How can you help clients explore their interests and passions more deeply?

One aspect of my position as a professor is to inform, excite, and assist my students with navigating their career paths. A first step I tell them is to sign up for trade e-newsletters. It's a great way to be current and keep learning about their chosen field. In my particular area, advertising, trade publications like Ad Age and Adweek, and organizations like the American Advertising Federation (AAF) and the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), offer excellent informative daily emails.

Encourage clients to envision their ideal future by asking questions that prompt them to explore their long-term aspirations. Inquire about the legacy they want to leave, the contributions they hope to make, or the achievements they aim to attain.

People can best understand their interests and passions by being present in their working and non-working lives and consciously noticing what tasks they are enjoying and when they are so engaged in something they begin to lose track of time. These moments that are happening now, and memories we have when things engaged us like this are often clues as to what interests us. What are you listening to, reading about, watching etc when you have free time? More clues... So, my best advice is to be a curious observer of yourself and your reactions to things, start noticing!

Asking open-ended questions is a great start, but you have to go a level or two deeper. One of the most valuable skills I learned through marketing research is to ask follow-up questions (or probes). When you hear a word or phrase that is ambiguous or seems "loaded", take the time to ask the person you're working with what it means to them. They'll feel heard, and you'll avoid making assumptions based on your own experience and biases.

When I work with clients, as a certified holistic time management coach, I help them understand they need to think of the entirety of their lives as a whole -- both career and personal. I ask, what have they always wanted to try, but haven't. I then ask them to explore why they haven't tried. I urge them to pick up hobbies they once enjoyed, but haven't participated in because "work got in the way." Pursuing hobbies outside of work, or even taking classes to enhance your work, are all part of continual growth of yourself as a whole.

Along with the assessment which helps us to understand the individual (Since we may not know them for a long time) gives our questions a good direction and then also we can get them to understand better by asking the Open Ended Questions apart from the ones that we may ask them during the Discovery / Exploratory session.

Provide holistic interpretation of assessment results. It's essential to guide clients in understanding that assessments are just one piece of the puzzle.

The beauty of assessment tools is that they help you better understand yourself. Self-actualization takes time and effort and assessments can help you learn more about what you value, how your personality plays a role in your career fit and what strengths energize you. Knowing yourself is the best way to design your future, so it doesn't happen by default. The best assessments are research based and will also help you navigate your blind spots or saboteurs. These tools are a great asset in your lifelong professional development and a career coach can help you unpack the results.

Enhance passion exploration with assessments and tools! Utilize personality tests, interest inventories, and values exercises to unveil strengths and motivations. Incorporate career aptitude tests for goal identification. Leverage online resources like blogs, podcasts, and videos to broaden insights into various fields. However, emphasize the supplementary nature of these tools and provide clarity on their purpose and limitations.

From a career change perspective, it's very difficult for someone to emotionally attach themselves to something new if they have never done it. If you have never studied or dabbled in coding before, it came seem overwhelming and scary. Once you produce your first "Hello, World" on a coding platform, however, the simplicity and engaging nature of what coding is quickly becomes apparent. You need tools and assessments for students/clients to complete, so that there is a drive for them succeed (something we all need) as well as showing that their hopes and goals are real and achievable.

Ignite passion exploration through experimentation! Encourage clients to delve into new hobbies, activities, courses, or projects aligned with their interests. Suggest volunteering, shadowing, or networking in desired fields. Collaboratively create action plans and SMART goals for a realistic pursuit. Provide steadfast support to overcome fears, doubts, or barriers hindering proactive steps.

Encourage clients to embrace micro-experiments as a low-risk way to explore their interests. Suggest they start with small, manageable steps, such as taking a short online course or attending a local workshop.

I would also encourage them to think back to what they enjoyed in childhood or as teenagers, as well as things they had considered in the past but never experimented with. Past aspirations and desires that were never acted upon can be like a trail of bread crumbs to uncovering "new" interests. Throughout our lives we are influenced by family, friends, colleagues and strangers. This can lead to abandoning interests that we need to actually turn into reality instead of leaving them in the discard pile of old hopes and dreams. What dreams did you leave behind that might be worth re-evaluating?

Encourage clients to have a growth mindset and suggest continuous learning opportunities like online courses, workshops, or industry events. Leverage your network to connect them with professionals who can offer guidance and mentorship. Propose the idea of creating a "Personal Board of Advisors" consisting of professionals with diverse perspectives and experiences. Encourage clients to regularly reflect on their experiences and integrate their passions (WHAT did you like about that position/hobby - what did you NOT enjoy about position/hobby, etc) into their professional development plans by aligning short-term objectives with long-term interests.

In my experience, job-shadowing opportunities, internships/externships and co-ops serve as additional opportunities for individuals to gain insight into careers to assess motivational fit. When I say motivational fit, the focus is on, not “if the person can do the job but rather does the person “want” to do the job and if so, so they enjoy it. Absent the enjoyment of the role, people find themselves unfulfilled and or dissatisfied leading to low performance and turn over. The more you’re exposed to in this capacity, the better opportunity you have to understand what roles involve and where you will find your joy!

Empower clients to delve into their passions through empathetic listening. Validate and celebrate their pursuits, expressing genuine enthusiasm and appreciation. Acknowledge the meaningful value these interests add to their lives. Guide them in recognizing achievements, fostering continual learning, and celebrating successes. Regularly remind them of untapped potential and overarching purpose, creating a positive counseling environment. Utilize empathetic listening as a cornerstone, tailoring guidance for a personalized counseling experience. Ultimately, this approach ensures a comprehensive exploration of clients' interests and passions, fostering self-discovery and personal growth.

We all need affirmation; whether that be a round of applause, a pat on the back or a quick message saying well done. When you are trying something new, or even something old but with some element of added pressure, it can be scary to put our abilities out into the world with the possibility that we'll fall short in front of people. We need to celebrate what is learnt from our failures just as much as we congratulate people for coming first. Far more knowledge is gained in life by saying "Well done for attempting your new interest; what did we learn from it?"

Oftentimes reality (eg, paying a mortgage) gets in the way of clients truly exploring their interests and passions. Even if pursuing an area of passion is unrealistic, it's still important to explore as you never know where it can lead you. Perhaps the passion can become a hobby or part of your "portfolio career". It's not often possible to fulfill all your interests in one career, but if you include volunteering, learning, and growing in different spheres of your life, then it's entirely possible to find room for many of your interests in life.

Giving Clients the opportunity to share their passions and skills opens their voices. How to combine what they are good at, with what they like to do and what the world needs helps open new pathways in a Career. This leads to purpose and helps Clients see their journey evolve positively.

Affirm and celebrate your clients' interests and passions! Express genuine appreciation and enthusiasm for the value they bring to life. Acknowledge achievements, progress, and learning. Celebrate successes and milestones together. Provide unwavering support during challenges, setbacks, or failures, emphasizing their potential and purpose.

I take a slightly different approach with this suggestion on integrating passions and interests. I recommend taking a step back and asking how interests and passions fit into your life. Then, you can determine if you want a job that focuses on an area of passion or if you want a job that provides you the flexibility to explore your passion outside of work. For example, I have clients who only want to work at certified B corporations because they are passionate about sustainability, and I've had others who work in jobs that provide them with the means to donate to sustainable non-profits. The goal is to determine what makes a balanced life for you.

One trend that is popular is to develop a "portfolio career" that integrates different passions and interests with multiple jobs and income streams. Clients are thinking outside the box of the traditional model of having one full time job and having to put all of their "eggs in one basket". Many clients also have side hustles where they are able to explore their passions outside of their primary job.

Creating your professional narrative is essential, especially if you have been in one role, or one organization for multiple years. Consider all the important decisions that are made when you are not in the room - assignments, promotions, raises, etc. Create your professional brand story, so you influence what people are saying about you when you are not in the room to self-advocate. Putting your story out into the world helps others understand your value.

Threading in aspects of passions and interests is often time thought of as taboo. So many people try to keep their personal and work life separate. In addition previous careers can also be threaded into the new career. For example a nurse who has completed a Tech boot camp and struggles to integrate the two. The best way is to look for a career that combines their years of nursing experience into tech by having them look at Health Tech companies. These types of companies look for SME's and can help the transition into Tech. As for interests, if they are interested in tech but do not have the experience, once again focus on organizations that want SME's and are in Tech.

So important that we understand each part of our lives. It's like cake segments. Work one side and home on the other. Then assess the elements of both, physical, emotional, intellectual, social, and activities that enhance your life. Is there balance, what needs to change and them choose the element causing the most pain. We are here just once and every day needs to have focus, relaxation and a bit of a plan.

Guide your clients in seamlessly integrating passions into their careers! Research and pinpoint roles aligning with their interests. Assist in crafting a compelling personal brand, resume, and online presence to showcase their unique qualities. Prepare them for interviews and negotiations, providing insights on balancing passion with career aspects like income and growth. With these strategies, empower your clients to confidently pursue fulfilling and joyous work.

I search for evidence of creativity, passion, motivations, and positive transformative growth eg. What they learned from past traumas and difficulties in their lives that only their own unique wisdom can share creatively. For example coping short-cuts and strategies and then I invite the client to explore career opportunities which also match up skills the client now has… and may underestimate. Matching positions with these gems of wisdom and strengths may reveal aspirations we had previously overlooked!

Once simeone has discovered some career options, but before trying them out, I recommend using LinkedIn to connect with people in their network who are doing the kinds of jobs that sound interesting to them. They can request brief 15-20 minute info interviews and ask strategic questions to find out more of the day to day of what the role is like or insider knowledge about the specific employer. This helps them to make informed decisions about which direction(s) to focus on moving forward.

Perception is not always right. We only see the world through our own eyes and experiences. Others are going through challenging times just like you. Be kind with your thoughts and words.

From my experience I usually provide my clients with tools for their self-discovery to connect who they are with the things they develop professionally, and we make professional strategic plans to take steps towards their personal mission being totally related to their professional role.That what you do in your daily life has to do with who you are, it fills you and satisfies you. This discovery builds you as a person and takes you to the next step. A constructive experience in identifying yourself is to volunteer in foundations or associations that offer you this possibility. In addition to contributing to others, you transcend society and build a better world.