[JenniferPritchard]

When I took the short course, I was absolutely sure that I needed to leave my current position. There were things that I liked about my job; mainly the autonomy it offered, and the great work life balance that is so difficult to find in my industry, but even so, I felt like I was in the wrong place. A few months prior to taking the course, I had approached my boss about the prospect of advancing to a management position. She listened to what I had to say, but ultimately felt like I wasn’t qualified for the position that would becoming available in the coming months. This left me feeling absolutely stifled. It was at that point that I felt the need to clarify my passions so that I could intelligently plan my next career move.

As I worked through the course, there were so many points that resonated with me. I took the quiz, and scored as a Thriver. At first I did not agree with this result. Based on the reading, I didn’t think this sounded like me at all. However, as I completed the exercises, I began to see how many aspects really did fit. My first Ah-ha moment came with the explanation that my passion doesn’t necessarily mean a job that I do. I’ve taken multiple career assessments before, and none of them gave me a definite direction to focus on. As you pointed out, they all say “do what you love,” “do what makes you happy.” This didn’t work for me because every time I reflected on what makes me truly happy, it always comes back to my children. Spending time with my children is what gets me out of bed in the morning and makes me smile. That is wonderful, but it does not come with a paycheck! That is where the exercises were so valuable for me. I realized that as a Thriver, I value work life balance. I need a job that lets me spend quality time with my children, but still supplies me with a steady paycheck. The second aspect that really got my attention, was the need for growth. “If you aren’t growing, you are dying.” “Yes!” I thought to myself, “that’s how I feel!” When you encouraged me to try to make improvements within my current company, I felt like I had already done this by asking my boss about a promotion. I was looking at other industries that would offer advancement, but I still did not want to give up the autonomy and balance that I had in my current job.

Then one day at work, the manager and I were having a conversation. He was talking about his desire to retire in a few years. Although this was the job that I had questioned my boss about earlier, I took the opportunity to voice my ambitions. Instead of asking for the management position, I told him that I was looking for ways to advance my own career, and would welcome the opportunity to work towards any aspects of his job that he would be willing to hand off. My manager was thrilled with the prospect of cutting down his work load, which would enable him to start working towards retirement. He spoke to my supervisor about the conversation, and now I am working towards a brand new position in Human Resources with the same company! I am able to keep the autonomy and balance that I love, while growing towards new challenges! You see, my supervisor did not think I was qualified to manage the facility, but she was very opened to the idea of breaking the position into multiple departments. I get to create a brand new HR department. Had I not worked through the passion profile course, I would not have understood what a great opportunity this was.

Thank you, Clarity on fire! I am thrilled!

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