Have you ever felt like you have to be everything for everyone, even if it means sacrificing your own happiness and growth? Well, I can totally relate to that struggle. Join me in this season finale episode as I share my personal journey of self-discovery and growth from the last 6 months. It's been a rollercoaster ride, but I've learned some valuable lessons along the way.
One of the most important things I've discovered is the power of stepping out of my comfort zone and moving through fear rather than running away from it. It's scary at first, but it's where the magic happens. I've also realised that it's okay to ask for help when I need it. I used to think I had to do everything on my own, but now I understand the strength in reaching out for support.
Setting strong personal boundaries has been a game-changer for me. I used to try to please everyone, but I've learned that it's essential to take care of myself too. And you know what? When you stop being the 'saviour,' you give yourself the space to grow in ways you never thought possible.
Balancing work, life, and business is no easy feat, but it's absolutely doable. I've adopted an agile approach that allows me to integrate my personal and professional life seamlessly. Family and relationships are a priority, so I've learned to create intentional spaces for work while also making time to unwind and rejuvenate. It's a constant challenge, but the rewards are so worth it.
Confidence plays a significant role in building a thriving career, and I've been actively working on developing my own confidence journey. I'm excited to share my experiences and tips with you, so you can build a fulfilling career without compromising your personal growth.
I hope my journey inspires you to step out of your comfort zone, embrace daunting opportunities, and forge your own path in your career.
Have you ever felt like you have to be everything for everyone, even if it means sacrificing your own happiness and growth? Well, I can totally relate to that struggle. Join me in this season finale episode as I share my personal journey of self-discovery and growth from the last 6 months. It's been a rollercoaster ride, but I've learned some valuable lessons along the way.
One of the most important things I've discovered is the power of stepping out of my comfort zone and moving through fear rather than running away from it. It's scary at first, but it's where the magic happens. I've also realised that it's okay to ask for help when I need it. I used to think I had to do everything on my own, but now I understand the strength in reaching out for support.
Setting strong personal boundaries has been a game-changer for me. I used to try to please everyone, but I've learned that it's essential to take care of myself too. And you know what? When you stop being the 'saviour,' you give yourself the space to grow in ways you never thought possible.
Balancing work, life, and business is no easy feat, but it's absolutely doable. I've adopted an agile approach that allows me to integrate my personal and professional life seamlessly. Family and relationships are a priority, so I've learned to create intentional spaces for work while also making time to unwind and rejuvenate. It's a constant challenge, but the rewards are so worth it.
Confidence plays a significant role in building a thriving career, and I've been actively working on developing my own confidence journey. I'm excited to share my experiences and tips with you, so you can build a fulfilling career without compromising your personal growth.
I hope my journey inspires you to step out of your comfort zone, embrace daunting opportunities, and forge your own path in your career.
Welcome to the Career Confidence podcast, the podcast for driven lawyers wanting to step out of the traditional path and build fulfilling and purposeful careers. I'm your host, maria Ducar, legal counsel and career coach, helping you navigate your career with intention and confidence. In this podcast, we don't show away from having real conversations about topics that matter to us. Driven AF go-getters From manifesting your dream career, negotiating the salary you deserve, creating your personal brand, knowing when it's time to pivot. We cover these topics and so much more. You ready, let's dive into today's episode. Hey, hey, welcome to another episode of the Career Confidence podcast. I hope you're doing well. I hope you're having an amazing week so far.
Speaker 1:
This isn't just any episode. This is our final episode for the season. I'm recording this a few weeks out before I go to Europe and I could not be any more excited. To be honest, it doesn't feel real quite yet, but I'm so excited. So George and I are going on our honeymoon and also just reconnecting with our family overseas. So we're going to Greece, macedonia and London and I just honestly can't wait to just have some space to just be, to live life, to not be on a schedule, not have a specific routine, and just change of scenery in general, so we will be taking a bit of a pause on the Career Confidence podcast. I don't have a specific date on when we'll be back, because I just want to have some space when we get back from Europe to create new content, to bring on new and exciting guests and just to have a different and fresh perspective, and I don't want to rush that process either. So I'm definitely going to give myself a few months break to do all of that and in the meantime, there are 52 episodes for you to listen to on so many different topics and different conversations with amazing people that I know you'll get a lot of value from. I'm really happy with where the Career Confidence podcast is. I love receiving your feedback on how some of the episodes have given you a different perspective on your career. It's given you some nugget of wisdom or a mindset tip, and for some of you, it has even got you focused on a different trajectory of your career as well, which is exciting, and I hope that you continue to receive more value.
Speaker 1:
And please continue to share with me your takeaways of the episode, because I create these episodes for you in mind every single time. Even when I share my lessons. I always think about which lessons can I share that I know will provide you with value. So, yes, I always have you in mind when I'm creating these episodes. If you do want me to share about something specific or if you have any questions, please DM me on LinkedIn or Instagram and, yeah, ask away because, again, as I said before, I create these episodes for you and I want to ensure that they're giving you lots of value and answering your specific questions. So feel free to reach out to me and, yeah, then I can record some episodes based on your questions when we're back in the new season. And I also want to share that we have reached over 2000 downloads, and that is exciting to me, and I can't believe that because, yeah, I just started creating these episodes because I wanted to share value and practical tips and give you a different perspective on your career, and I'm just very, very grateful and stoked with where we're at and I can't wait to come back in the new season with a fresh perspective and more episodes that will continue to provide you with lots of value.
Speaker 1:
And I just want to say as well, like, how important it is to take a break from things in life that you love as well, in the theme of sharing lessons with you. If you are feeling a bit tired and overwhelmed and burnt out, that's okay. Like we all go through different seasons in our life, and I've definitely gone through feelings of being exhausted and not feeling inspired as well throughout the year, and even though in the moment, you feel like you just want to quit everything, but just take a step back and give yourself time to rest, because so much magic happens in that space, in that rest in the in between, and we're not meant to just keep going and going. We're not robots. So, yeah, just a little reminder to take a break where you need it as well. Now, today, I want to give you a life, work and business update so that can keep you in the loop of where I'm at, and also to share my lessons from the past six months, and again sharing lessons that I know that you will find value in and you'll get something from as well. So where are we at the moment?
Speaker 1:
So I feel like the theme of this year so far has been me being uncomfortable and stretching into that next level version of myself, and as much as how many times this year I've just wanted to guess what's the way like, run away from that fear and just stay comfortable. I haven't let myself because I know that I'm in this period of growth for a reason. I know that I want to have a next level life, a next level career and business, and in order for that to happen, I've had to rise up to the challenge and feel the fear, but not let the fear take over me and instead just sit in that feeling for a moment and just do it anyway. I know that sounds cliche, but it is so true. I think, as much as we are afraid of our failures, we're also afraid of success and what that could bring if we were to actually succeed in what we wanted to do, and I feel like I have been really stretched in that way as well.
Speaker 1:
From a work perspective, I've been at Legalite now for seven months and this role has been so incredible because I truly feel like I have been stretched and have been called to truly step into my leadership role and feel very grateful because the support that I receive at Legalite has been like no other that I have had in any other workplace, in that I feel fully seen for my value, my skill set and what I bring to the table. And also when you feel seen, you also feel held in you to be able to challenge yourself and push forward, because you have that belief from other people. And when you have that belief it just feels like, okay, I can do this, I've got the support of my team. And even if I feel like in the moment I might be like, oh no, I don't know if I can do this, I don't know if I can have that uncomfortable conversation or I don't know if I can balance all of this or whatever it may be, whatever fear might be coming up, I feel fully seen and supported by my team and I feel so safe to be able to go to them and say like, if I am feeling vulnerable or afraid or I don't know how to do something, I'm always being held by them and that feels so nice. It feels so nice because I think a lot of us we have so much to give.
Speaker 1:
But unless we are held by someone or be supported or seen by them, sometimes it can be really, really hard, especially in moments of vulnerability and where you're questioning yourself. If you don't have that support around you, if you don't have anyone saying I know you can do this and I know you can rise up to the challenge. It can be really really hard, and I mean in those moments if you don't have anyone, you really do need to just dig deep within yourself and forge ahead or just seek out support outside of work, you know, with your friends or someone that you can fully trust and count on to be there for you. So I really love the space that I'm in at the moment with my job like I feel truly blessed and the fact that it intertwines perfectly with my career coaching business as well. It feels so nice to be able to merge the two and that I can show up to work as my full self. I don't have to hide my business and pretend like I'm not coaching or that I don't have this other passion. So that feels really really nice and just makes everything so much more seamless and easier.
Speaker 1:
Something I've really embraced this year is communicating my needs and also saying what I can and can't do. And this transcends all aspects of my life, to be honest, in work, in business and also in life. You know, I used to be someone that, even if I'm feeling really challenged and like I can't come up for air like I'm really really under the pump and busy, like I used to just forge ahead and like just get it done and think like I just got to do it myself and I can't say that I need help because I might look weak or whatever. You know whatever lies I told myself. But this year I'm really feeling into and acknowledging where I do need help and not feeling like I have to do everything on my own and take everything into my own stride because we don't like we as humans are meant to be living in community and we're meant to be supporting one another and leaning into one another for that support and encouragement and help where we need it. So I have, yeah, been so much more clearer with my needs, what I can and can't do, and setting expectations around work and also communicating boundaries as well.
Speaker 1:
I think communication is so important throughout life and in particularly at work. Like no one can read your mind, no one knows where you're at, unless you clearly communicate that to someone you know. And sometimes, if you feel like you can't meet a certain expectation or you can't do something or something doesn't sit quite right with you, it's best to just have the conversation, no matter how uncomfortable it may feel having uncomfortable conversations. In the moment it's uncomfortable, but that's temporary. Like you will feel so much better after you have had that conversation In terms of like communicating my needs and boundaries.
Speaker 1:
In my personal life, I have had to do that a lot as someone that I like to take control of the situation and do everything on my own and all of that Like I have really learned to take a step back where we're needed, because I am not a saviour and I'm not there to save everyone and to be a fixer of everyone's problems, or yeah, like, essentially, the weight of the world does not have to sit with me and I know it sounds silly, but yeah, I used to just be that person of like just jumping in and always being the one to help and don't get me wrong, I am there for my loved ones. I am someone that naturally loves to help and jump in and assist where I can, but I think I've learned that I'm not here to fix people and I'm not responsible for the people's happiness or their successes. Like they, you know people are all on their own journey and that's something actually coaching really taught me as well. Like, as much as you assist your clients and you work together with them on their goals. If someone doesn't want to change or if someone is not taking on board you know what you're saying, your advice or your tips or whatever it may be, then that's on them, you know, and that is you know everyone's got responsibility over themselves. Like we all have to be responsible over our own selves.
Speaker 1:
And yeah, that's something I've kind of just been doing more of, like allowing other people to just do their thing and grow where they need to grow, and I don't need to always fly in and, you know, save people. And that part of me has been really hard to let go of because I can be a people pleaser. But I know that in order for me to grow into that next level version of myself, in order for me to hold all of the different things that I hold in my life, all the goals that I have, I really need to give myself that mental space, that energy to be able to move forward with my own things and allow myself to grow. Essentially, I can't do that if I'm just constantly giving and giving and giving and giving to every single person all the time and taking responsibility for every single person as well. It's just, it's not doable, it's not sustainable and it doesn't really get you far in life. To be honest, it actually burns you out.
Speaker 1:
And continuation from that, in terms of holding all of these different things in terms of my goals, my job, my business, my relationships and all of that, a friend of mine asked like, how do I do all of that? And you know, short answer is it's hard and you know, sometimes you have to pull back from certain areas of your life in order to give more energy into other areas of your life. And the thing is you can't give all of yourself to all areas of your life 100% every single day. It's just not feasible. And I have let go of that mindset because I used to just think I have to be 100% in all areas of my life every single time, you know, every single day, and that just drained me. So I just have adopted more of an agile type of approach and mindset to how I integrate my life with work, with business and all of that. It doesn't mean that everything is going to work seamlessly and perfect at all times. That's not the case and I'm still at work in progress, but I just have stopped to adopt that mindset of like everything's going to look amazing every single time. You know, in all areas of your life it just can't you.
Speaker 1:
Just the way I guess manage all of that is I give, you know, intentional space and time to my business. And that's not every single day. That is dedicated days throughout the week and weekend and in that time I fully focus on my business without any distractions. And then I have obviously set days that I work. So I work four days a week. Those four days I'm purely focusing on my job that I need to do and letting go of the rest. If I have any business ideas that might come up because sometimes I have just random downloads I will write them down in my phone in my notes and I'll revisit them when I am dedicating that time to my business. So it's not like you can't progress in your business when you have a job. You absolutely can. But it's about being really smart with your time, being very intentional with your time.
Speaker 1:
And then, in terms of life, family is priority to me. I am so big on family and my relationships in my life are just absolutely number one, so I do prioritize and make sure that I am making time for family, that I am seeing my friends, because I don't want to Look back on my life, my prime years in my 30s, and go well, I spent all of that time, you know, working and building my business, which you know amazing and I have, and I'm very driven and have goals there, obviously. But If I look back and just say that I've just been working and I didn't spend any time with my family or friends, creating memories, and for me that just seems like a very sad Life and it just doesn't align with me at all, which is why I really hate the hustle culture Of you gotta just like work and ignore everything else and that's just not realistic. And for some people, okay, might work, might be, I guess, their goal in life, but For me it just isn't. Like if I'm not giving time to my relationships, then I'm not going to be showing up as the best version of myself. My relationships fuel me, they give me energy, they make me who I am, they make me feel inspired. I might have a conversation with a girlfriend that then sparks an idea for a podcast episode or, you know, for a program that I want to run.
Speaker 1:
So Life is not black and white and you can absolutely integrate all areas of your life. And it doesn't mean that it's easy all the time, because it's not, and I definitely am someone that does like to be proactive and keep busy, because I get a lot of energy from that, but also, on the flip side, I am someone that Does need to rest a lot too, like I can't keep going at 100% every single day, because that just isn't yeah, it just isn't who I am like. I definitely need to rest. And on the topic of rest, like that is something that I've really had to allow this year, like and this has been a work in progress over the last I don't know how many years, to be honest like as long as I can remember, I've really struggled to just rest and take a break. I feel like I'm getting better at it. I'm not perfect at it, but I'm so much better at telling the signs and cues within my body Of when I need to just take a step back, have a breather and hit the reset button, and I can tell, for example, with me, when I start to feel irritable or not inspired by my business, or I haven't had like a new or exciting, like Idea or surge of energy, then I know that it's time to take a step back and to rest, to replenish, and every single time I do that, I come back with so much more energy, so much more excitement and momentum. So if you are someone that has been feeling a little bit flat and demotivated, just give yourself some space. Honestly, like so Much wisdom comes from that space, like I always take out so many lessons from what I'm going through, you know, in that space. So I think that's really, really important.
Speaker 1:
Another thing is I've just allowed myself to put myself out there and to say yes to opportunities, even if I feel Afraid, you know, recently. I'm not going to go into too much detail in this because it hasn't, like, eventuated yet, so I don't want to share too soon, but I just want to give you an example. Overall, how saw an opportunity for me to run a workshop and I reached out to this organization and I shared with them my idea and they then came back and said that aligns with them and for us to have a conversation and see where that goes. And that honestly came from just like this surge of inspiration and by looking at that specific organization, what they were doing, and I thought, okay, I can fill a gap here, put myself out there.
Speaker 1:
And then the funny thing is, like when you receive a positive response like our mind, just honestly, I guess it's there to keep us safe. But straight away my mind went into overdrive of, oh, can I even do this? Am I good enough? Oh, I don't know, like maybe I should just back out, like goes into all of that, which is just silly stories that your mind tells you. But I sat with that VR and I said, no, I can do this. Like I see, maria, why are you getting scared? I see you know something new, something different. You're pushing out yourself outside of your comfort zone. That's where you're feeling all of these feelings. But no, you can do this because there's a reason why you reach out in the first place. You're capable, you can do hard things and if you want to live a next level life, you got to do next level shit. You've got to put yourself out there, you got to feel uncomfortable, you got to feel stretched, otherwise you will just stagnate and that's not the type of life I want to live. So these are things I just remind myself of when I am in that fear mindset, because I go through it too.
Speaker 1:
Just because I'm a coach doesn't mean that I'm perfect and have all my shit together. I absolutely do not and nobody does, and if someone says that they do, then they're very good at lying to you. No one has this shit together. We're all going through something. We all have different levels of comfort and discomfort. We all have different risk appetites as well, like we're all so different, which is why I approach every single client that I work with in such a different and unique way that's tailored to them specifically, because no human being is the same as well, so you can't apply a one size fits all approach to everyone. So, yes, overall, these have been my lessons.
Speaker 1:
The past six months. I have felt really challenged, really called to rise to the occasion, to put myself out there to say yes to opportunities, even though I am shit scared, to be agile when trying to balance work, life and business, and that it's not going to look perfect and letting go of that perfection. Mentality of balance, because balance means like 50-50 split of everything. That's just not how life works. Sometimes one area might demand more of you, and that's okay. I feel like a lot of the pressure just comes from preconceived notions and all of these ridiculous expectations we put on ourselves that we just don't need to. So you just need to like, breathe and let go of all of these unrealistic expectations that we all do this and we all put them on ourselves. So that's it. I will leave it there for now.
Speaker 1:
These have been my lessons the last six months just a bit of a life and biz update on where I'm at. I am really looking forward to some space. I am also very excited with what's coming up with clients that I'm working with. I'm working with some amazing clients which I'm so excited about their growth and their journey, and I just love them stepping into that next level version of themselves too. So, if you are wanting to work with me when I get back so mid-September I'm opening up five spaces to the Unbound Lawyer.
Speaker 1:
This is my one-on-one private coaching experience. It is a three-month program and we work on getting you into that fulfilling and thriving career, whatever that looks like for you, so that you do not have to sit there feeling like your career has taken over your life and is controlling you, but rather you to take control over your career and to put yourself forward for exciting opportunities, whether it's like a promotion. Whether you're wanting to build your personal brand and put yourself out there for speaking opportunities, if you're wanting to make a shift into a different career path, if you want to step into leadership, whatever it may be, whatever your career goals may be, I'm here to support you, and in mid-September we are opening up five spaces and I would love for that to be you. If you feel cold and if you do, click the link in my bio and sorry, not my bio in the show notes. This is not Instagram Click the link in the show notes and join the wait list there and I will personally reach out to you. We'll have a discovery call, see where you're at and how I can support you, and we can then go from there.
Speaker 1:
So I am signing off now for a few months. I'm very excited to go on this holiday. I feel like it will be a beautiful restart, feel refreshed and creative and, I'm sure, have even more exciting things to share with you when I'm back from my break, and I wish you nothing but the best. I hope that you go for your goals. I hope you give yourself a break where you need it. I hope that you say yes to opportunities to get the shit out of you. I hope that you put up your boundaries where you need them and say no where you need to as well.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, I just feel like we're in this journey together, levelling up being the best versions of ourselves, and I will see you on the flip side. Okay, take care. Bye. Thanks for tuning into the Korea Confidence Podcast, like what you learned today. Why not share this episode with your work, bestie, and leave us a five star review on? Wherever you listen to your podcast on, we'd absolutely love to get into more years and help more women, just like you, build fulfilling and thriving careers. Until next time.