In my previous post, I wrote about our Comfort Zone, a space we sometimes have no wish to vacate. While the example I had given was of a time of discomfort, the experience was not one I would describe as a deep personal struggle. I thought back to a time when I had come to a crossroad and was truly anxious, fearful even. Fourteen years ago, when I thought of leaving my rather well-paying position in an IT company and striking out on my own as a learning facilitator, was such a moment. Managing IT projects and large teams was my forte and I did not believe I had any other marketable skills, certainly not training.
I took my time – I pondered the decision to leave my job for several months. I knew that I was afraid because of the many unknowns in front of me. I told myself that this fear was to be expected, that it was normal.
To help me better understand my own thoughts and what I had to do, I wrote down the following questions:
- What exactly am I afraid of? What could be the worst-case scenario?
- Is this fear based on facts or assumptions?
- What do I need to do to learn more about the world of Learning & Development?
- What skills do I currently have that will help me navigate this change?
- Who can I talk to for guidance and perspective?
- What will I do if this career shift does not work out?
A senior friend asked the below questions to help focus my mind.
- What would be smart things to do to prepare for such a seismic shift in your career?
- If a friend was to face this same situation, what advice would you give?
- What opportunities might come from making this decision to move, even if it does not go as planned?
- Are you able to define ‘does not work out’?
- If you knew you could not fail, what would you do?
The very act of coming up with answers to the above questions reduced my anxieties considerably. Question (1) was addressed rather nicely when I was invited by my employer to deliver half-day training sessions on different aspects of Project Management in several cities across India. This gave me the opportunity to develop small training modules and get valuable experience in facilitating these small workshops for almost a year.
I knew instinctively that I would find out if my decision was good or poor only later. I took Mark Twain’s words, “the secret of getting ahead is getting started” to heart and decided to take the plunge. I know that the support of my family, my financial planning, and the encouragement of my leaders were invaluable in my decision. When people ask me how I found the courage to make this transition, I answer simply and honestly, “not courage, just clarity.”
For a deeper discussion on fear, autonomy and agency, do check out this episode from the podcast ‘How we think’ by Neha Indoria and Bhavna Awasthy.
How have you faced fear in your life? Can you share your experiences? I would love to hear your stories.
Dar ke aage jeet hai…
I faced a similar situation in 2019 when I lost my job to corporate restructuring. The opportunities I got in HR in my town were of no interest to me and I could not leave the city. I felt it was better to do something else than slog at a job I did not enjoy. I made a list similar to yours and at the end of the soul searching was a change in career. I went back to the profession that I had left behind 15 years ago – communication.
It took a lot of self talk to step past the fear of failure… but I never looked back since.