The Career GPS Recalculation: How to Navigate When Success Feels Off Course
Have you ever reached a destination only to wonder if you entered the wrong address?
This happens in careers more often than we discuss. We follow the prescribed route to "success" – the promotions, the titles, the compensation packages – only to arrive and think, "This isn't where I meant to go."
When Success Feels Like Someone Else's Destination
During my years in corporate leadership, I encountered countless executives who had achieved every external marker of success yet felt profoundly disconnected from their work. They had reached the coordinates society programmed into their career GPS, but the destination didn't match their internal map.
One senior leader confided: "I've spent twenty years climbing to a place I never actually wanted to go."
The Courage to Recalculate Your Route
Just as your car's GPS calmly announces "recalculating" when you've taken a wrong turn, your career requires similar recalibrations. The difference? Your career doesn't come with an automated navigation system. You must recognize the need to recalculate and have the courage to change direction.
Here's how to begin that recalculation:
Recognize the signals of persistent Sunday night dread, physical exhaustion disproportionate to your workload, and emotional detachment from achievements are navigation alerts, not normal conditions of success.
Question the destination coordinates Ask yourself: "If I removed all external expectations and financial constraints, what direction would I choose?" This question reveals your authentic destination coordinates.
Identify your true north. Success looks different for everyone. For some, it's impact and purpose. For others, it's creative expression or work-life integration. Clarifying your personal definition of success provides essential navigation data.
Plot a new course Recalculation doesn't always require abandoning your current position. Sometimes small adjustments – shifting responsibilities, changing your approach, or adjusting boundaries – can redirect your journey.
Conclusions
The most fulfilling career paths often don't appear on standard maps. They're routes you chart yourself, guided by internal values rather than external expectations.
To dive deeper into courageous leadership and create lasting impact, explore my keynote, "Courage as a Carry-On."
