into that. So I said, hey, when that book releases I got to bring you back. The book has since released, so here you are, let's talk about the book.

Speaker 2:

I'm up for that. It's been an exciting time. It's funny, like when anybody introduces me as an author, I literally do this, like looking behind me, thinking that they're talking to somebody else, but no, they're talking about me, which is trying to embrace that identity. Wouldn't say I'm fully there yet, but I'm getting there.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. This is huge. This is such a proud moment for you. I'm excited for you.

Speaker 2:

Thank you, yeah, I mean they. And you know what's really interesting, mo is. So my book came out February. We're in 2025 as we're recording this, and I started writing this book in January of 2024. And I would say that my book so it's called Cultivating Career Growth Navigating Transitions with Purpose it is more relevant for people today than it was back in January, because there is job loss all around us, certainly on both sides of our border, right In Canada and in the US, and there's a fair number of people who either they see the writing on the wall and they want to get ready, or they're just languishing away in these jobs or at organizations where they're not feeling the love anymore and they need some assistance to try to find something new, and so my book can really help with that.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, let's take a step back, because we may have some new listeners who are not familiar with previous episodes and don't really know who you are. So tell my audience who you are, what you do and the type of value that you bring, and then that'll help us subway into your book bring, and then that'll help us subway into your book, absolutely.

Speaker 2:

So. I'm a career coach and I wear two hats uniquely, so I specialize in career transition. I also specialize in leadership coaching and leadership development, and it's really interesting Like I love hearing the career stories of other people, but certainly I have a story as well which is I haven't been coaching for my entire life. In fact, this month is my 10 year anniversary. I came to be a coach through transition, so I've been restructured two times. I had to reinvent myself and I had to do the same things that I work on with my clients I had to figure out what I wanted to do. Next, I had to do the same things that I work on with my clients. I had to figure out what I wanted to do. Next, I had to clarify my own career goals. I had to develop a job search plan and I had to figure out all my marketing, my resume and LinkedIn. What kind of a story was it telling? I had to do all of those things and because of my experiences, because I have been thrust into the job market unexpectedly and needing to put together a plan and reinvent myself, I got into coaching because I've had that experience. I've always coached a little bit in other jobs, but this has really led me to do something more formal. I had to go back to school, like coaching school, got a certification and I started my own business.

Speaker 2:

Because I've been restructured twice, I really wanted to support other people Not really like the support part is really the value that I provide. I essentially help people navigate the job market with confidence and help them find energizing work for companies that believe what they believe in. So I do a lot of empowering people to be able to find their next job, to be able to secure employment. I'm not doing the work Obviously they are and I'm not a recruiter. I don't place people. So I help people with all the activities for a job search to help them find their next job. And the book was written because when I found myself navigating the job market, I didn't really have a plan. I just started, there really wasn't a roadmap, and so I wanted to give people the roadmap, I wanted to give people resources, and that's really why my book was born.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so what was the biggest challenge? You had this light bulb that came on and was like you know what? The next step is? Writing a book. And what was that challenge? First, before we actually get into the details of the book, but what propelled you forward when certain barriers and obstacles came up?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, are you thinking for me? Like what obstacles came up for me? Oh gosh, yeah, there were several, of course. I'll be honest, I never really thought I would write a book. You know, the barrier I'd say to that was I didn't think I had anything really worth saying. Like that would fill a book right. Like I can write posts on LinkedIn. They're nice and short. I can give job search tips. I was getting better at doing that and I really only started writing on LinkedIn only five years ago. I hid behind the words of other people.

Speaker 2:

It was really in the last five years, with the pandemic, that I started to share things myself. I still didn't think I would write a book because I never thought of myself as an author and I never thought anybody would buy it. I never thought I would be able to fill a book. Part of me thought I'm going to get excited about this and I'm going to start and maybe I'm going to lose my energy throughout and think why am I doing this? I'm really grateful. My partner, tim, has been encouraging me for a while. He thinks I've got a couple of books in me. I don't know. I've been writing one. We might just take a long break first. Oh my God, birthing a kid, with all the pain, the reward and the joy it's everything together. But those are my obstacles.

Speaker 2:

I knew I could help job seekers, certainly by writing it. I just really didn't think that I had enough. The more I really started to get into the writing, I realized I've got an avalanche of tips and strategies to share. But the other part is and this, I think this is what makes my book relatable for people is every chapter starts with a client story, like in my chapter eight, which is all about interviewing. I'm telling the story of one of my interview coaching clients and some of the struggles that they had when they came to me, and then I offer up a lot of tips and then I wrap it up by saying where did that client go with that? How did they do in their next interview? So there's a lot of information, there's client stories, but there's also lines for people to write in and make notes. So it's part workbook and part strategy and sharing of tips. But certainly it didn't come easy and I really bucked the thought that I could do this.

Speaker 2:

So, much so, mo, that people would reach out to me over LinkedIn like publishers, and say, oh, have you thought about writing a book, I'd love to work with you? And I just ignored them all. I really did Like for, I would say, a good year and a half. I just didn't take up anybody on the offer. And then somebody reached out to me who is the publisher that I did use, and it was just the way she reached out. I thought you know what? I should be open to it. I was closing it down before even investigating it, and when I had the conversation with her I thought, yeah, if I'm going to do it, I want to do it with you. And then we just started the process.

Speaker 1:

And I'm going to correlate this to how you help clients in your book. But I think one of the things that we face going through career transitions right now is the inner critic. That's one of the biggest hurdles that we have to just really learn to break through. I want to correlate that through your experience, because the inner critic was probably present starting to write your book. It was a barrier that you had to navigate and get through, jump over. What was that like for you initially? How did you tame it? We, we obviously know the outcome, but I want to know how did you tame it so that you can get the success that you were able to achieve.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and I would say, just like looking for work or doing anything in life. I had some support with this, like I wasn't in a vacuum writing this book. I had a writing coach. Her name is Amy. I'm still in touch with her even though the book is published.

Speaker 2:

One of the things that Amy offered up for me very early. There were two things that really helped me keep going. One is she said just do it. Like she said don't wait for the perfect conditions to write a chapter. And I had to give her a chapter every single week, so I had deadlines and that kind of thing. But she said don't wait for the perfect conditions, like sitting by the fireplace with a glass of wine and computer in hand and feeling all motivated, like now. That doesn't describe a lot of moments in the day. But she said just make a practice of writing every day. And she said just do it. So she said just put something down on paper, because when we just get ourselves going, oftentimes it flows. And she was really right with that. If I put down one sentence, one sentence led to two to three to four. So that helped a lot just to keep the motivation going.

Speaker 2:

But the other thing that she shared and this was 100% true. She just said don't get married to what you write. Like she said it will change in editing so that can be a roadblock for a lot of writers. Like they want it to sound perfect and they want it to like just sound a certain way and if there's going to be a change it's hard to adjust to. And she said the two of them would really go together because the just do it and write it really fed into.

Speaker 2:

If you're just writing, you're not getting married to the outcome. You know it's going to change, which relieves the pressure. You don't have to put this pressure on yourself to write to be like Mel Robbins and sell a kajillion books based on basically four words. I don't know if you've read any Mel Robbins, but she's hugely successful as an author and I could remove the pressure from myself. I'm not necessarily going to be her, but if I just do it and I share the strategies that I know are going to help job seekers, I'm just giving myself a way in. So I would say that was guidance that really helped me.

Speaker 1:

One thing that I have to add to your story there is I have this tagline that I use in my emails the most effective way to do it is to do it Is to do it Saying that. So that's just. You're putting a big Kool-Aid smile on my face and doing that.

Speaker 2:

And it's not simple. Right, but it's not simple, it's hard.

Speaker 1:

But how does that carry over to someone who is struggling in career transition? Who is struggling in career transition?

Speaker 2:

and the concepts in your book help them with that transition. Yeah, I can directly relate the challenges that I had writing the book to somebody who is in a job search. I speak with clients every week who are stuck in their search and the reason why they're stuck in their search is they're putting all this pressure on themselves, like I was with the book and writing it, putting all this pressure on themselves to find the perfect job, like writing the perfect chapter. Yeah, that doesn't exist and it's going to morph and change With job seeking. It doesn't have to be all or nothing and sometimes people would just get so overwhelmed by activities in their job search so they would just do nothing.

Speaker 2:

One of the things that I work with people on is taking something that seems like it's a roadblock. It's maybe it's really big, it's overwhelming. I'll give you an example updating your resume or updating your LinkedIn profile seems huge, right as a task. So I would work with them and say, okay, so updating your resume, what would be the tiniest step you could take where you could do something for your resume, even if you didn't do the whole thing with the aim that something's always better than nothing?

Speaker 2:

Somebody might say, oh, like I'll write a bullet, an achievement bullet, to support what I did in my last job. I said there you go, so make that your goal Then if that's the only thing you do for your resume, that's okay because you've done something. One achievement statement is better than zero achievement statements and I find that breaking down approach into like taking something big and making things really small. It just allows job seekers to experience the incremental progress of doing something every day and just being consistent. Be consistent, show up, do something, even if the something is seven minutes, because you'll feel better about yourself that you did something for seven minutes as opposed to doing nothing that obviously was zero minutes. So that's something that helps job seekers quite a lot.

Speaker 1:

And that's powerful, because our mind, the inner critic, makes it bigger than what it really is right. Oh my gosh, we got to redo our resume. That's going to take about a month and all of this effort and energy, but what you're saying? No, let's take baby steps. Comproach. What can we do today. What's one action we can do today to build towards a better resume? That's it. Let's focus on that. Even me just saying this, it seems more calm.

Speaker 2:

You're actually doing something. And the other thing that I offer to job seekers and I talk about this in my book as well is the idea around like, what is progress to you? So a lot of people that I work with, they feel that they're not making any headway unless they get an offer. So, like in their mind, job offer equals job search success, with no room to accept progress on other funds, and then they declare themselves a failure if they're not getting offers. So I'll break that down with them as well and I'll say okay, let's just talk about your wins.

Speaker 2:

And that's actually one of the questions I ask my clients before I meet with them is I'll send them a series of four questions and the top one is tell me what wins you've experienced, big and small, that you've experienced since the last time we got together and we were talking and a win could be yeah, like I asked somebody for a recommendation for my LinkedIn profile like that's a win, and I'm trying to help them understand that's progress too, because you're doing something and you're getting that recommendation and you're putting it on your profile. That's a win. And I encourage job seekers to think about looking for work. Do you plant anything? Do you have a garden or like flowers or like anything like that around your place, or know somebody that that does that kind of thing?

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I have a lawn. I have a little rose garden area. Oh nice, I set it up, I put it there, but it was iterated, I didn't do it all in one day.

Speaker 2:

No, of course not. So the reason you're probably wondering why did I bring up like planting and vegetable gardens and stuff like that? It's because, like, even to set it up right, like in order to see the roses come up, you have to create the right conditions and you have to tend to those plants, otherwise nothing's going to happen. So I equate it to a job search by saying okay, so imagine you're planting something, whatever it is, you got to push the seeds down into the ground and then you cover it up, right, you water it, but you make sure that there's enough sun. Now, if you look at that patch in your rose garden every day, you're going to see for a while the same thing nothing, because you can't see what happened with the seed, except that seed under the soil is starting to grow, it's starting to bring shoots, and then, as soon as it breaks through the soil, oh, now you see the fruits of your labor.

Speaker 2:

On a job search, I want job seekers to know that progress is happening, even if you can't see it, which means progress is not just the beautiful rose plant, which takes some time, and I like how you said you got some help to set it up. In a job search, we need help as well. It's not meant to do on our own. So for people to say, oh, my job search is a failure because I'm not getting any offers, hold on. Let's look at all the wins, the progress, the incremental things that are happening, and incremental progress against incremental progress is, over time, going to amount to a larger step forward. It's a tough realization. It takes a bit of time.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and there's a lot of self-awareness that needs to be present as well, because there's an internal process that you're going through. I know we're looking at it from a job search standpoint, but as you're doing certain activities in that job search, you're growing from that standpoint as well. Right, If you have to, let's just say, update a section of your resume about your experience, you have to sometimes take a deep dive. Maybe some tips from you journal, try journaling the good things that you remember that you did well in your job. And then how do we transfer that over into this description of your experience? Yeah, Generates internal growth for you.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely, and you know what. I'm glad that you brought that up, because I would say, like that's another struggle I see with people looking for work, which is why I have a whole chapter all about branding and how you can represent your achievements, because a number of people that I work with oftentimes what has caused somebody to even just explore working with me is they say I've been at this job search for a while, I'm applying for jobs, I'm not getting them. Or I'm interviewing, not getting the job. And when you really delve into it, the realization of that the person has is, yeah, there may be not as much in tune with what their value is. So, yeah, you can tell me all the things that you've done, but why is that meaningful? Why is it significant? If you strip everything away, what's the value that you offer? And, mo, I still remember working with this one individual and he was a bus driver here in Ottawa and, with his resume, trying to get him to write an achievement statement, he was totally stuck. And when I asked him like where is the roadblock? What is the roadblock? And he said I'm just doing my job, like I'm not doing anything special, I'm literally just fulfilling my job description. I said okay, what then? Even though you were filling all the job description, tell me a bit about the impact.

Speaker 2:

Brainstorming with him, he realized that, yes, he's driving a bus and he's dropping people off and he's picking them up, but there were some core things that he had to do that enriched people's experience. One he had to be really skilled at handling very challenging emotions, like strong emotions. Some people who ride the bus are not necessarily nice Unfortunately, I've experienced that so he had to be skilled at navigating those emotions. He also needed to be well-versed in lots of different accommodations. Like people who ride the bus all have varied needs and some individuals needed some accommodations. He needed to know what those were and how to offer them. He also needed to make quick decisions in the moment that protected the safety of his passengers.

Speaker 2:

And those were just a few. And when we were talking about it, he realized, okay, yeah, like I'm doing my job, if he did any of those things poorly, people would complain about him. They wouldn't want to be on his route. They'd probably try to find another way to get to work. All negative outcomes, but he had lots of positive outcomes. Connecting with your value is a big part of looking for work and articulating that value is something that people struggle with, and that's what's in the book.

Speaker 1:

That's exactly what my next question was going to be. How do you help readers of your book articulate what their values is or what their purpose is?

Speaker 2:

I have a bit of a formula, a framework that I will break down for clients to help them come up with that, and it's basically the information that you need to put into your achievement statement bullet. So these are the bullets that appear below each of your jobs, chronologically under the work experience section of your resume, and the framework is each of those statements needs to include what you did. That could be from your job description. That's fine, what you did, but how did you do it? And I say include the so what.

Speaker 2:

So what you led a project Like, why was it important, significant, what kind of results and outcomes did you achieve? And so how I get people to like just get more familiar with their value, is a if they have access to like performance reviews, I asked them to read through those because the value is certainly threaded through there. I also ask them to ask people go to people who they used to work with maybe former directors or managers and ask them what are two examples of times where I offered value to you? What was I doing and why was it significant, so you can get some good ideas. There was I doing and why was it significant, so you can get some good ideas there. The other way to come to it is use chat, gpt, dictate everything about something that you did, something that you were proud of, something that people gave you some positive feedback on, and just talk about it in chat, gpt and then ask chat or whatever AI you use.

Speaker 2:

Develop one achievement statement for my resume that is concise and includes the following three points, and this is where you ask for include the what, the how and the so what, and it will take everything and distill it and pop out a nice concise but impactful achievement statement for your resume. Those are some ways that I will work with people to get connected to what they do and get them just remembering what they do. And yeah, sometimes people are astounded that I say what ask people Like why would I want to ask people? Others will hold. They will see things maybe a little bit different than you, so something that you're thinking is a I was just doing my job thing. It might be really impactful to somebody else. We just need to ask them.

Speaker 1:

Is that? Is it laid out in your book as well about how to take that approach?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think it's a chapter. I'm trying to think what is my branding chapter? Oh, chapter five. Chapter five is called what's in a brand? And all of that is in there. Hold the book up. Why didn't I do that before?

Speaker 1:

Okay, because on Amazon.

Speaker 2:

I was really proud it got to number one bestseller status when it came out in the three categories that it's offered in. I know one of the categories is still number 20, which astounds me because it came out in February. I know that you like to offer your listeners something, so I've got a gift, of course, for your listeners, which is people are going to be able to access a free chapter from the book and, if you like what you read, the link is going to be in there. I know that you're going to send to everybody as part of the show notes where you can order the whole thing. I try to make it accessible to people and the fact that it's part workbook and part tips just gives people a way to apply what they're learning directly to their job search, like in the moment.

Speaker 1:

I know we're running out of time, but I got to bring this up. There's so many people during this time of career transition. What's happening in our job environment? They're struggling. They need resilience right now. How do you help people? People establish that resiliency in the book.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's such a great question. So in my book, chapter nine is called this Is Not your Forever Place, and I very intentionally wrote a chapter that is all about the limiting beliefs that we can have, that inner critic that gets in the way, and how to work with that inner critic and those limiting beliefs. I also talk about how to navigate the strong emotions that can come with looking for work, especially for somebody who has lost their job. It is called the sudden pain of job loss, for good reason. It is very painful for people. Some people experience deep, deep shame because they think, okay, I lost my job because I was a poor performer, that must be why I lost my job. And so how I work with people to help them dismantle, that is first of all to help them dismantle. That is first of all to help them see that that, yes, they have lost their job and it's incredibly uncomfortable, but they are not the only one. Is it really realistic that hundreds of thousands of people were bad performers? No, of course not, and sometimes, for somebody who's really stuck, I'll ask them if they share that. Oh yeah, like a friend of mine, those lost their job and they found another job and I said what did you think about your friend when they lost their job? Did you think that they were a bad performer and they got what was coming to them somehow? And of course, the person would say, oh, this person's very talented, they are so knowledgeable and they're like a really good employee. And I'll say is it possible that others would say the same thing about you? You know that you were a really great employee, you were very supportive, you were a team person, you stepped up, you were like, shared your expertise very graciously. Is it possible that others might say the same about you? And then they're like yeah, so I'll work with people and just give them new language. The other thing to help them be more resilient as well is and this is in the book about how do you frame your leave story. So, if you have been let go for any reason, how do you tell the story of your departure and Mo, I'm not kidding when I say this.

Speaker 2:

I have clients who will avoid social engagements because they don't want anybody to ask them what they do or if they know that they're looking. How's your job search going? They just don't want to answer the questions. So I'll give them the framework of how to answer. Like position, the leave story.

Speaker 2:

Talk about the fact that you were restructured. Business decision was made to eliminate your position. Maybe it was a mass layoff, but then talk about something you were proud of, to show that it wasn't a performance decision and connect something that you love about your last job to what it is that you're talking to that person about now. Like it's about managing the message. It's about believing the message and knowing that people are there to that person about now. Like it's about managing the message. It's about believing the message and knowing that people are there to help. I really encourage.

Speaker 2:

In fact, one of the first questions I'll ask a client when I first start working with them is tell me who's in your support network.

Speaker 2:

Who have you already reached out to to let them know that you were looking and to get some support? Most people are open with people who are in their family. But and to get some support, most people are open with people who are in their family. But there are a few clients who one in particular I remember she waited six months to tell her adult children that she was let go. She had been with the company for over 25 years and was just completely blindsided and thought it was her fault, and so she wasn't going to tell anybody for the longest time. Part of what I do is helping people with the tactical aspects of looking for work, but I would say there's a big emotional component which is why I felt a job search is not complete unless you acknowledge the emotions that you have and those limiting beliefs and that chapter nine is all about that and ways to reframe that into a positive and productive action for yourself and for your search.

Speaker 1:

And kudos to you for including that, because that's big and we talk a lot about the inner critic here. The limiting beliefs fear things like that and that's when it's biggest. When you lost your job, right, you carry this judgment about yourself. Just what you just shared around a mom losing her job and not telling her adult kids for six months. That's the inner critic highly present. You can't say anything. They're going to think A, b, c and D. And then the other thing that you mentioned was some of the shame that people carry and they avoid the social engagements.

Speaker 1:

I like that you have that in your book as well to be able to help them flip the script, because there's always opportunity in those social gatherings engagements and if you are a well-respected individual amongst your circle, it's the inner critic first that's talking you out of leaning on them for support, because if they admire you, love you, honor you, respect you, they want to help you. They want to help you, they want to support you and you don't know who they know of who they know Exactly. So many layers out. If we use the opportunity to flip it and look for opportunities, it's huge. It's a win-win.

Speaker 2:

Yes, exactly, and it's doing things like that really build the confidence, but build the ability to ride the waves. No joke, because I've gone through a job search twice, I know that there are ups and downs. Sometimes the ups and downs are very prominent. From the up to the down could be a big drop day by day. And that's why I say to people like this is not your forever place. You will not be unemployed forever. You will not be in a job search forever. You will find work that energizes you for an organization that believes what you believe in.

Speaker 2:

Thinking of Simon Sinek and the why, that's my, why, that's my Simon Sinek, why Sharing that phrase I've had people quote me on that in other circles, which is hilarious because it tells me it resonates for people, but it is so true. It's hard to see in the moment when you're in a discouraging job search. It's hard to see that you're not going to be in this place forever, because it just feels like you are. And that's why I find engaging support. Don't insulate yourself from the people that love and want to help you. Do seek out support, do accept offers of help, because those things give you some strength, especially in a very tough job search.

Speaker 2:

Can you be found again? Yeah, a few ways. So my website is the easiest way. It's mshafercoachingca. If you want to access that free chapter, you just tack on a slash cultivating career growth at the end of that website address. Linkedin is a really great place as well. I'm posting, I'd say at least five out of every seven days about looking for work, about exploring new career paths, and for any listener who is looking for work, maybe you're feeling pretty frustrated and you'd like a conversation. I do offer a complimentary discovery conversation, and so the link for that is also on my website on the Contact Us page. A few different ways to get a hold of me. If you do buy the book, I'd love to hear what you think of it and especially what part of it really jumped out for you.

Speaker 1:

I appreciate you, Michelle. I really do. You're such a value to so many people out there. I trust you that whoever reaches out, you will make sure that they're equipped with the right tools, resources to take the first step in their job search. So proud of you and congratulations on the book again.

Speaker 2:

Thank you, thanks so much and thank you for having me on the show again.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for joining me in this episode of let's Think About it. Your time and attention are greatly appreciated. If you found value in today's discussion, I encourage you to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. Remember, the journey of self-improvement is ongoing and I'm here to support you every step of the way. Connect with me on social media for updates and insights. You can find me on Instagram and Facebook, at Coach Mo, coaching or LinkedIn, at Maurice Mabry, or visit my website at mauricemabrycom for exclusive content. Until next time, keep reflecting, keep growing and, most importantly, keep believing in yourself. Importantly, keep believing in yourself. Remember, the most effective way to do it is to do it Together. We're making incredible strides toward a better and more empowered you. So thank you, and I'll see you in our next episode.