Kids love to try new personas and experiment with how it makes them feel. First, she’ll try on a lab coat and pretend to be a vet helping sick animals. Five minutes later, she’ll change into a  tutu and dance and wiggle around the room. There’s a permission here in this process to try on how different scenarios, skills, and characteristics make us feel. We can ask:

• Do we enjoy it and does it make us feel alive? 
• Do we get bored with it really quickly? 
• Can we imagine ourselves going through the actions of that particular person and that role?  

Dress up and experimenting without a fear of "Am I going to look silly?"  Or "Am I going to fail and fall on my face?" is natural to kids. We forget to do it as adults. Yet, this type of experimentation is just as important and applicable now as it was when we were little. 

So, now that you’ve learned how to interview women you admire with cool jobs and figured out what sparks you, the next step is to experiment and try new things. There are several ways you can do this:

Matching game: 

You figured out specifically what lights you up, makes you feel energized, and makes time fly by. You have the hard data about you to make really great, informed decisions  that you can use to shape your present and your future. Now, take a look at some women who you admire and their cool jobs. Whether you found her because you listened to a Women with Cool Jobs podcast, you talked to her yourself (go you!), or you have heard about her as an industry leader, you can write down some of the main parts of her job and see if those align or have commonalities with what sparks you! You’re going to look at the specifics and consider:

•  who she works with and in what environment, 
• what are her responsibilities, 
• what tools and resources and tech does she use,
• does she have a lot of authority to make decisions? 
• does she work in the office or at home? 
• does she travel? 

All of these factors matter, not just what’s in the job description. Thinking beyond the job description will help you find a job that sparks you! 

Events:

Going to in-person and virtual events, conferences, and workshops are amazing ways to explore new paths and meet new people. You could learn about details, characteristics, nuances, and other insights that you can’t learn from a textbook or job description. These events also lead to deeper connections with possible future colleagues, inspirational women, besties, and mentors. 

Send Julie a text!!

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I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3