Today we dive into some key mindsets and how they can revolutionize the way you approach career planning and personal growth.
When it comes to navigating life and career decisions, traditional methods often fall short. I have worked with clients who are not only seeking the next step in their career journey but also lives of purpose and meaning. When we design your life rather than just conduct a job search, we add a creative, exploratory dimension.
Resumes and interviewing strategies are the veggies of a job search; in that they are necessary. And we can also have a little dessert! Designing your life by exploring multiple possibilities, thinking creatively, and trying out different career paths helps us create a life we truly desire.
Diving into Designing Your Career + Life
Each week for the rest of the year I’ll be sharing a new idea to help you take control of your future in a way that’s creative, flexible, and deeply personal. Imagine approaching your life like a designer—experimenting, prototyping, and iterating—so you can craft a life and career that truly aligns with who you are and what you want.
Whether you’re at a crossroads or just looking to add more purpose to your journey, I invite you to join me on this journey of exploring multiple pathways, reframing challenges as opportunities, and taking actionable steps toward your goals.
Curious to see how this approach can work for you? Keep reading to learn about the mindset you need to unlock new possibilities.
If you prefer, you can watch a recording of this episode of Authentic Career + Life Design as Laura shares Key Mindsets for Designing Your Life + Career
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A New Approach
In 2021, I discovered the power of applying design thinking to help people plan their careers and lives. It all started with a fascinating book called “Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life“ by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans. And the excitement didn’t stop there!
In June 2022, I was lucky enough to take part in a five-day Life Design Studio hosted by Stanford University’s Life Design Lab. It was an incredible experience that focused on spreading the transformative concepts of Life Design to colleges & universities worldwide.
In June 2024, I jumped into the deep end and became a Design Your Life Certified Coach allowing me to bring this brilliant framework to clients of Authentic Career + Life Design. People are already making big changes through activities and insights gained through Life Design.
Introduction to Life Design
Life Design is a framework that applies design thinking—a methodology traditionally used in product and process design—to life and career planning. Developed by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans at Stanford University, it encourages individuals to approach their lives as designers would approach a project: with curiosity, creativity, and a bias toward action. The process involves exploring different possibilities, prototyping different paths, and iterating based on experiences and insights gained along the way. Instead of seeking a single “right” answer, life design embraces the idea that there are multiple potential pathways to a fulfilling life.
Key Mindsets of Life Design
Perhaps you have been thinking about making a change for a long time, years maybe. Or a recent negative incident has planted the seed that there might be something better out there. Regardless of how long you have been considering a change, having the best mindset will start you on a path to new possibilities.
Mindset Shift #1: Be Curious
Think of a time when you were in a place with lots of activity without having a specific role. You weren’t in charge, you weren’t responsible for doing a single thing. You were just there, maybe waiting for someone or something to happen. You didn’t pull out your phone for a distraction. Instead, you just sat or stood and watched. You observed. As you looked around what thoughts came to mind? Chances are you were curious. You were wondering. Your mind was trying to make sense of the things going on around you. This wondering was curiosity.
Curiosity is the desire to learn, explore, and understand more about something. It’s a natural inclination to seek out new information, experiences, and perspectives. Being curious can serve us in many other situations outside of just sitting and waiting. It can drive us to ask questions, investigate the unknown, and engage with the world around us in a deeper way. In the context of personal and professional growth, curiosity encourages openness to new possibilities and a willingness to embrace uncertainty and change. It’s the fuel that propels discovery, creativity, and innovation.
Mindset Shift #2: Reframe the Situation
We often get trapped in one way of thinking because it’s the first story we tell ourselves. Taking the time to consider different perspectives is always valuable. We all know that every story has at least two sides, if not more. We also seem to forget this universal truth.
Imagine you’re up for a promotion at work that you’ve been eyeing for months. You’ve worked hard, met all your targets, and feel confident that you’re the perfect fit. But when the promotion is announced, it goes to someone else. Naturally, you might feel disappointed, and frustrated, and even start questioning your abilities.
It’s easy to get stuck on the idea that “I wasn’t good enough” or “I failed.”
Instead of seeing the missed promotion as a failure or a reflection of your worth, consider reframing the situation. Ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?” or “What opportunities might this open up?”
Perhaps this experience is a chance to identify areas where you can grow, build new skills, or seek feedback that can help you in the future. Or maybe this promotion would have led you down a path that doesn’t align with your true interests. Could this be a nudge to explore a different role or project that’s a better fit?
Reframing might also lead you to recognize that the timing wasn’t right, and that another, more suitable opportunity could be on the horizon.
By reframing the situation, you shift from a mindset of loss to one of growth and possibility. This opens up new avenues for action and keeps you from getting stuck in a single, limiting interpretation of events.
Mindset #3: Embrace Radical Collaboration
When I mention “radical collaboration,” I know the word “radical” can feel a bit intimidating. But don’t worry—this isn’t about supporting extreme views. Instead, it’s about making a significant shift in how you engage with the people and ideas around you.
Radical collaboration means fully embracing the power and knowledge that comes from working with others. By actively seeking out and collaborating with diverse people, ideas, and networks, you expand your own resources, perspectives, and opportunities in ways you couldn’t achieve alone.
Think of a time when you were working on a project and hit a roadblock. You’ve tried everything you can think of, but nothing seems to work. Instead of continuing to struggle on your own, you decide to bring in colleagues from different departments, each with their own expertise. By sharing ideas and brainstorming together, you not only find a solution to the problem but also discover new approaches and strategies that you wouldn’t have thought of by yourself.
In terms of how you might design the life you want, incorporating radical collaboration will help you fully leverage the strengths and insights of others. It can be a total game-changer as you innovate and grow.
Mindest #4: Try it Out
I have worked with many clients over the years who graduated with a major or started a job only to find out that it wasn’t at all what they expected. Some of them stuck with it for far too long only to be miserable and burnt out months or years later. I’ll make a note to write a series of posts later about what to do if you find yourself in that situation.
This situation can usually be avoided by doing a little extra work through testing or, as designers like to call it, prototyping. Prototyping is when we test a concept or process. As you do the work toward more intentional living, don’t dismiss opportunities to try out or test different life and career options through small experiments. Volunteering, job shadowing, informational interviews, and internships give you a chance to prototype before making immediate, large-scale changes you may regret.
I remember a client who was passionate about helping others and believed that becoming a speech pathologist was the perfect way to make a difference. She invested years into her education, earning both a bachelor’s degree in communication science disorders and then her master’s degree in speech-language pathology. However, after starting her first job, she quickly realized that the daily tasks, paperwork, and specific challenges of the role were not what she had envisioned. She found herself feeling unfulfilled and questioning her career choice.
Though our work together was about her next steps I want to take a look at this from the viewpoint of prototyping. Let’s rewind and imagine if the client had taken the time to prototype this career before committing fully. During her sophomore year, she could have volunteered at a local clinic, shadowing a speech pathologist for a few weeks (this is now common if not required for many programs- thankfully). This experience would have given her a clearer picture of the day-to-day realities of the job. Additionally, conducting informational interviews with professionals in the field might have revealed aspects of the job she hadn’t considered, such as the emotional toll or the administrative work involved.
Through these small experiments, she might have discovered early on that while she loved helping people, the specific tasks in speech pathology weren’t a good fit for her skills and interests. She could have then explored related fields, such as occupational therapy or counseling, where her passion for helping others would align better with her strengths and preferences.
By prototyping her career choice, my client could have saved herself years of frustration and found a path that truly resonated with her from the start.
The good news is that anyone can start over at any time. We don’t need to ruminate on what could have been for too long. And I was able to help the client define her interests, values, and skills to move on to a great career helping people in another profession. But the point is that trying on careers, or prototyping, might save a little time and frustration.
Mindset #5: Have a Bias Toward Action
There are countless reasons why people are slow to make a change, even a positive change that will bring them closer to living out their dreams. Rather than focusing on all of those reasons in this post, we’ll introduce a mindset of having a bias toward action.
For many of us, it is easy to get stuck in our heads when we’re trying to make big decisions, like making a career change. Have you ever found yourself overanalyzing things to the point where you just feel paralyzed? Does it seem like you spend more time worrying about making the wrong choice than actually doing something about it? This is where the concept called ‘bias toward action’ comes in.
Bias toward action is basically the idea that instead of getting trapped in indecision or spending too much time researching, you just start taking small steps—kind of like experimenting. You learn by doing, even if you’re not 100% sure about the outcome. It’s like when you’re unsure about a career path, instead of waiting until you have all the answers, you might try out an internship, volunteer, or even have a few conversations with people in that field.
It’s about getting out of your comfort zone and trying things out, even if it’s just to see what you like and don’t like. It’s about moving forward and learning through experience rather than just thinking or planning.
Having this mindset could help you feel less stuck. You might actually get more clarity by just jumping in and testing things out instead of waiting for the perfect moment. Taking action not only gives you real feedback but also builds confidence because you’re actively doing something to figure it out. Plus, you often end up discovering opportunities or paths you might not have even considered before.
Parting Thoughts
As you move forward in your life and career journey, remember that it’s not about finding the one “perfect” path right from the start—it’s about creating your path through intentional action, curiosity, and exploration. By embracing a bias toward action, you give yourself permission to experiment, learn, and adapt as you go. Prototyping your ideas, reframing challenges, and collaborating with others are all powerful tools that can help you design a life and career that truly resonates with who you are.
So, instead of waiting for the stars to align or the perfect opportunity to present itself, start taking small steps today. Test out your ideas, gather insights, and adjust your course as needed. The journey might be filled with twists and turns, but with each step, you’ll gain more clarity and confidence in the direction you’re heading.
Remember, it’s okay to pivot, to try new things, and to change your mind along the way. Life is not a linear path; it’s a dynamic and evolving journey. By approaching it with creativity, flexibility, and a bias toward action, you’ll not only make more informed decisions but also build a life and career that feels authentic and fulfilling.
I invite you to join me each week as we continue exploring new ideas, strategies, and mindsets that will empower you to take control of your future and design the life you truly desire. Let’s embark on this journey together, one step at a time, and remember, your career journey is uniquely yours—embrace it with clarity, confidence, and authenticity.
🔗 Links and Resources
- Podcast: Listen to this episode on your favorite podcast player:
- Books: Burnett, B., & Evans, D. (2016). Designing your life: How to build a well-lived, joyful life. Alfred A. Knopf.
- Subscribe & Connect: Don’t miss out on future episodes! Subscribe to Authentic Career + Life Design on YouTube and your favorite podcast platform, and connect with me on Facebook, Pinterest, and my website.
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