Hello!
Have you ever noticed how people talk about “work/life balance” as if there are two discreet categories of our activities: work and life? Is this really a helpful distinction?
What if your life, not your job, could be your most valuable asset, even when it comes to building your career?
You are so much more than your title, or a list of achievements on your resume. Who you are, your interests, and your experiences, both professionally and personally, are the meaningful qualities that create something entirely unique, that only you can offer.
When you can reframe your identity from “what I do” to “who I am” you can unlock an incredible mindset for developing your professional brand identity.
In a world that places titles and promotions on a pedestal, this might be easier said than done, but in this week’s newsletter, I’ll share three initial steps to help you see your true value, and how you can better position yourself to stand out.
3 Things to Talk About This Week
- How to build your portfolio life
- What’s on your Venn diagram?
- Have you taken the Archetypes Quiz yet?
1. Building your portfolio life
Meet Christina Wallace. I met Christina a few months ago at Harvard Business School when I was there for a Women’s Leadership Summit.
Christina has an impressive career that’s almost impossible to fathom. And that’s exactly what she’s going for! Christina’s a Harvard Business School lecturer, an angel investor, and a Broadway co-producer (bet you didn’t see that one coming!).
She’s also the author of a book called The Portfolio Life.
In her book, Christina talks about the importance of seeing yourself as more than just your job title. Why is this so important? Well, what happens if you lose your job? Your identity goes out the window with it. By building a portfolio life, with a variety of interests, skills, and experiences, and all on your own terms, you can future-proof your career, and find empowerment to follow your own path.
Christina built this approach on four pillars:
Identity: You need to disentangle your identity from your job.
Optionality: View your future opportunities as broad paths, rather than a singular narrow route.
Diversification: Allow multiple sources to fulfill your needs. While one element of your career may fulfill your financial needs, perhaps you need social or professional fulfillment from an additional source.
Flexibility: Work-life balance is critical, but allow for each element to ebb and flow as necessary. Give yourself permission to make time for whatever feels most important in that moment.
You can learn more about Christina and building your portfolio life in my conversation with her—ep.179 of the Talk About Talk podcast “The Portfolio Life & Your Personal Brand,” out now.
2. What’s on your Venn diagram?
Christina’s Venn diagram has three circles: business, technology, and the arts. She talks about how her career has evolved in these three circles and how the empty spaces help her identify new opportunities.
Curious, I decided to create my own Venn diagram:
This exercise is so inspiring! It’s a great way to help open your eyes to potential areas of growth in your career. You might have never considered how two circles overlap to create a career opportunity until you see it on the page.
Thank you, Christina!
What’s on YOUR Venn diagram?
3. Have you taken the Archetypes Quiz yet?
Good things happen when you understand who you really are. When you’re confident about your identity, you can experience:
- An ability to control your narrative
- Improved focus and a sense of direction
- A confidence boost!
I created the Professional Identity Archetypes Quiz to help my clients articulate their personal brand, and to understand on a deeper level how they can work to their full potential.
With a true sense of who you are as a professional and what you bring to the table, you’ll have more confidence in marketing yourself and your ideas.
Once you understand your Professional Identity Archetype, you can incorporate it into your Venn diagram, and keep it top of mind as you establish your portfolio life.
When you know who are, you know your value!
That’s it for this week!
I hope this is the year you let go of the career you think you should have, and open yourself up to discovering and enjoying the career—and life—you were meant for.
Talk soon,
Dr. Andrea Wojnicki
executive communication coach
