Senior Women Needed for Career Journey Interviews

Moving from the US to the UK has definitely been a learning experience...the two countries share a lot culturally, but one key difference I really appreciate is the British don't have the same tendency to equate career with identity. When I first arrived in London from the US, I didn’t even realise I was so stressed. I thought that was just adulthood. ⏰ Urgency = importance. ⏰ Calm felt suspicious. ⏰ Being available at all hours was just how things were. ⏰ Obviously you still work on vacation. ⏰ The ping of an email notification causes the blood pressure to spike. But the people I was meeting in London were different... People talked about how much they enjoyed their weekends. Meetings started without apologies for not having worked late. When I met new people, the conversation didn’t immediately turn into an inventory of former employers. I started noticing that people genuinely left work at work. Not in a lazy way. They just had…boundaries. Whoa. I know this can be easier said than done, but for myself, I’ve slowly realised that easing back on my Go-go-go approach has actually made my work better. Turning off the work brain makes sleep come easier and when I come back to work, my thinking is better. When I meet new people, I now ask them about their LIVES, not just their careers. Because we are all so much more than just our job titles. And when emails come in on the weekend? I usually read them and then mark them Unread until Monday. Gone are the days of Email Ping = Tightening Chest of Urgency. Honestly, I know I’ll send a more thoughtful email on Monday morning and the delay is not going to hurt anyone. I’ve still got plenty of American shortcomings, I won’t deny that! And I’m still driven; I still care deeply about my work. But I am grateful to be getting better at letting go of the tendency to equate identity and work, urgency and importance. Moral of the story: regardless of where you live, be less American. Give yourself space to breathe. Give yourself permission to be more than your career. -- P.S. I’m Rachel — leadership coach for people carrying a little too much. I help you get clear, make decisions, and build momentum without doing everything yourself. 🔎 in January, I am looking to interview women in senior roles about their careers: what got them here, where they want to go, what they’d do differently if they could do it all again. If you’re interested, send me a DM!