Re-Energizing Your Career

Karen Eckert graduated from college with a degree in Home Economics/Consumer Services and a desire to be of service to others. After college, she took advantage of an excellent offer at a major power company thinking that it would be short term while her husband finished school. The opportunities for growth continued over the next 18 years, so she stayed with the company. She had a wonderful career but felt that something was missing. Each step up in Karen’s career came at a cost to her. With each promotion, Karen moved farther from her core values; her family, her husband and her true inner self. The loss of balance in her career left her feeling restless and unfulfilled.

Living to Work or Working to Live?

Karen had come to realize that she had lost sight of herself along the way. Although she embraced each promotion, it had taken her farther from the customer interaction that she enjoyed. Her responsibilities left her with fewer opportunities to use her creative abilities and to fill her desire to be of service to others.

Everyone is born with unique talents and gifts, they are just part of who we are, ignoring them will be a source of frustration and stress. People employed at all levels often burn out if they are not in a position to draw from their strengths or if they lack balance in their life and work goals.

Highlands Whole Person Method, a Journey to Self-Fulfillment

The journey of self-awareness was an eye-opening experience for Karen, as she worked with her Highlands Consultant to reassess her career. The Highlands Ability Battery confirmed the talents inherent to her and gave her a platform to speak from. Karen commented, “Taking the Highlands Whole Person approach with my Highlands Consultant was an affirmation that I could make a dramatic career change and be successful at it. It was very helpful in pinpointing the right direction for me.” As a result of going through the program, Karen had the confidence to leave her company. She redirected her life and career and is now the president of a Foundation whose mission is to help the development of leaders in her metropolitan area. Her new career direction gave Karen an opportunity to tap into her creative abilities, to incorporate her strengths, as well as her personal style, while upholding the values that gave her life meaning.

Equally important, Karen has been able to structure her new role to allow more time for her husband and children. She also has made time for outside activities that she would find fulfilling, such as leading the local chamber of commerce. The combination allowed her to re-establish a balance in the priorities in her life.

The whole process, according to Karen, has been re-energizing. “When I realized that I could turn loose the things that I had worked so hard to achieve without looking back, I gained so much more. My personal and professional lives have become one.”