In the face of a big decision, ask this question... // + Quitting IG Live and Workshop this week
Hello Carousellers,
It's been a few weeks! Thanks for bearing with me as I got this next letter out. It seems life is waking up again after a two year sleep :)
Recently in my coaching I am noticing how much synchronicity and mirroring there is.
So often a client brings the exact topic that I am grappling with at that moment too. It's very powerful to be the unattached space-holder and to adopt a neutral and curious position, and unexpectedly find the answers I need for me as well.
Today a client brought a decision she's currently trying to make. As we explored it, she realised it wasn't the decision itself that was troubling her, it was about making decisions in general.
If making decisions feel overwhelming, stressful, big, then it doesn't matter what the decision is - it's going to feel like huge.
Through our exploration a simple question arose... 'what do you want to try next?'
Something shifted in that moment from needing to make the right decision, to thinking about a next step that she simply felt curious about.
(Liz Gilbert often talks about this - rather than asking 'what is my purpose?' ask 'what am I curious about?' and follow that... it will always lead to something interesting).
There was a lightness to 'try'. An experimentation. A wondering. And a lot of s p a c e.
I also really struggle with decisions. They cause me a big headache and can feel monumentally important; like the next thing I do has to be perfectly lined up, or else... So to try on 'try' in my own life felt really freeing.
I've been playing around with the idea of going in-house as a leadership coach + learning expert for a while now. It keeps coming back. A tug. A tap on the shoulder. A plane circling above an airport waiting for clearance to land.
I've turned to face it and never quite allowed myself to investigate all the way. Something has always pulled me back. But I wonder if a big thing has been it feeling so final. Irreversible. A huge statement.
Many stories appear in my mind...
Does this mean you're giving up on all that you've built up through your business?
Are you going over to the dark side?
Could you even work in a company after being freelance for so long?
And yet, when I bring this 'what do I want to try...' to mind, what arises is joining a company again: being part of a team, a single mission, a more concentrated attention on one workplace. It feels exciting; nourishing. And I also know that there is nothing to lose, as I know I can create a really good income from being self-employed too.
So, wouldn't it be fun to try something else for a bit? A different set-up? Mix up the medium?
This lightness of it being an experiment rather than a full career-identity transition is so freeing. It feels like moving to a new city for a bit. Or dyeing my hair blonde. Or taking up a new hobby. I'm still circling above the airport at this stage, but the runway I'm being cleared for is getting more visible.
So, what do you want to try next? How would it feel to allow it to be that light and non-attached as an exploration?
Events coming up
🧙♀️I am Witchy Women of the Week for Dr Jude Galea's new Holistic Healthcare Platform!
I'll be on an Instagram live Tuesday 24th May at 3pm with @drbodymindsoul and then running a Quitting Workshop 1-2pm BST on Thursday 26th May.
In both I'll be sharing my work on Quitting, including the Quitting Quadrant® framework and how it can support you to make better decisions around your life.
What's on my Carousel?
🎙 I'm almost at the end of Series 1 of my podcast Knowing When to Quit. Check out the latest episode from Vicky Johnson (Museum of Happiness) about how she nearly quit her business three times and the journey she went on to recommit to it and make it her dream job. It's a very powerful episode with so much wisdom.
🎹 I've just got back from Brighton Fringe playing the piano for the Improvised Movie Podcast (IMDProv), which was very scary but also a lot of fun!
💃🏻 Still loving Flamenco lessons and on my 3rd course now. It's so wonderful to be learning something again and seeing the progress. My teacher Daniela is immense! (Flamenco Academy in Liverpool Street if you are keen to learn).
🔥 Very excited to be kicking off a summer of facilitating and DJing at festivals with Fire in the Mountain Festival next weekend. I'm collaborating with a welsh composer to turn one of my medicine songs into a bilingual full festival chant!
Always great to connect with readers - tell me how you are and what's on your Carousel at the moment!
Until next time. Keep following the flow and putting everything else at the back of the Carousel for now. It will come back when it's time.
Love Sarah x
🎠For those of you who are new here, Carousel is a model that supports you to work intuitively with your many projects and interests, and this newsletter consists of musings to support you to live in this way. You can read up more here.