2002. A few Saturdays each month, I'd pop into the psychology section of Dymocks bookshop in central Sydney. The title that grabbed me by the goolies one day was "Birth order: How the eldest wants to rule the world and the youngest wants to change it". The cover photo looked like the ten-year old version of my boyfriend (now husband).  The forgotten middle-child. First born = Happy work. Last born = Unhappy work. What about the middle-child in the career happiness family?   In that book I learned all about the lionized firstborn, adored and gifted 100% of their new parent's awe and ..read more

Envy 5 years ago, on his daily commute to and from the office, Pete found himself staring at the workmen on the side of the road - green with envy. He lusted after the honesty of their work. The physicality of it. The outdoorsey-ness of it. The clearness of a good day's work with a tangible beginning and end.  His project management role in a big bank paled by comparison. Blanched with pointlessness. And drained the colour from his soul.  So when his Irish wife suggested they relocate back to her homeland in Donegal, in the north-western tip of Ireland, Pete seized the colour-filled ..read more

Dara couldn’t put a finger on exactly when the change had happened. He’d reached his early fifties. And he’d been struggling with motivation for quite a while - years maybe? But motivated or unmotivated, he still needed to perform his busy and demanding role as Finance Director in a privately-owned technology business. He knew he needed something different. But what? He couldn’t afford a childish leap of faith. He couldn’t quit without a plan - he had a mortgage and family to support. No, he needed to figure out the right plan. Most midlifers in their 40s, 50s or 60s can’t afford childish lea ..read more

An unplanned exit, at 55, turns from a potential disaster into a golden opportunity to design creatively satisfying work - with longevity. Aaron, husband and Dad to two teenagers, had just heard that his role was no longer required. The news created an unexpected pause, that showcased his misery. His knee-walkingly exhausted misery. Aaron's family had grown used to the leftover human shreds that arrived home each evening after his daily stretch at his tech prison. And his monstrous commute had drained every last ember of energy from this much-loved family man. Released from his corporate priso ..read more

I hear a version of this every single week. When you don’t know what you need, it somehow seems safer to wait for inspiration. To wait until we have the best, most perfect, fail-safe idea to somehow magically arrive. Many wait for years - including me. But, at what cost? But one of the most useful things I’ve learned over my almost ten years of helping professionals redesign their career happiness is that great ideas come when you’re on the move. When you’re learning how to make the right kind of change for your situation. Deliberately making small changes. Experimenting. Talking to different ..read more

You’ve figured out that work is the problem… But what does that matter? Everyone’s bored in their job, aren’t they? Nope, they’re not. If work is genuinely causing you a problem right now, you need to address it. I have ways to help you do this. We can fix this. Instead of resigning yourself to thinking that this is your lot, there are ways to stop (over)thinking and start figuring out the three or four activities that have the power to bring joy to your working days. Your Superpowers are WAY more powerful than your strengths. They energise you to move mountains, lightly. They fuel you to cre ..read more

The Express train to career change. Are you, like I was, waiting to discover where the Express train to career change departs from? Or maybe you’re stuck waiting for the “perfect” moment when it’ll become obvious what the “perfect” idea for your next career move is? Both situations deeply alluring but ultimately dangerous. I spent two years dreaming about jumping onto the “Express” train to career change. All the while I did nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. I had no clue where to start. So I didn't start. I had no clue how to start. Without falling flat on my face. So I kept standing still. Stu ..read more

Wanting more satisfying work is much like wanting to lose weight - possessing the desire to weigh less, rarely motivates anyone into making changes that result in a transformation. Whereas being very clear about the very specific elements of body composition, or exact fitness gaps that you are unhappy with, focuses the mind on change. Many people consider career change (and weight loss #guilty) for a very long time…without much change occurring.  Being crystal clear on the specifics that you don’t want in your future career, clears the mind to focus on the next step in any career change ..read more

What happens when you grumble about your job at home or to colleagues?  My guess is based on 3500 interviews, all with executives during the last ten years of my head-hunting career. I guess you hear lots of unprompted career advice - that is either totally irrelevant to your situation, or so annoying that you scream with frustration. After a while, most of us decide to just shut up about it. Bad days at work are not uncommon We’ve all had days where we’d prefer to be somewhere else…anywhere else! But a mid-career rut is a whole different thing. It invades areas of life outside work, incl ..read more

I could harp on about how great this programme is and how it took six months, 12-hour-days and nearly broke me and my publishers - but that's dull as dishwater.    What you really want to know is: Should you invest in The Fierce Emporium? And maybe, also if I’m the right fit for you? Or perhaps joining The Fierce Emporium turn out to be an even bigger mistake than Violet Beauregarde's decision to eat the three-course dinner chewing gum that morphed her into a giant blueberry. Let’s make sure this is the right programme for you - or who knows where it might lead!   Working wit ..read more