552: Overcoming Limiting Beliefs and Cracking the Job Search Code

Angie Griffith 00:01

I didn't know all the things that I could do and trying to figure out what that would be was a real struggle for me.

Introduction 00:16

This is the Happen To Your Career podcast with Scott Anthony Barlow. We hope you stop doing work that doesn't fit you. Figure out what does and make it happen. We help you define the work that is unapologetically you, and then go get it. If you feel like you were meant for more, and you're ready to make a change, keep listening. Here's Scott. Here's Scott. Here's Scott.

Scott Anthony Barlow 00:41

If you are looking for work that truly fits you, you might already know we usually recommend against job boards. Why? Well, creating your ideal role normally requires a lot of customization to fit your needs. And you're not likely to find that on job boards. But what if you could make job boards work for you? What would that look like? What if you could find a role that seems like it was already custom-made for you, stand out amongst hundreds, if not thousands of applicants, and then get a job offer after just one interview?

Angie Griffith 01:13

I wrote a cover letter that really was from the heart. I thought, well, why not? I'm gonna just say what I feel. And it got me an interview.

Scott Anthony Barlow 01:27

That's Angie Griffith. Angie had been unsatisfied with her career for a really long time. In fact, she hadn't never really known what it was to feel fulfilled by work or to fully enjoy her career. She liked some aspects of her jobs throughout the years. But she wanted to find a job that contained all of the things that she enjoyed. So she began working with a coach. Angie did a fantastic job of uncovering what she really needed and what she really wanted out of a career. And this was not an easy thing for. She did such a great job that she was able to recognize when she found that perfect fit and saw it listed on Indeed.com. Of course, we just mentioned a moment ago that we usually recommend staying away from LinkedIn jobs or Indeed.com. They're not bad companies. They're great organizations. But Angie had done so much work learning what she wanted and needed out of her ideal role, that she was not only able to recognize a perfect fit, but she was able to market herself in a way that she stood out to the company and landed her an interview really quickly. And Angie was right. This organization agreed she was the perfect fit and hired her after just one interview. So now let's get into the conversation so you can hear the authentic work that Angie did to go from a career in the financial industry to doing work she loves in employment services.

Angie Griffith 02:48

So really, I guess it kind of started with I went to school to get my bachelor's degree and I chose finance, which I chose because you know, we are living in a small town, there's opportunities for banks and in different types of industry. So I chose that and I was pretty good at it. But it was like the least social job in the entire world, which is so not who I am. Or it was all about sales. And I do not like sales unless I really believe in the product. So that's where I kind of started. And I didn't obviously know this at the time. But when my first job after school, I worked at a bank, and they pushed the sales parts so much and that we had these goals that we had to reach. And what I didn't like was the fact that no one cared about the customer. It was all about making the sale. And I had a customer come in who got put into something that was totally wrong for her. She got tucked into something that wasn't a good fit. And she ended up losing money, I was like, I can't do this. I can't push sales on to somebody who doesn't know better. I can't do that. I couldn't force somebody just so that I could make my goals or do something that was to me unethical.

Scott Anthony Barlow 04:30

Yeah, I can fully appreciate that. And I've had similar experiences too. And it sounds like that was a pretty formative experience for you. What happened then?

Angie Griffith 04:39

Well, I worked into an Events Coordinator position, and I really enjoyed it. I was out at trade shows, I was making reservations for our commissioners and party planning, and all of those types of things that I just loved. But when we were slow, we were slow. And that's basically where I started thinking I love certain aspects of this job, but I'm bored out of my mind. So that's kind of when I decided I needed to do something different and I just had experienced, you know, more in financial things. And we moved. And I was commuting back and forth to this job because I could work on my hybrid schedule, so partially from home. And that's when I decided when I ended up googling podcasts, and this is how I came across your podcast, and I started listening to it on my way back and forth. And I was like, "Oh, I love this." It was so inspiring to me. And I'm like, I kept up on all of them, I went to back ones that I hadn't listened to. And I decided before winter, I needed to make a change that I couldn't go back and forth. It just wouldn't work out.

Scott Anthony Barlow 06:11

So then let me ask you about that decision point. And when you made that decision that you needed to make a change, what prompted, what occurred to you, or what took place? Was there one thing that you remember that led up to that or where you're like, "Ah, I have to do this."?

Angie Griffith 06:33

Well, after listening to the podcast as often as I did, I realized that I just wasn't really thriving in what I wanted to do with my life. And I know, periodically throughout my career, I had felt that way. But I didn't know exactly what it was that I was looking for. And that's pretty much what prompted me to get coaching is that I just, I knew that I could do more, I knew that my strengths were more in a social aspect. And finance wasn't cutting it. It was worrying and not social unless you're doing sales. But I didn't like that. So that's kind of where I started. The journey is just, I knew that I wanted to do something different. I wanted to make a difference in someone's life, I wanted it to feel good at the end of the day, I want it to feel good at the end of the day that I was helping someone and I know, you know, in the podcasts all the time, everybody's kind of helping someone in some indirect way. But I wanted to help people in a more direct way and more one-on-one and group. And that's kind of what I found.

Scott Anthony Barlow 07:58

That's amazing. That is absolutely amazing. So tell us about what is your role now. And then let's talk about, like, what are the pieces that you were looking for, learned you were looking for that line up really well.

Angie Griffith 08:13

Okay, so now I'm an employment services coordinator. And I help disabled people find employment. And the disability can be anything from physical to mental. There's a very wide range of the disabilities and I determine with them what kind of jobs they want to be in, whether we can find a fit for them. And then we work with businesses, networking with different businesses and trying to find good fits for these people. And it is very rewarding to me, I get to work one-on-one with my clients, I get to when they do get jobs, I go and I support them at their work. And the goal is to get them self-sufficient, but we support them until they feel comfortable with their role and can work on their own. So it's fabulous.

Scott Anthony Barlow 09:22

That's amazing. It also is not lost on me that the pieces where you're not only interacting one-on-one in the way that you had said that you wanted to. But also you get to go out into the community and it sounds like continue to build relationships with either business owners or people who are in charge of activities or any number of other things and one of the things that has stood out to me about you since you lived in Moses Lake at one point and you moved to Spokane, we got to meet up a couple of times for coffee. And what stood out to me is that you are… amazing really doesn’t do it justice. But you're amazing at being able to interact with other people and be outgoing and that you sort of thrive in that type of situation and just being around people in ways that I think other people find really challenging. That's fun for you. And you do a phenomenal job at it. So it's really cool.

Angie Griffith 10:28

Thank you.

Scott Anthony Barlow 10:29

Yeah, absolutely. It's really cool to be able to see you get into this situation that really leverages this thing that you sort of do anyways whether you're getting paid for it or not, that's fun.

Angie Griffith 10:41

Oh, it's so much fun. It's so enjoyable. I come home and I've told my husband, I said, "I feel like I'm playing." Like, it's so easy for me and the situation. And I love the client and I just have so much fun.

Scott Anthony Barlow 11:05

That is really cool. I also know that since we got to meet a couple of times along the way, that getting there was not always as fun as that.

Angie Griffith 11:16

No, that part wasn't fun.

Scott Anthony Barlow 11:18

Well, let's talk about that. When you, let's go back for a moment. You know, there was that point in time where you had decided, okay, like, I need to make a change, I need to do something about this. You had been listening to the podcast, now you're on the podcast. So that's really fun, that's full circle. But at this point in time, you had been listening to the podcast, made that decision, and then started the process of making your change. What surprised you along the way, or what was more difficult than what you thought it would be?

Angie Griffith 11:50

I would say that I didn't really know what was out there. You know, being in Moses Lake, the agriculture community, which I love, but I didn't know all the things that I could do, and trying to figure out what that would be was a real struggle for me. And even coming up with my ideal career profile. Every time I do a draft, then it'd be like, okay, dig deeper. I'm like, I thought I was digging deeper. Okay, well try this again. And I kept, you know, I kept on and kept on. And it hasn't really been about the money to me. I really, I mean, obviously, there were minimums, but it really was about the job satisfaction. And it was really hard for me, I went out and I did the things I was supposed to do. I was networking, I was talking to people, I was those things that were easy for me, that was great. Figuring out what I wanted to do was a completely other story. I struggled with that. And for a while, I was going on the path of HR, an engagement specialist, but then after talking to some people in that industry, it's so, what you have to deal with, you know, harassment things, and somebody I met with said something to me, and I was just like, "Oh." I was thinking I don't want to do that. That would be horrible. I wouldn't want to be the bad guy in situations, I wouldn't want to do that. So I was like, "Okay, well, I don't want to do that." So now what? Now where am I going? And I kept gravitating towards kind of helping people with employment ironically, when I was trying to figure out my own path. It's like, I don't want people to have to go through this, you know, I don't want people to have to be like, "Oh, I don't have a clue." And I wanted to help people work on their strengths. And I did kind of keep gravitating towards that kind of role. And I did do a lot of Indeed searching even though that's not really the path for HTYC, that's not usually the best path. But Ben and I talked and it was working for me. There was one particular job that I had applied for at a place that I wanted to work. I loved what their website said their culture was and all of that. And I went to the business, I ended up talking to the person who was doing the hiring. And I told her, I said, "Well, I wanted to talk to you first and ask you some questions because I don't know for sure if I want to apply." And so I did talk to her and I did apply. I did not get the job. I had interviewed with this particular business well on for three different positions and never got the job. And it was very disappointing. So I really, you know, I really struggled with that, and sometimes keeping on track with what I was doing with Ben, I'm pretty structured, I like structure. But then I got kind of overwhelmed. And I take care of the finances in our family of course.

Scott Anthony Barlow 15:35

The finance degree, right?

Angie Griffith 15:39

Yes. So I'm like, "Okay, I'm not working now." Because that was one of the decisions I had made. I was just, I had quit a job about two or three weeks after I got it after I started working with Ben, because it was just a paycheck. And I couldn't do it. I hated it from the beginning, I knew I wasn't going to thrive in this industry. And I talked with my husband, we could manage on one paycheck for a while. And that was scary to me. Because I'm very, very structured. And that was hard. And then I started feeling after a while, okay, I'm not getting a job. And then I was getting panicked.

Scott Anthony Barlow 16:35

So you had left the one role, which to you very much felt just like just a paycheck, you're just there for the paycheck. And I think we've established a pattern of just being there for the paycheck doesn't feel that great to you. And it's difficult in many different ways. And at the same time, you made the decision to leave. And I want to ask you about that. Because my understanding is, when you grew up, you grew up in a family that very much felt like, "Hey, you get your job, you stay there forever, you always work, you always do the things and you always have income coming in." and that's just the thing that you do. Tell me a little bit about that.

Angie Griffith 17:22

Yes, that is correct. You know, basically, you be thankful for what job you have, and you stick with it forever. I mean, there's no such thing as job satisfaction, as far as my parents were concerned, you know. So that was a hard thing for me because I've always grown up that you have to have a job, you have to be bringing in income. Work is work, it's not supposed to be fun. And, you know, it's that kind of attitude. So that was hard on me because those are very instilled things in me to, you know, to work all the time. So that was definitely my upbringing. And it really, I had to overcome a lot of beliefs relating to that for sure.

Scott Anthony Barlow 18:16

What's an example of that?

Angie Griffith 18:18

I would say that it showed up kind of midway through my coaching because I started feeling, you know, Ben told me, he's like, "You have to let go of some of these things. That you should have job satisfaction. That is okay to want more. That's what we kind of strive for." And you know, obviously, these days, it's a little bit more prevalent. People do want job satisfaction. And it was hard. Ben had me read a book about kind of overcoming your fears. Because I was scared. I was scared of, one, failing at the next role that I would come across, I was very afraid that I was going to fail and that I would just continue this cycle of not being happy with my job.

Scott Anthony Barlow 19:12

I remember talking briefly about that book with you. What was the name of it?

Angie Griffith 19:17

It was called "Taming Your Gremlin". And it really kind of went into your fears and not letting them overtake you. And that trying to understand when it was happening when your beliefs were wrong, and recognizing that.

Scott Anthony Barlow 19:41

Did it help? What helped about it for you? What stood out for you? What was the helpful part?

Scott Anthony Barlow 20:30

That's fun. I think that's really fun for me that to get to see you go through this experience for yourself, move through some of the challenges of figuring out what you want, and then getting to use some of the things that you learned through the process to be able to help other people instantly. I think that is a really, really, I don't know if that does my heart good, Angie, that's pretty cool.

Angie Griffith 19:47

Well, I have a lot of self-doubt and beliefs that I wasn't capable of doing this. And so it really has helped me when I started my negative thought process. It was like, "Oh, that's not true." And so then I could rework it in my head to be like, "Yes, you can do this. And yes, it will be okay." And I've honestly even used that with some of my clients now where it's like, "That's not true, what's the worst that can happen, they don't hire you. It's not a big deal, then we keep searching."

Angie Griffith 20:53

I think so too. I'm glad I went through it. I feel like I kind of needed to especially doing what I'm doing now. It's good because it's not easy. It's hard going through the process. And I had some really down times and, or Ben had to listen to meet cry a couple of times.

Scott Anthony Barlow 21:13

Ben was totally there for it, totally there for it. And it's what we do, it's what we love to do. When we get to support people in that way and just show up for them, that is actually really fun for us, too. And, you know, much the ‘it's not right for everybody’, just like you were talking about HR, right? I worked in HR for a long time, and really enjoyed it. I not only didn't mind some of the harassment pieces, I actually felt like I was contributing when I got to work through some of those things and have a really positive outcome. And that also, I know, many people would hate doing that, like, just despise doing that. And that's totally okay. You know, one of the things I wanted to ask you about though is when you were going through this process, it sounds like the biggest challenges for you really were the mental side– the mental side being working through some of those things that you believed to be true, or some of the stories that you'd grown up with, or anything else. So my question is, what advice would you give for other people that are trying to change how they think about work and what they believe about work?

Angie Griffith 22:26

I would say, just do some exploring, you don't have a negative mindset. I know for myself I did have a negative mindset. And I don't know if where all that came from exactly. But it's okay to want more. And my advice would be if you're not happy, do something about it. If you're not happy in your work, or any area of your life, do something. Just take the steps to try something even if they don't work, at least you tried and you know that they don't work.

Scott Anthony Barlow 22:34

That's awesome. Let's talk about what led up to your getting this particular opportunity. So just take me through, like, what are the pieces that you did or that you experienced that then led to getting this offer and opportunity?

Angie Griffith 23:26

Well, going through the interviews on the place that I thought I absolutely had to work at and not getting the job, that was really hard. But I, you know, Ben and I talked, it was like, "Okay, well, it's not meant to be." You know, everyone probably believes in some sort of higher power. And it's like, well, if it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be, and that's okay. So I just kept moving forward. And I ended up finding this job on Indeed, which is very similar to the place that I wanted to work initially. And I'm like, "Okay, I'm going to just apply for this. And I wrote a cover letter that really was from the heart. I thought, well, you know, why not? I'm gonna just say what I feel. And it got me an interview. I mean, pretty quickly, like I applied. And two days later, I had a phone call for an interview. And when I went for my interview, it just felt so easy and so good. And the person who interviewed me was easy to talk to and we talked about the backgrounds of the other job coaches, and none of them had experience doing this and they chose people purposefully that didn't have this kind of experience or a social service degree or that type of industry that they didn't want them to come from that industry because they were, they wanted to think outside the box, they wanted some people who would think outside the box for the position. And after I left, it was right before the fourth of July, and they knew I was going to be gone and out of cell service. And I got a message on my way back, that they wanted to offer me the job. And I was so excited. And I told my husband before, I said, "If I don't get this job, I am going to be crushed." It just felt so good. The vibe, everything. And I ended up getting it and it met all of my wants and needs. I get to work from home part of the time, I get to work with clients part of the time. I get to work with employers part of the time. I get to work, party planning, or helping individuals at our classes. And it's so much fun.

Scott Anthony Barlow 26:22

That is really wonderful. And I love the part, particularly about how, two things, and to be clear, a lot of the times for people it doesn't make sense for what they're after to apply. However, you know, I'm pretty familiar, not just with your situation, but Ben was keeping me in the loop the whole way too. And I really think it did make sense here. One, because you had already done the work to identify what could potentially be a great fit. And you could see ample evidence at this point that this was an organization, this was an opportunity that could potentially be an amazing fit. And then you did something to separate yourself out from everyone else, versus just like submitting the application or whatever else. What do you think it was about that particularly cover letter that caused them to say, "Yeah, I absolutely want to take a chance on this person."?

Angie Griffith 27:23

Well, I basically explained that I am looking for a career to help people. And I felt that this really aligned with who I am. And that I really taught from the heart in my cover letter. I totally put all my emotion into this letter. And I do think that's what got me the interview because I made it very clear that I thought that this would be such a rewarding opportunity. And then talking in the interview, it turned out that that's their philosophy as well. And part of what in my ideal career profile, I wanted an organization that was a team. And this organization is a team, we're not competing for clients. If you know somebody is looking for this type of job, and you know somebody, you go out and you help them find it even if it isn't your client. And my supervisors, they don't even like to be called boss because they think it's just a team. We're a team, we do things together, we help each other. And that was a huge thing that I wanted. That was pretty much top of the list of my ideal career profile. I want a culture where you can discuss things and you don't feel like it's like, "Okay, sure, you want to do it this way. But no, we can't do that." It's very much we have the autonomy to do to help our clients the best we can and how we want to do it.

Scott Anthony Barlow 29:22

I guess when you look back on the entire situation, and you think about the difference between the opportunity that you're in now, versus some of the other opportunities in the past, what differences stand out the most for you that are making it particularly good?

Angie Griffith 29:44

I would say that my previous employment, I pretty much liked most of my jobs that I've been in. I've always liked the people, most of them. Not all of them.

Scott Anthony Barlow 30:01

Almost all the people.

Angie Griffith 30:04

But I wasn't able to make decisions on my own, how I saw fit. And I really like that I can do that now and there's such a variety of what I'm doing that I'm not bored. In most of my jobs, I've gotten bored. I need to have variety and this provides all of that.

Scott Anthony Barlow 30:38

Hey, if you love this story where we talk through and walk you through step by step how someone got to more meaningful work, then you'll absolutely love our audiobook– Happen to Your Career: An Unconventional Approach to Career Change and Meaningful Work. I even got to narrate it, which was so fun. And something that I really enjoyed doing and will definitely do for future books as well. But it also contains firsthand accounts from career changers on how they made the move to more meaningful work, just like we include on the podcast here. And actually, it's been called the best audiobook experience ever by some reviewers. You can find those reviews, and the book itself on Audible, Amazon, or any other place where books are sold. Seriously, just pause this right now and go over to Amazon or Audible or wherever you want and download it. You can be reading it and started on your career change in literally seconds.

Scott Anthony Barlow 31:33

Now, here's a sneak peek into what's coming up next week right here on Happen to Your Career.

Speaker 3 31:39

I wasn't being overworked and burned out the same way that, you know, you typically hear people going through career changes or were very stressed at work. It made me feel even more alone and that even thinking like, "Oh, I shouldn't be complaining."

Scott Anthony Barlow 31:57

Is being bored a good enough reason to leave my job? We actually get asked this question quite often. And I'll say this first. You don't need to justify wanting to leave whether you're burned out and overstimulated or bored and under-stimulated, you deserve a career that fits you. But here's the thing, this question gets me thinking. Burnout is talked about a lot. I mean, 500 million results came up when I typed a burnout into Google. But the thing that's not talked about enough, and why many people feel so alone when they experience it is how being bored and unstimulated at work can be just as draining as burnout.

Scott Anthony Barlow 32:43

All that and plenty more next week right here on Happen To Your Career. Make sure that you don't miss it. And if you haven't already, click Subscribe on your podcast player so that you can download this podcast in your sleep, and you get it automatically, even the bonus episodes every single week, sometimes multiple times a week. Until next week. Adios. I'm out.