This Is Not The Career I Ordered™ Blog
Savvy Professional Career Wisdom by Caroline Dowd-Higgins
This is Not the Career I Ordered is read by thousands of careerists around the globe. With savvy tools, inspiration, and resources, this timeless book empowers you to enjoy your career, and love your life!
Don’t Undervalue the Exit Interview
Several years ago, I left an organization to take on a new role that honored my interest in growth and advancement. I was given the chance to participate in an exit interview to share my thoughts about the organization and my experience. I believed this was a way for me to share candid and thoughtful […]
Is Your Life Eulogy Worthy, or Resume Worthy?
David Brooks delivered a compelling TED Talk about living for your resume or your eulogy. According to Brooks, “The résumé virtues are the ones you put on your résumé, which are the skills you bring to the marketplace. The eulogy virtues are the ones that get mentioned in the eulogy, which are deeper: who are you, in your […]
The Importance of Receiving
With the holidays upon us, it’s fair to say we’ll probably be doing a lot more giving in the days and weeks to come – whether it’s giving parties, gifts, donations, side dishes, or our time. For women, in particular, giving tends to be our default… our wheelhouse. Many of us have no problem giving, […]
Screen Time Relief: 3 Tips To Detox
This holiday season, I hope you’ll consider giving yourself a rare and precious gift…I hope you’ll give yourself the gift of time away from your screens. More than ever before it feels like we’re staring at a screen the majority of our days – living in a virtual world that detaches us from others and, […]
It’s About the Journey – Part Two: 3 Tips For Embracing the Path
In last week’s post I shared the story of my career transition from Opera into the Professional Development work I do today. Making that change eighteen years ago was a huge challenge. My career journey all of the sudden took a turn into uncharted territory and I was shaken to the core, but also changed […]
More Than Getting There: It’s About the Journey – Part One
When it comes to career, there’s a lot of pressure in our culture to achieve our goals…to “make it”… to “get there” – yet each time we “get there”, there’s always a new “there” to get to. We reach a goal, and that brings us to ‘What’s next?’ – and then we’re off again – […]
Resume Tips for Career Changers
Writing a resume can be a challenge at the best of times, but when you plan to change careers, this task is even more daunting. If you want to give yourself the best possible chance of success, you must understand how to present yourself and you background in a favorable light. It’s important to find […]
Blessings In Disguise: Reframing Career Challenges
When it comes to our work lives, the one sure thing is change and challenge. We may moan and groan when faced with hurdles large or small on the job – but these are the experiences we’re most likely to remember for the growth and wisdom they bring. Through my coaching practice and travels for […]
Play At Work: Incorporating Fun On the Job
For many of us, work is often characterized as “serious,” “nose-to-the-grindstone,” “no-nonsense” and “down to business.” There’s this idea that work is work and play is…well…for after work. In an INC column, Brendan Boyle, a partner at the design firm, IDEO, says play in the workplace has a “PR problem.” “Some think of play as […]
Avoid Workaholism and Get More Sleep
This guest post was contributed by William Loper, a freelance writer who loves to spend time researching new and exciting topics. On the weekend he enjoys a glass of wine and a non-fiction book. In today’s day and age, both young and mature people feel the need to work harder in order to feel they contribute […]
Job By Design: Forging Your Own Path
If you’re looking for more challenge in your job, and there doesn’t seem to be a promotion in the offing, you may be asking yourself, ‘What’s next?’ That’s how my coaching client (I’ll call her Dawn) was feeling when we first met. Dawn was a manager at a non-profit and felt like she’d gone as […]
The Importance of Being Validating
Have you ever gotten a message that says, “please validate your email address”? Yes, of course you have. You own a computer. Have you ever responded, out loud, “great job, email address!”? I have. We live in a world that is all about fixing things. We live in a world where people walk around wearing […]
Work Sabbatical: Taking a Break From the Job
Have you ever wanted to hit the “pause” button at work – getting away for longer than your allotted vacation time allows? University professors have traditionally taken sabbaticals to recharge and refresh, and now more and more American workers are doing the same. Many employers, including MeetUp, McDonalds, Pantagonia and Morningstar, to name a few, […]
Healthy Work Life: Take Care of Yours
The donuts are there to greet you in the break room…the Diet Coke is the “perfect fix” for getting through the afternoon…it’s so much easier to “push through” rather than get up from the desk to stretch… and so it goes, often day after day. We spend the majority of our lives at work, and, […]
