Her Next Chapters
This podcast is for moms with an empty nest on the horizon who are reclaiming & redefining their identity outside of motherhood, which might include a job search. On this show we’ll have raw conversations about our ever-changing roles as moms, hear from women who restarted their careers, and share tactical tips for a successful job search after a career break.
Her Next Chapters
51. Navigating Career and Life Transitions: Reinventing Your Identity with Gabrielle Ferguson Part 2
What are the internal shifts needed for navigating major life transitions like returning to the workforce or adjusting to an empty nest? Listen in to part 2 of my conversation with Gabrielle Ferguson, a goal strategist specializing in identity and transitions, as we tackle these complex questions. Gabrielle sheds light on the insidious impact of the word "just" when moms describe themselves as "just a mom," stressing the importance of recognizing and valuing the role of motherhood. We dive into the concept of confidence as not just an innate trait but a skill developed through practice and courage. Gabrielle shares invaluable tips for setting boundaries to ensure smoother transitions during these pivotal phases of life.
But that's not all—this episode is packed with actionable strategies for anyone preparing to re-enter the workforce. We highlight how networking and word-of-mouth can lead to unexpected career opportunities and discuss the importance of treating job-seeking as a part-time job. You'll learn practical steps like researching industries, engaging with professional communities, and even volunteering to gain current experience and references. If you're facing a life transition and seeking to build confidence, set boundaries, and embrace change, this episode is your roadmap. Tune in for insights that go beyond the surface and offer real-world advice for navigating life's major shifts effectively.
Ways to connect with Gabrielle:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabiferguson/
www.gabrielleferguson.com
Grab a Free Resume Template for Career Returners
Want to chat about your career goals? Schedule a free call HERE.
Send me an email ---> christina@hernextchapters.com
Connect with me on LinkedIn ---> www.linkedin.com/in/kohlchristina
Hi and welcome to Her Next Chapter's podcast. I'm your host, Christina Kohl. I'm a mom of three and soon to be an empty nester. I'm also a certified HR pro who restarted my career after being a stay-at-home mom for over a decade. I created this podcast to connect with moms who have an empty nest on the horizon and are wanting to redefine their identity outside of motherhood, which might include a job search. On this show, we'll have raw conversations about our ever-changing roles as moms. We'll hear from women who restarted their careers and share tips for a job search after a career break. So if that's you, you're in the right place. Friend, let's get started.
Christina Kohl:Hi everyone, and welcome to this week's episode of Her Next Chapters. This is a part two episode. If you listened last week. If you didn't listen, you want to catch it. Last week it was my conversation with Gabrielle Ferguson. Gabrielle is a goal strategist and she talks a lot about identity and her work in achieving goals, and I invited her onto the podcast to talk about the seasons of transition in our lives, whether that's transitioning in our careers going back to work, pivoting to a different career or maybe we're transitioning in our personal lives, for instance, facing an empty nest, or actually the empty nest, and today we're going to talk about the shift, the internal identity shift that it really takes when you're making a big life transition, and the confidence piece that comes from taking action and strategic volunteering. You'll hear me talk about that a lot on the podcast, especially in the context of job search, and we're just going to be talking about a lot of those things around that confidence piece, taking action and things that you can do as you're in these life transitions, again with that focus on identity shift, and also we're going to talk about setting boundaries. So it's a good one. I'm excited for this episode. So with that let's go.
Christina Kohl:So during my conversation with Gabrielle, I brought up the concept of this word. Just, there are so many moms, but you know, stay-at-home moms when they introduce themselves, you know what do you do? Well, I'm just a mom. Moms when they introduce themselves, you know what do you do? Well, I'm just a mom. And it just shows the struggle, the lack of confidence when you hear that word. Just so I asked Gabrielle what she thought about this and here's what she had to say.
Gabrielle Ferguson:So we need to ban that word. Just just a mother. I think we need to put an embargo on that word because it's, at the end of the day, it's doing yourself a disservice. It really is, and it's really important to see your own value. And you know how do we attach so much weight and status to being a grade five or a band J, whatever, and not to being a mother and a family caregiver and raising a family and taking time out of your career, making that sacrifice in order to create and raise a family? It deserves respect. I think that's what Christina and I are saying. What we're united in and the message that we want to spread is that it deserves respect and that has to start with you respecting that time, that sacrifice and and the skills you've developed while doing it.
Christina Kohl:You have to start respecting it right and that's that internal identity shift that needs to happen, because it is, as so many women that I meet and that have have met during my stay-at-home mom phase like there is this sense of just a mom and and if we don't value ourselves, it's difficult to ask someone else to to see that value in us. And so really it needs to come from within first, and even when I talk about confidence and job interviewing, like you have to have that belief in yourself and that confidence in yourself, otherwise you can't expect a hiring manager or a recruiter to have confidence in you if you don't have it. So really it's so fundamental to these transitions we're talking about is this sense of identity, and I don't know if confidence is the right word I have a little note around this word confidence.
Gabrielle Ferguson:I have a particular bugbear about people seeking confidence, because I think we put confidence on a impossible pedestal, sometimes, like I, either either I have confidence or I not like it. You know, almost like a product on a shelf, like it can be bought. Either I have it or I not, or I'm born with it or I'm not, and that is just a complete misconception. I think I don't know where it comes from, um, but honestly, if I had, I was going to say a pound, cause I'm British, but if I had, if I had a pound or a dollar every time someone asked me, you know, to help improve their self-confidence or raise their confidence, I would have a holiday home in the Maldives by now. You know, confidence is a skill like any other. In my opinion, it is simply a skill Showing up with confidence and inner confidence. Like with any other skill, like changing a diaper or doing a deadlift in the gym, it takes practice, and so the great thing about that is we can remove this idea that my confidence level is, let's say is, at a level three and it will always be at a level three. No, three, and it will always be at a level three. No, no, we can raise that, we can improve that, it's doable. Nobody walks out of the womb confident. We just don't. It's a skill that requires practice. And in order to practice the skill of confidence, what do you need? Courage. You might never feel confident doing a particular thing, but do you have a tiny seed of courage? That's all it takes. That you can water with practice until it grows into confidence. Because I do find I find this in my sessions, I find this in some of the consulting work that I do.
Gabrielle Ferguson:People talk about confidence and they are, you know, in the way they're describing it. They're sitting and waiting for confidence to happen, for confidence to arrive, you know, and it doesn't. There's no training program that can sell you confidence. It's a skill that needs to be practiced by you, and it starts with courage. And so, to everybody listening, I think the biggest question you can ask yourself is do I have that tiny seed of courage enough to give something a go, enough to try and see what happens? And I know that that can be terrifying. We've all been there. We've all been there multiple times, every day, some days, every hour. You know we're putting the. I mean, christina and I, we run our own businesses, marketing, putting your name and your face out there and saying, hi world, hi slice of the internet. I do this. Let me, please, let me know if you're interested. That's terrifying.
Christina Kohl:Agreed, and what I'm hearing you say in courage is taking action, yes, imperfect action. And it's so easy to say and I'm guilty of this it's so easy to sit back and think of all the things I want to do, or you know that I could do, because I don't have confidence and that courage to step out and try and know that it's not going to be perfect. That's what builds the confidence muscle right. And there's two phrases and I actually got these both from Ruth Sukup. I'll link to her in the show notes. She's someone that I've followed in for quite some time now.
Christina Kohl:Two phrases One is do it scared, so it doesn't mean that you've got everything all for. And I'm so guilty of this. I'm like, no, it has to be perfect and pretty and proper and all of that before I put it out into the world. It's like, no, it's okay, it doesn't have to be pretty and perfect, just go ahead and do it and know that it's not going to be perfect, it's okay, do it scared, but then you've done it and then it's easier the next time. So the first time I went live on LinkedIn, oh my gosh, I was pacing the floors, literally pacing the floors, doing my Wonder Woman poses and like and taking deep breaths. And then once I did it, it was fine. And the second time I'm like, yeah, no problem, because I did it scared.
Christina Kohl:And then I built that that was courageous to do it, cause I'm like live, who's going to show up? Live, the whole world, anybody you know, can see me. And I'm like I'm going to look foolish, but I, I did it and I did it scared. And then the next time it was, I had more confidence because it was easy and I learned from it.
Christina Kohl:The other phrase that I've learned from ruth is there are no mistakes, only lessons. So if you're so afraid of doing something imperfectly or making a mistake or looking foolish, that reframe has helped me to say it wasn't a mistake. It's something I got to learn from. But in order for me to make that mistake right or to have that lesson, I had to have the courage to take action. And so if that's applying for a job when I haven't done that for 10 years, having an interview when I haven't interviewed for however many years, knowing that the first one isn't going to be perfect and I might have a lot of opportunities to learn from it because I'm going to make some do some things that are learning opportunities. Scared, but that's all courage.
Gabrielle Ferguson:To me, those things are courage. Can I give you one of mine? I think what we're describing now is these sort of um mantras, mantras that us, um help us take that action, courageous action. So mine comes from an interview from an uh, an influencer. I follow on on TikTok. She does um skits, like satirical skits, and they are cringeworthy and hysterical all at the same time, and I read an interview, um article with her and she described that she actually has crippling anxiety, right. And then you think about posting these videos of characters that you've built that are in these satirical, kind of ironic situations, and putting that out into the internet. She's got millions of followers and she still has crippling anxiety. So again, it dispels this myth that you know, once you've made it, once something's working, all of that goes away. It doesn't, you know, it doesn't. And anyway, the mantra I picked up from her was she has to convince herself, no one cares, no one cares. And I. That really hit home to me because I think sometimes we build up this picture in our head.
Gabrielle Ferguson:What can, what can diminish our courage is the comparison you, I'm putting something out to the world and people are going to see it and they're going to judge me. Or I'm applying for jobs and I'm applying for jobs at the same time as someone else and they get a job before I do right? It's that comparison, that social comparison. Ultimately, the question is what will people think? What will people think that I'm going back to work? What will people think I'm going back to work? What will people think I'm an empty nester and I used to be a finance director and now I'm trying my hand at photography, you know, whatever it is, what will people think? Um, that question, I think, paralyzes. I would I would say probably millions of people in the world are not living authentically, doing what their heart desire is, or not even actually allowing themselves to think about it.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Because of that question, what will people think? And so my counter to that is basically get over yourself. No one cares. Basically get over yourself. No one cares. No one cares. Everybody is wrapped up in their own lives. Everybody's got their own stuff going on, their own celebrations, their own challenges no one cares. We are at the center of our own lives and if we've got wonderful, you know, partners and friends, yes, of course they care about us, but the big wide world of the internet or corporate America, no one cares, get on with it. You know we get. We get one shot on this planet, we get one life. That don't let that question. What will people think? Freeze you and lead to you having serious regrets near the end of your life? I think that's the worst, the worst possible scenario, far worse than giving something a go and it not working out Right. Right, I know which one I would rather, and I think that that is courage. Right, that is courage.
Christina Kohl:It does take courage, but I love that and it's as you're talking. You know you're talking about adulthood. I'm hearing like, oh my gosh, that is the same type of counseling, advice insight I shared with my kids when they're going through one of those awkward phases no one else really cares, yes, and hopefully that is freeing. But it's interesting to now like put that back onto myself as someone who's in midlife. I'm not a teenager, but I still care what people think and I want you know.
Christina Kohl:And putting out this podcast, oh my God, the first time I've re-recorded myself six times because I was stumbling on my words and the sound wasn't right and I didn't. Oh, I forgot this message or whatever. And that first episode that's live and out in the world. Now that is like the seventh recording, I think. I'm not sure. Wow, no one cares. You're right. I mean it's. If you mess up again, there's no mistakes, there's only lessons. No one really cares. They're focused on on themselves, their own lives, and do it scared. What's the worst that can happen? Right? So you, what's that can happen?
Gabrielle Ferguson:you fail, but then that means you've learned a lot of lessons and the next time it won't be half as scary because you've already done it right. You know and and I think people, they you you don't truly know that until you're over the other side of it, right. Right, the first time I posted on LinkedIn for my own business, it was a market research post. Yeah, I rewrote that post I can't tell you how many times and panicking over which emoji to use and all these ridiculous things. And I remember posting it here in my office and then getting up and walking out of the room and literally living on the other side of the flat for a couple of hours because I was too scared to check if anybody had liked it or if it just gone into the ether and nobody had seen it, and it was a waste of time and obviously it was completely fine. You know nothing. Nothing happened. If something fails and people see something and they don't resonate with it, or you send in your resume and you don't get a call back, it's.
Gabrielle Ferguson:It's not like the world is taking score of these things. You know there's no report card. A lot of that judgment is just from ourselves to ourselves. People really aren't paying that much attention to every move that you're making. We're not celebrities. You know we've got one you're making. We're not celebrities. You know we've got one. You know we've got one tiny slice and corner of the internet in whatever we're doing right and and that's all.
Christina Kohl:So yeah, get on with it. That post, since you, since you brought up that post. I saw it because we went in and like oh my gosh, that was amazing. So I actually copied it to help me write my post. So, thank you, and you don't and that's the thing, you don't really hear those things. I probably didn't tell you at the time that, oh my gosh. No you didn't, so I'm telling you now.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Wow Thank you at the time that, oh my gosh, no, you didn't. Don't tell you now, wow thank you. But yeah, so it's we. We are so focused on things going wrong, things failing, things not working out that we are always so unbelievably surprised when something I did that I found really difficult then inspires somebody, helps somebody, leads to the outcome that I want or leads to a completely different outcome that I was not expecting. So some opportunities that I've had over the last year and a half based on and I mean I'm still not particularly consistent a poster on LinkedIn and I were working on it consistent poster on LinkedIn and that we're working on it.
Gabrielle Ferguson:You never know what something is going to spark. You know. You never know what post, what comment you leave, what job application you send in, what resume you send in. You never know where something I mean networking is a great example of that. You never know where even a simple conversation can lead, but it will never lead anywhere if you don't do it, if you do nothing. Right, right, it's just about taking action and I think we underestimate the power of networks hugely and conversations.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Another thing I would recommend if someone's looking into this area, this transition, is start talking to people and dropping into conversation what you're thinking about or what you want. You don't have to ask people for something. I think people get very awkward about that. But when people say, hey, how's it going?
Gabrielle Ferguson:Or you're catching up, you're over brunch, or you're running into someone in the supermarket, dropping into conversation in and amongst the general update, actually I'm preparing to return to work, I'm getting my ducks in a row, I'm starting to, you know, spruce up my CV. The kind of thing I'm looking for is X, y and Z, you know, whatever. It is something part-time and to do with finance. Dropping that in as part of your update isn't actually a lot of work. But then you'll be amazed the amount of people that will say, oh, I'll keep an eye out for you, I'll keep my ear to the ground. And I think we forget, especially in this social media world, actually the power of talking and word of mouth and referrals. But again, people can't do that and help you in that way if you don't share it with them. So another example of such a simple, cost-free action that you can take start talking to people.
Christina Kohl:Yeah, absolutely, and I think I might have even shared this as recently as a week or two ago. One of my clients um, she was at a yoga class and a new yoga I don't know the right language, but somebody knew a new participant was at the class and after the class ended, three or four of them were after, you know stayed and were talking as they're introducing themselves. Oh, I've got this excited. This is who I am and I've got this really exciting job that I'm applying to and I'm really excited about it. Oh, I happen to know the cfo there. Give me your resume, I'll send it along. Wow, there we are.
Christina Kohl:You've literally known this person for less than five minutes. Maybe they did downward dog next to each other in the yoga room, I don't know. But because she spoke, she brought it up in casual conversation. Her resume was sent on the you know. So she contacted me like okay, I need to like work the resume like right now, because I got to give it to somebody and we did, and she gave it to that person the next business day and it got to the right person. So you just never, you never know who it's going to be. Um, that that makes the introduction for you. So yeah, networking can happen anywhere, all the time, with anyone, and you know, you just never know, especially when you see somebody like they're in workout clothes, like you have no idea, like who they know.
Gabrielle Ferguson:I think that example is one it can be informal, because people still think of networking as being in a really stiff business suit in some basement conference center, somewhere where you have to have a briefcase and you have to give out your business cards. That's still the picture that comes into people's minds about networking. So I think number one, it can be informal and number two, it can be easy. It can be so easy and I am constantly amazed at how kind people are when, with sharing just a snippet of information, something I'm working on, something I'm interested in, something I'm considering, you never know who someone knows and people are so, like your example just proved, people are so quick to say, oh actually I might, I might have a contact over that way, or my partner does, or my sister-in-law used to work there, let me find out.
Gabrielle Ferguson:You know, I've done that for you, christine, and my partner's cousin right was considering some job options and and looking at kind of transitioning over and pivoting into something new. It came via my partner who said, oh, gab's does coaching stuff, she'll be able to help you or she'll know someone, and it came to me and I was like I know the perfect person. Actually this is Christina's niche in her bag. I'm connected, you two and you two work together. It can come second, third, fourth hand, but it can be informal and it can be easy.
Christina Kohl:Yeah, absolutely. I just want to take us back to the identity piece. We've talked about reinvention, we've talked about the version and what you're going to leave behind. We've talked about courage over confidence. We talked about networking a bit.
Christina Kohl:I think the last piece is what is realistic in this process of reclaiming your identity, or or if you're inventing a new one what? What do we need to do for ourselves while we're in this stage of flux? If that's the right question, I'm not sure. For me, there was. That transition point was I am going back to work and it took a lot for me to see myself as a professional again in order to get a job, because when I was still in that in-between, I've still got three kids. They're at three different schools and nobody's driving. I'm still primary caregiver and I have enough time. They're all in school. I want to do something for me now. It was hard to see myself as an as a professional, okay, in order to market myself to get a job so you're, you were in that getting ready phase, the preparation phase right for like two years preparation, okay, yeah, it was like, okay, I want to do this thing.
Christina Kohl:I don't really know how to do this thing. Can I do this thing and still be the mom that my kids, that my family needs? How do I, when it's been a decade or more of having a professional identity, how do I tap into that professional identity in order to become a professional again, in order to get that job? Because that, I think, is where the internal work really needs to happen. It's hard to go from full-time unemployed, long-time unemployed to, oh, now I'm gainfully employed. There's that bridge between the two where I think the identity shift needs to happen in order to get that job. And that's the piece where we've kind of talked about like the reinvention.
Christina Kohl:Like, you know, looking back, who were you then? What do you want to carry with you? It takes courage over confidence. You're not going to don't wait for confidence, you take it. All of that applies. But how do you connect with this new identity of working mom that you haven't had for a really long time, and so that's that for me for a really long time, and so that's that for me is more the sweet spot?
Christina Kohl:And then, obviously, okay, I land the job but it's what I help people with is during that transition phase of I don't know how to do this. I don't even know who I am anymore in a professional language professional site and I can't even talk about what I used to do professionally because it's so long ago I don't remember it. And my advice to that person who said that was like, do you have any performance reviews that you kept? And if you have them in your drawer somewhere, go find them and see if you can jog your memory. If not, then take some sample interview questions and just journal and just start writing out your answers to them and see what starts coming back to you, knowing that it doesn't have to be 100% accurate, like was it $1.2 million or $1.27 million? You know it was over a million dollars.
Christina Kohl:We know that we don't have to be precise, but to be reconnecting and there's a there's a part of identifying myself as a professional and maybe it's a different type of professional than I was before because I've changed. I don't want to sort of want to go back to what I was. So that's that's kind of the bridge and I think it does take time to make that transition and and that's where these things were, you know, to give yourself grace and time. It's going to take trial and error, and maybe even strategic volunteering comes into here comes into here.
Gabrielle Ferguson:I've written down a couple of ideas, but also what I'm thinking as you're speaking is it's actually as well quite luxurious to have time to prepare and be in that phase, and that I imagine there's some people where they it is diving off a cliff or something happens to their partner's role and holy crap, now I need to get a job, and they also don't have that time to prepare themselves. So what? What should those people do as well? I've got a couple of ideas written down, but I think you're probably best placed to expand on this as well, because you've lived it and what you described just then was really beautiful and, of course, you know pointing out that that's your sweet spot of helping people.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Um, the things I wrote down in terms of that prep phase, the networking we've already talked about, research, like getting into researching industries, organizations, and I think there's almost depending on the industry, of course, but there's like a reading and re-familiarization that you can start doing. That you can start doing so, getting familiar with companies, putting certain organizations on a sort of target list that you're interested in. That's what I would always do when I was job hunting and I was in a job, but start kind of doing that preparation, so that you are taking action that's moving you forward. Start reading company pages, company reports, following companies on LinkedIn, building a LinkedIn profile, engaging with content, reading things, commenting, sharing, liking just getting yourself back in the groove. Attending events, I think, is really helpful. So, if there are events online that are free, there are events locally to everyone in the world. But starting to attend things that are available to you and some of those might not always be in the hours that you need, but make the most of the ones that are. Also just signing up to events online, because you normally are then sent the replay, so even if you can't attend it live, you can catch up on the replay at a later time. To start understanding and hearing what people are talking about in these areas, I think is probably really helpful. And then I think LinkedIn is fantastic for that. That's what LinkedIn was built for. And lastly, I would also say, as part of that prep, it's probably a time to start nailing down and practicing boundaries.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Boundaries is one of my specialty topics. I love a bit of boundaries. So boundaries is one of my specialty topics, love a bit of boundaries. But what I mean by that is, let's say you've created a family, you've raised a family and they're starting to get a bit more independent. Maybe they're a little bit older, they don't need you quite as much and you have a couple of hours during the day where you're not engaged in childcare activities, the day where you're not engaged in childcare activities, starting to practice boundaries around those one, two, three hours per day that you are doing job seeking activities almost like a part-time job in those core hours.
Gabrielle Ferguson:So you get used to logging on so you get used to logging on, you know you, you get, and this is you know, assuming people have those resources. Or you're going to a library to go and read about x thing, look up x thing and you've, you know. Setting yourself a work to-do list, I'm going to find three companies that I'm going to research and add to my kind of target list for when I start job hunting next month, breaking apart your CV and working on a certain chunk of it each week, because an entire CV can be overwhelming to look at. So start with the updates to your education section, and I do that in week one and then in week two I'm going through my previous experience section. But I think, getting used to setting boundaries with yourself and others, starting to almost have those part-time working in inverted commas hours, to get used to that way of organizing your day and organizing things around those hours. So you know, if you're, if you've not been working for some time, the supermarket shopping can be delivered anytime between 10 and three, because I'm at home, actually starting to have that be delivered in the evening, and three, because I'm at home, actually starting to have that be delivered in the evening and getting the family used to that, needing help with those. You need help with those things, or it's not always me that's doing it.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Testing out some of those boundaries meal prepping dinners for the family, because I'm not going to when I go back to work, I'm not going to stand up and cook fresh every day because I'm not going to have as much time, things like that. They sound, you know, almost like it's almost like role playing to get yourself back into that professional role. Because, let's be pragmatic, work does take time. It takes energy and capacity. So when you do go back to work, those things are going to change.
Gabrielle Ferguson:So let's work backwards from that and start practicing them now, and maybe that can then give you a taste of okay. This is the kind of role I want to be looking for, because I've started to work out what these boundaries are. How often can my partner let's say, you know, assuming you have one, but how often can my partner let's say, you know, assuming you have one, but how often can my partner do pick up or drop off? Actually, is it going to be me doing drop off five days a week to school or nursery? Maybe not. So those two days a week, even when I'm not officially working, yet let's get my partner used to doing drop off on these particular days.
Christina Kohl:Yeah, that's all perfect advice and what I, as I, as you, were talking and sharing. I'm like, I, during my two years of like, I think I'm ready to go back and maybe I'm going to go back. And what do I want to do? I started volunteering a lot and, as my volunteer hours crept up to regularly being 15 to 20 hours a week, I'm volunteering outside of the home, and some of it was computer work, some of it was physically away. That's when I realized like, okay, if I can manage this and my family is managing this, because, okay, I'm at a volunteer event on Tuesday night, you guys have dinner on your own.
Christina Kohl:That, for me, helped create those boundaries and allowed me to prove it to myself, first of all, that, yes, I can contribute outside of my home and my family isn't suffering for it, like we are navigating around it, my family isn't suffering for it, like we are navigating around it.
Christina Kohl:And that not only did it prepare me entirely for this shift, this identity shift we're talking about. It also gave me current experience to talk about and it gave me current references, right, expanded my network, so, and it allowed me to there's so many ands. It allowed me to know what I liked and didn't, like, you know, as I'm oh, this is cool new technology, like I'm learning about putting in links and I'm doing a signup genius and I'm, you know, doing all these things that I am getting to learn for free, right, I'm not getting paid. The other thing that I did when I got was getting really serious about my return paid. The other thing that I did when I got was getting really serious about my return. I got recertified in my HR certification and my certification had expired so I had to start over. Signed up for the course and it was a self-paced thing and just knowing that, okay, an hour every day I am studying, going through the modules, that helps that shift be more concrete.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Um of I'm going back to work and I'm learning, you know, making sure that it also demonstrated to employers my commitment and that you're current in something, and I think that then gives you a little bit more courage and a little bit more backing, which then in turn, increases your confidence. I think the word that's really coming to mind is this re-familiarization, so that not everything is brand spanking new. I'm up to date, or I feel fairly current in, even if it's only in a handful of topics to do with your industry. It's something that then helps me build my courage, and I think the volunteering side of things is a fantastic idea and opportunity, and there's opportunities everywhere to volunteer and they're not always advertised, so don't be afraid to just ask. Again, we're back to courage. No one cares. Do it scared. Don't be afraid to ask.
Gabrielle Ferguson:If there's a local business or chapter of something, or you know event hall, community space, something, don't be afraid to ask. The question would be my kind of point on volunteering. And then there are so many available online, so many free courses, webinars, bootcamps or free and or low cost in every topic, in every industry, and that's something else to check on organizational websites for what events and things are they running that you can just attend for interest? And also your local university and colleges as well. You know there's always something going on. Where you can, it's just time and prioritize and work around your schedule, um. But reaching out to universities as well that have links with many different organizations can be a really rich place to start your search and start your strategy.
Gabrielle Ferguson:yeah yeah, um and then, of course, you know, there's people like us in the world that are here to help you. That's, this is what we do. So, I mean, I can't think of someone better place to help your job seeking strategy than Christina. So, you know, there's there's lots of different things you can help people with, and I've sent people multiple people to you that have all raved about your service. So I think let's not forget to mention that well thank you on both counts.
Christina Kohl:The praise and the and the sending, um, yeah, they've been great, okay, well, anything that we didn't cover? We've talked about identity, like the reinvention and like what version of yourself you're bringing forward, what version you want to leave behind. We've talked about the courage over confidence. We've talked about you know, giving yourself some time to explore, and you know the volunteering and the networking. Okay, I think that's everything All right. Well, this has been really helpful and I love this topic and I do think that it'll really help the listeners, kind of give some food for thought of things to be thinking about as they're going, facing a transition, and I'm curious so, gabrielle, how can people, if they want to learn more about you and your services because you do an amazing job helping your clients as well about you and your services, because you do an amazing job helping your clients as well how can they reach you? What is the best way?
Gabrielle Ferguson:Thank you. The best way is probably LinkedIn. It's Gabrielle Ferguson on LinkedIn. G-a-b-r-i-e-l-l-e Ferguson F for Freddie E-R O N. Feel free to connect with me on this. Shoot me a DM. I'm pretty responsive on LinkedIn Monday to Friday, um, and alternatively, you can go to my website, wwwgabriellefergusoncom and you can find me there.
Christina Kohl:Nice. All right. Well, thank you again for joining us and sharing your insights with the community. It's really appreciated.
Gabrielle Ferguson:Thank you for having me have a good day everyone.
Christina Kohl:All right, that's it for this week, everyone. We'll talk to you next time. Thank you so much for listening today. I hope this episode hit home for you. Listening today, I hope this episode hit home for you and, if you haven't already, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and say hello so I can personally thank you for listening. Until next time, remember your story is uniquely your own, and your next chapters are ready to begin.