Kristen Walker and Rachel East of Clarity on Fire are here on the blog today to share some advice and tips for young professionals just trying to figure it all out. Having started out after college in jobs that just weren’t all that stimulating, Kristen and Rachel set out not only to find their passions, but also to act on them. They’ve helped lots of clients take existing careers in a more inspiring direction or change careers completely.
From my own experience, as well as that of many of my friends, it seems like it is quite normal in the years immediately following college graduation to question everything, especially long-term career goals and visions. One thing you can do today to jump start a passionate career is to take the Passion Profile Quiz Kristen and Rachel developed. You’ll get an instant classification of your personality type (I’m a Firestarter!), as well as some comprehensive materials on what that means and how to make the most of it.
For more inspiration, check out my interview with the Clarity on Fire founders here:
1 // You describe your lives three years ago as looking like this:
“Wake up, rush to get ready, commute a lot, sit at a desk for at least 9 hours, be completely existentially bored, flirt with having a panic attack because this just can’t be all there is, try to rationalize and “be normal,” wonder what “normal” really means, eat a few times, commute a lot again, drink wine, watch Netflix, sleep, repeat.”
I think this type of frustration really resonates with a lot of young professionals, and many want to do more but just don’t know where to start. How did you initially break out of this rut?
I know, from firsthand experience, how difficult it is to be living this way, and to know that you want something more, but to have no clue how to make a change. The way to break out of this rut is to first and foremost give yourself permission to believe that another way of life is really possible. For a long time, I assumed that working at a full-time job doing something I didn’t care too much about and squeezing the rest of my life into the evenings and weekends was normal and just “the way things were.” I assumed, since I had to work and make money, I had to get a conventional job, even though that doesn’t align with my values and the kind of lifestyle I want to live. But as soon as I acknowledged that another way of living was not only possible, but possible for me, then I was able to break out of the cycle and create a career and life that fits me, even though it’s a bit unconventional. I’ve seen this happen over and over again with my clients, too. As soon as they start to truly believe that another way of life is possible for them, then they can actually make moves to make it happen
2 // What does “normal” really mean for you?
Hah, I’m not sure I’ve ever been “normal,” at least in the conventional definition! But if I had to define it for myself, I’d like for “normal” to mean living a life that has a natural ease and flow to it.
I have a friend who asks himself every day, “What do I want my ‘normal’ to be today?” And I think that’s a great question for everyone to ask themselves regularly. For me, personally, I want “normal” to be having amazing relationships, feeling inspired on a daily basis, waking up feeling at-peace, getting in the “flow” without effort, and connecting with great people everywhere I go.
3 // What did you study in college and do you feel that you are applying what you learned in your business now?
I studied English and psychology, and Rachel studied communications and PR. Neither of us have any formal education in business before becoming entrepreneurs — we figured it all out along the way! We’re both writers, and we put out a lot of content to our audience regularly, so I suppose our degrees helped us hone our writing abilities, but otherwise, we’re not using them much at all!
4 // What was it like to work full-time while you were becoming certified professional coaches? (Kristen & Rachel graduated as Certified Professional Coaches from iPEC and also have Associate Certified Coach credentials with the ICF)
It was busy! I personally hate the term “busy,” but there’s no better way to describe those 6-8 months. I was on the phone for hours almost every night on coaching calls, listening to teleclasses, etc. Plus, I spent a ton of my extra time in the evenings and on the weekends (and sometimes during my downtime at work, if I’m being totally honest!) building the foundation of our business. But it gave me purpose, and I finally felt like I had a light at the end of the tunnel, which is why I was able to power through.
5 // What/who are you inspired by?
Oh, SO many people. To name a few current favorites … Danielle LaPorte, Kate Northrup, Marie Forleo, Oprah, Tosha Silver, Kris Carr, Mike Dooley, Marianne Williamson, and Cheryl Richardson. And those are just experts in the self-awareness / spirituality world! I could go on and on, but I’ll leave it at that for now.
6 // What does a typical day look like for you?
Hmm, well no two days look exactly the same, which is nice. Plus, I don’t believe in 8-straight-hour workdays anymore! I purposefully only schedule coaching calls Tues-Thurs so I can get internal work or personal things done on Mondays and Fridays. And I never schedule more than 4 calls on one day — I discovered a while back that 4 calls a day is my limit. Plus, most of my days are interspersed with dog walking, the gym, and reading (if I can fit it in). And now that it’s summer, I definitely intend to spend more time at the pool!
7 // If you were to go back to the beginning, would you do anything differently?
I’m a big believer in not having regrets because I know I wouldn’t be where I am now if everything hadn’t happened exactly the way it did. But that doesn’t mean I would necessarily recommend that someone else do everything I did! For example…
- I wouldn’t have judged and been so impatient with myself during my “figuring it all out” period. It’s completely normal to go through a massive questioning phase, especially after college or during any life transition. I wish I hadn’t been so hard on myself during that time.
- If I were going back through my coach-training program, I would have focused first and foremost on becoming a coach and then focused on building a business afterward, instead of trying to do it all at once out of impatience. The whole process didn’t need to be as overwhelming as I made it.
- I wouldn’t have quit my job so soon. I quit more out of a desire to escape than because I was truly ready to focus on my business full-time.
- I would have enrolled in B-School earlier — it was a huge game-changer in our business!
- I would have strategically gotten a “bridge job” after I quit my full-time job to give me more financial peace of mind while building my business.
8 // What is the dynamic between you as both best friends and business partners?
We joke that we’re kind of like a platonic married couple because we spend SO much time together. And we effortlessly switch from talking about business to binge-watching shows together. We’re definitely best friends first and business partners second. I wouldn’t recommend going into business with just any friend, though … the reason it works for Rachel and I is because we have a lot of overlapping values and interests, but we also compliment each other in a lot of ways, too.
We work really well together because we have very different personalities and talents, but a single-minded vision for our business and lifestyle goals. Rachel is more of the big-picture visionary who gets hits of inspiration for new ideas, and I’m more of the implementer who makes it happen.
9 // What’s the best and what’s the toughest part of running your own business?
The best part: Nothing is better than working with amazing clients whose lives dramatically change after coaching. It’s one of the best feelings you can imagine to show someone what’s possible in their life and help them make it happen. I also have a HUGE value around freedom and autonomy, so it’s extremely important to me that my time is my own. I love working from home … or at Starbucks, or at the pool, or anywhere I want!
The toughest part: Having 100% responsibility over your financial life can be very scary at times, especially at the beginning. And figuring out all the logistics of running a business (like taxes … bleh) can be overwhelming, especially when you’ve never done it before so you’re naturally questioning everything.
10 // What advice do you have for college seniors about to graduate or young professionals new to the workforce?
- Your passion is not a “thing” or a specific profession — it’s a set of feelings, values, and desires that are specific to you.
- You don’t need to “figure it all out” right now.
- Logical decisions won’t make you happy in the long run. Get extremely clear on what brings you joy, and make decisions based on that.
- ‘Question your beliefs how “how things are” and what’s possible for you.
- Figure out HOW you want to work before honing in WHAT you’re passionate about — it’ll make the whole process much easier. Our Passion Profile Quiz is a great place to start because it will pinpoint the ideal intersection between your passion and your career.
