Career vs. Lifestyle | Boss Tip
When I started Bossed Up, I knew I wanted to help women navigate career transition, but with a specific kind of outcome in mind: something I call sustainable success. I don’t just want women to have more money and power - although those are certainly welcome, too - I want us to live happier, healthier lives without having to give up on our wildest ambitions. As I’ve been reflecting a lot lately about the past 5 years and all we’ve accomplished as a community at Bossed Up, I’ve also been considering where we’re headed next. Your survey results have been a HUGE help, too, which I shared more about on the Bossed Up blog this week.
What's The Bossed Up Lifestyle?
A big part of all this reflection is recognizing that while I’ve talked a LOT about careers these past 5 years, I haven’t really done the same work when it comes to the bossed up lifestyle that I’ve always been pursuing. The lifestyle that’s always been central to our mission: to help you craft a happy, healthy, and sustainable career. And first of all, we have to acknowledge the difference between a career and a lifestyle. You could be an attorney practicing law in New York City or an attorney doing document review in Bali. While you’d technically be pursuing a similar career path, I’m sure your lifestyles would look a whole lot different. Same thing goes for pursuing a career in the nonprofit sector in upper management at an international organization based out of London, versus the lifestyle that might come with running a local nonprofit in rural Arkansas. Technically, you’re in the same field, but your lifestyle would look totally different. And it’s not just about location, the same difference could be considered if you compare teaching in, say, Los Angeles, if you’re a preschool age teacher versus a college professor. A scientist working on infectious diseases for the Department of Health versus big pharma. An engineer working for a major firm or a car engineer working in a body shop. For all the thought, energy, and effort we put into crafting our careers, we don’t always give our lifestyle the same consideration. It’s like we’re busy chasing success in one of those arenas, but not even considering what success would look like in the other. I was so dogged in pursuing career success that it was until recent years that I started even exploring what “the good life” looked like for me and got busy living it.
Your Career Doesn't Determine Your Lifestyle - You Do
I wish someone had told me that your career doesn’t have to determine your lifestyle. Or even pointed out that your lifestyle is something to consider as you craft your career to support it. Or in other words: there are LOTs of ways to be successful. If we give ourselves the chance to dream big about the lives we want for ourselves, and actually ADMIT that it’s okay to want those things: a tiny house in the woods, a partner we can trust, a baby blue moped, or a menagerie of animals - then we can start putting a plan in place to make those dreams a reality. It is okay to pine for a certain lifestyle, and today’s boss tip is to get clear on what that lifestyle is for you. Don’t just plan for your career - plan for the kickass LIFE you want that career to support. Maybe it’s about striving to become debt-free, maybe it’s about having a whole brood of babies, or maybe it’s about a little house on the beach you can call your own. And if you’re drawing blanks, you’re not alone. Remember: this mental exercise is part of our use-it-or-lose-it kind of neurology. It’s possible it’s just been awhile since you asked yourself what you wanna be when you grow up. So if you want structured exercises to walk you through clarifying your vision - in all aspects of your career and life - a good place to start is by downloading my totally-free Bossed Up LifeTracker workbook.
More Lifestyle Content to Come
Living your best life is something I’m committed to talking a whole lot more about moving forward. Whether it’s sharing best practices for pursuing a healthier, more stress-free lifestyle, tips for integrating travel and fun into your life in a major way, or money management strategies for becoming the boss of your bank account, I’m committed to covering more of these topics - including the lessons and life hacks I’ve personally learned along the way. That means moving forward, I’m not just looking for your career conundrums to cover on this podcast, I need to know what kinds of questions you’re wrestling with when it comes to living a happy, healthy, and sustainable lifestyle, too. Call into the hotline now at 910-668-2677 to ask whatever’s on your mind about crafting a career AND life that you love. I can’t wait to explore even more of this bossed up journey with you moving forward.Do you have a good strategy for envisioning the kind of lifestyle you want most? Or an example of how you hacked into your career to make the life you want a reality? I’d love to hear about it on social media at @emiliearies and @bosseduporg, or in the comments section below. And as always, weigh in on the conversation in the Bossed Up Courage Community on Facebook. I can’t wait to hear what you think!