What do you do when the job you were sure was your “dream job” suddenly ends? That’s the spot Ashley Jablow found herself in, and she joins Chris Sandland on this episode of Career Can Do to talk about how that moment knocked the wind out of her and also ended up opening an entirely new path. Today, she runs Wayfinders Collective, but the journey there definitely wasn’t a straight line.

Ashley shares how she gave herself 60 days to sort out her next move, only to reach the end of that timeline feeling totally stuck. Then, on a red-eye flight where she couldn’t sleep, the phrase “creative wayfinding” popped into her mind. She didn’t know exactly what it meant yet, but it captured the feeling of navigating life without a map. That idea eventually became the heart of the work she does now.

One thing she and Chris laugh about is how people always say they want clarity, when really they’re hoping for certainty - and certainty just doesn’t exist. Ashley encourages people to take small steps instead of waiting for some big, perfect answer. You learn by moving.

She also talks about how important it is to get out of your own head when you’re stuck. A coach once told her to put her job search away for a few weeks and do things that actually brought her joy. It sounded ridiculous at first, but it changed everything. Chris chimes in with his own version of that - taking ten minutes to clean something when his brain feels scrambled - because somehow that simple shift resets his whole mood.

Ashley also shares the story behind her 100 Days of Designing My Life journals, a pandemic project that started with watercolor postcards and turned into guided reflection tools people now use all over the place.

Resources

Ashley Jablow on the Life Design School | Wayfinders Collective | LinkedIn | Instagram

Chris Sandland on LinkedIn

Mary Ann Faremouth on the Web | X (Twitter)