Is Your Career Feeling More Like a Cage Than a Calling? [Part 1 of 4]
Take a moment. Breathe. And ask yourself:
When was the last time I felt truly energized by my work?
Not just getting through the day, but actually feeling fulfilled?
If you're like many professionals I've coached over the past 15 years, you might find yourself secretly browsing job listings during lunch breaks. Maybe you've caught yourself typing "signs of burnout" into Google at 2 AM, or wondering if that persistent feeling of "meh" about your job is normal. You're not alone. Not even close.
As a leadership development and career coach, I've sat across from countless professionals – especially managers – who share these exact struggles. Their stories echo a common theme: something feels off, but they can't quite put their finger on what.
Here's the thing – we're navigating a professional landscape that no career book could have prepared us for. Remote work revolution, global pandemic aftershocks, the AI uprising, layoffs in the headlines... it's enough to make anyone's head spin. The workplace as we knew it has fundamentally shifted, and many of us are still finding our footing.
But rather than adding another "10 Tips to Find Your Dream Job" article to your reading list, I want to take you deeper. Instead of fixating on things beyond our control – market fluctuations, technological disruption, or the ever-looming specter of change – let's focus on what we can actually influence: our well-being.
I've discovered that true career satisfaction isn't just about finding the right job title or salary bracket. It's about nurturing our whole selves – psychological, social, physical, and spiritual health. This holistic approach is what enables us to navigate today's turbulent professional waters with grace and purpose.
Through years of research, countless conversations, and deep observation, I've identified four critical elements that contribute to genuine professional fulfillment. Today, in part 1 of a 4 part series, we'll explore the first and perhaps most fundamental piece: daily well-being.
Let’s Talk Daily Well-Being
Let me explain it: simply put, you want to pay attention to the flow of your days. Over time, are you having more good days than bad days?
This is important to be aware of because while one good day is GREAT, unfortunately the positive effects do not linger much past that day. Conversely, when you have a negative interaction with a coworker, or a poor night of sleep, it can take a few days to recover. Psychologists called this "negativity bias." It is a helpful aspect of our evolutionary development in that it keeps us vigilant to danger, but in the 21st-century, it also helps us obsess on the bad things and overlook the good things!
So a valuable place to start in managing your overall well-being is to literally keep track of how your days are going. Before I tell you some ways to do that though, let me tell you the value of doing this. It’s rather simple: a string of good days accumulates and gives us the capacity to overcome difficulty. Dr. Matt Bloom, a renowned researcher on well-being at work, describes it this way:
“Positive feelings like peacefulness, contentment, joy, and love are truly good for us and for the people we interact with… Experiences of awe and wonder, for example, help us feel connected to something bigger and more important than ourselves and makes us more altruistic, generous, and compassionate.”
Here are some easy ways to start tracking your daily well-being in order to see if you can build up some inner strength and resilience:
ANALOG: Keep a pad of paper next to your bed and before you turn out the lights, rate your day: 1 (no good, terrible, very bad day) to 5 (I deserve a medal!) or one of 3 emojis: 😫 🫤 😃 (You can also track these on a note app on your phone…)
DIGITAL: You can actually create your own tracking system on AI. I plugged this prompt into Claude.ai (“What are some good methods for tracking good vs bad days?”) and it created a “Daily Mood Tracker” for me! You can also use one of the fancy gizmos like an Oura ring but that seems like overkill to get started on this journey…
APPS: There are really too many to list, but a good basic one is Daylio; a more elaborate is one called Ritual.
Try this for two weeks (even better — a whole month!) IF you start seeing some bad days “harshing your mellow” (wait, am I showing my age?!) you can then respond with some small but effective steps to promote positive daily well-being and lift your mood:
Congratulations! The exploration of the first element of overall well-being is just the beginning of our journey together. There's much more to discover in the upcoming installments of this series, so I encourage you to subscribe to my blog notifications to stay connected.
I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences! You can reach me at kelly.soifer@ksleadershipdevelop.me. If you're feeling ready to take the next step in your well-being journey, I invite you to schedule a complimentary 30-minute consultation. Together, we can explore how personalized coaching might support your growth and development.
Looking forward to continuing this conversation with you!
