This month, I interviewed client Courtney Dorroll, an associate professor of Middle Eastern and North African Studies and Religion at Wofford College. I met Courtney at a women’s leadership conference that I helped organize a few summers ago, and she had been following my newsletter for some time, so I was delighted when she reached out for coaching. Working with Courtney was a delight because she approached the entire process with a growth mindset, deep enthusiasm, and contagious energy. I particularly came to appreciate the power of her self-care approach to teaching in a pandemic year that battered students and faculty alike.
What are your dreams for your life?
A few weeks ago, I asked an accomplished client who is feeling stuck in her current job, “What are your dreams for your life?” “That’s the problem,” she said. “I just don’t know.”
Recently another client explained that she didn’t have a clear sense of her next career move. This client is also quite accomplished. Throughout her career, she has taken the right steps to move forward—the right degrees, the right jobs, the right decisions for her family. But somewhere along the way, she has lost the ability to hear that inner voice that whispers her personal dreams.