In last week’s episode we explored Fear of Success, a topic I think we don’t hear enough about because I know it holds so many of us back. Deeply rooted in this concept is the fear of letting go of who were used to be in favor of who we want to become. 

And that gap between past us and future us can be huge and I think too many of us leave it up to chance. This week, we’re going to talk about how to create future you. On purpose. 

So, let’s dive in.

As humans, we’re trained to look at our past for answers and for a mirror to reflect who we are or how we see ourselves in our present. 

So, in our career, we tend to examine our past mistakes and celebrate our past successes. And it’s the combination of those two things that, for most of us, shapes our self-concept.

Most of us are actively involved with our past selves. 

But we view the future differently. And I believe, much more passively.

For some of us, the future is something to look forward to with excitement or anticipation. 

For others, the future is something to be feared because it involves the UNKNOWN (which we talked about in Episode 14, so check that out if you haven’t already).

One of the things most of us have in common is that when it comes to the FUTURE, we will set goals or have dreams or mark plans for things we want to do have or experience.

But very few of us will ever take the time to think about WHO WE WANT TO BE or who we will need to be to LIVE IT.

Right now, I’m coaching an executive in corporate America who’s experiencing significant vertical growth.

She’s proud of what she’s achieved but is trying to reconcile this amazing new level of success – the big title, salary, and prestige - she just achieved with her concept of herself.

She often finds herself feeling uncomfortable. 

She finds feeling awkward or inauthentic.

It doesn’t make sense on the surface because she’s got all the skills. She earned that level of success.

So, what’s the problem for her?

Well, for starters., she’s always used her past experiences and successes as a mirror for who she is. And that worked okay up till now because her progression followed a linear path. 

She moved forward one step or progressed one natural level at a time. So the growth and shifts she made were more natural or gradual and so relying on the past as a mirror for herself was believable. 

But now she finds herself in a new company in a role where she’s running the whole function. Where her team is a few hundred people and growing. Where success or failure – not just of the team but of the entire department and perhaps the company – is on her shoulders.

She’s just experience quantum growth. There’s nothing to look back to in order to reflect who she is now. She’s creating it REAL TIME.

So, we’re working on creating Next Level Her.

Which I’ll tell you more about in a minute.

I created this exercise for people experiencing quantum growth like my client is experiencing.

Or people make the shift from function to another.

Or people moving from corporate employee to entrepreneur.

Or suddenly gaining national visibility or global prominence within your field.

But honestly, it’s for everyone. 

Why?

Because I think we have it all out of order. 

Instead of thinking about what we want to DO, HAVE or BE in the future, we would be better served by FIRST thinking of WHO WE WANT TO BECOME in the future.

To learn more, listen to the full episode.

If you're looking to move your career or life forward, join us in Next Level, my monthly membership where we deal with mindset mastery and action planning. Join the wait list at https://www.thepurposefulcareer.com/nextlevel.