In the past few years I’ve trained and coached over 500 people on how to manage their career. I find most people who want to re-invigorate their career assume the choice is either to put up with what they have now or face financial risk—because surely change requires a big leap into something brand new, which can’t possibly support them as well as what they have now.

Many picture quitting a well-paying job, taking a huge cut in salary for a position they enjoy more, and other dramatic scenarios that will turn life upside down.

And that’s where so many people close off to the process of exploring how to best renew their careers – because life as we know it, even if it’s unfulfilling, is easier to face than risk and upheaval.

Truthfully, that’s generally not how my successful clients achieve career happiness. That’s not how I do it either. Renewing our careers to bring happiness and fulfillment back into our day involves a lot of fine-tuning.

The Big Leap isn’t always required. Fine-tune what you have now.

Like you, I can get bored and restless with what I do all day. I confess I got a bit restless with my own career recently. Now, I’m not going to give up being a coach, trainer, or meeting facilitator—I’ve put a lot of time into developing my skills in these areas, I have a large client base and good reputation. I enjoy feeling competent. I still love much of what I do.

You might feel the same way about your career. You’re good at it, right? You’ve put a lot of years into getting where you are now. Why throw it all away?

Notice what really grabs your interest, gives you energy, ignites your creativity and enthusiasm. How can you fine-tune your career to have more of this?

Using my emotional compass, I paid attention to what I liked and didn’t like about all the different parts of my work. (You can use the Passion Discovery Worksheet to help you with this. I used this information to fine-tune my own practice. ) I’ve noticed I really love working with my small business clients, who don’t have an HR staff to help them with leadership challenges, staffing issues, or business process issues. They need all of the tools and skills I have to offer—I feel completely engaged and excited to work with them.

What kinds of new projects, tasks, or activities would renew your enthusiasm at work? How can you express interest and enthusiasm to your manager? Change might not be possible immediately, but a smart manager looks for ways to give an interested employee opportunities.

What tasks and activities drain your energy? How can you do less of them? Can you delegate or mentor someone to take these on, creating a development opportunity for them?

Try throwing away images of drastic, risky actions and start listening to your emotional compass. You might be surprised by how a little fine-tuning can bring you a lot of joy and fulfillment in the career you’re already secure in!

Want a thought partner to help you renew your career? I’d love to work with you! Contact me for a free introductory coaching session to see if I’m the right coaching partner for you.

Wishing you professional passion,

Jane