When you meet new people and tell them about your story, you probably feel you should hide the messy parts.
The career gap. The stuff that makes you not ‘perfect’. The weird background.
But THAT’s what makes you interesting.
Think about your favorite podcaster or personality. Why do you tune in? They’re different.
They LEAN INTO what makes them unusual instead of trying to sound perfect.
You should do the same.
If you're a stay-at-home mom returning to work, don't try to hide it. Lean in. It's what makes you even more interesting:
"I took a few years off to focus on raising my kids, and it was incredibly rewarding. But as they grew, I missed the challenge of my career. So I pivoted into marketing, blending my creativity with newfound strategic skills. It's been an exciting journey of rediscovery."
WAY more memorable.
Maybe you’ve had an unconventional career path:
"I was a barista for five years. You learn fast how to handle pressure when people are angry and haven't had their coffee yet. Those skills transferred surprisingly well to client management. Now, I’m…"
Much better.
Some interesting tidbits you could weave into your story:
- Your weird side-project: "My day job’s at a startup but lately I’ve been OBSESSED with building this random app..."
- A personal challenge you've overcome: "I was sidelined for over a year because of [e.g. major injury], but I’ve got a whole new take on life and I’ve been trying to make a name of myself as an [agent]..."
- Countries or cities you've lived in: "About me, well, I've called three continents home which is why I think I’m always obsessed with new experiences and trying so many different industries..."
- Non-linear jump: “I actually walked away from [the safe path] to run a scrappy [thing]; the paycut was whatever but GOD I love it!”
- An unusual hobby: "When I'm not crunching numbers, I'm usually rock climbing..."
- A volunteer experience: "I spend my weekends doing..."
- An unexpected skill: "My theater background surprisingly comes in handy in board meetings..."
Everyone has a story. The key is finding the parts that make yours stand out.
Your exercise today
To help you craft the perfect micro-story, write down a few of the most interesting or unusual things about your career journey so far. Think…what’s weird about me?
And when you have them:
Send me one or two of them by replying to this email. I’d love to learn a little bit more about our readers plus you’ll get elements of your intro story ready for the next time you meet someone new. Win-win!
By the way, speaking of figuring out your story:
One thing that actually helps is understanding your patterns - what drives you, how you work, the beliefs you carry around without realizing.
Two months ago, we built a 20-minute assessment with PhDs and career coaches that reveals this stuff. Your actual work patterns, what motivates you, the hidden beliefs shaping your decisions.
It's like a personality test, but not the horoscope bullsh*t where every result could apply to anyone. This is specific to how you actually operate at work.
People who've taken it keep saying things like "this explained everything" and "I wish I had this years ago."
If you haven’t tried it yet, you really should. Right now it's free, but not for much longer. We've been eating the costs while it's in beta. Tests like this normally run $100+.
Takes less time than your commute (unless you work from home). Try the Coached Impact Assessment now - if the link doesn’t open, go to coached.com/quiz.
