“How long should I try this? Do you think there will be a moment I know whether this management stuff [and the managing people not process part I ask them to focus on] is really what I am meant to do or not?”
Depends on how good you are at focusing in on the moment you are in, so you recognize the signs trying to wave their flags right there in front of you. And sometimes, it can seem like the rest of the world is really making it difficult.
But hey, don't beat yourself up for this, for it IS difficult.
Read Dave’s story. He might not be at his decision yet either, but he has really gotten good at paying attention.
Get help when you know you need a breakthrough but this focusing in on the moment is easier said than done. A lot of times it's better to look for help outside of work, from people who aren't as close to it as you are. It doesn't have to be a coach like me (though if I can help let me know) and conversations with friends can do the trick too (the positive, will kick you in the butt ones, not the ones who will commiserate with you... commiseration is more noise drowning out the good stuff you're better off listening to).
If you get Oprah's magazine (see the current cover here), she has a thoughtful interview in the current February issue with Pema Chödrön, who in 1981, became the first American woman to become a fully ordained Buddhist nun in the Tibetan tradition. Within the interview, Pema explains (as per the editor's intro blurb):
“…the great trick in dealing with difficult feelings, what her calling has meant to her two children, the meditation practice that will keep you from ever feeling alone again, and why, finally, ‘this moment is the perfect teacher.’”
We coaches focus on change and goals a lot (and I will continue to do so). However I can understand what Pema Chödrön means when she says,
“I have a passion for communicating that you can have an appetite for LIFE AS IT IS rather than life as you want it to be.”
There is an online transcript of the interview here (you can listen to it too.)
By the way, how are you celebrating Chinese New Year's Day?
I have my salutation to the day with an article over at Joyful Jubilant Learning, remembering Clara and The Five Chinese Brothers... read it there: Kung Hee Fat Choy! What I learned from Clara.
Photo of Buddha on Flickr by Felix42 contra la censura, and Twin Lions on Flickr, Yufo Temple, Shanghai, China by think cink.
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