Have you ever wondered how all the pieces of you fit together?

For some it may seem a little confusing that I went from an economics degree, living in Japan, and years in federal government, all the way through to being a Life Coach. Honestly at times it’s felt a little crazy to me too!

Particularly when I was considering should I really do this thing? This ‘thing’ being jumping into the unknown, a world that felt at the time completely different to the direction of travel I’d had up until that point.

And yet it also had such a pull to it there was no way I could ignore it. This piece of me.

Over time the pieces of me have really come together—like the tapestry image now taking shape after years of threading. And while I got to a point of feeling lost and burnt out in a previous path (here’s a taster), given the chance I wouldn’t change any of it.

All of the pieces of me, all of the parts of the journey so far have taught me something.

Even if I were to only look through the lens of my ‘career’ choices. Each and every job I have had right from the very beginning (I’m pretty sure my first job was a paper route in the local neighbourhood, unless you count the list of house chores my cousin and I would write up with prices on for our parents every school holidays), some at the time I loved, some at the time were just not a good fit for me at all. And still I can account for every single one of them and how that piece of the tapestry now fits into my life.

I won’t go through all of them right now. ? But here’s just a flavour of the tapestry, so that maybe you too can see how you’re weaving your own image into place right now. And so that you too can feel that everything you’re doing right now is part of the process.

Restaurant

My first hospitality job. Brand-new restaurant. Part of the new team. LOVED it. Like coming home to a second family.

What did I learn? Family. Fun. Systems. You can have fun and do a good job at the same time.

How do I use this still today? I get excited every time I can carry three plates in a fancy waitress way. I’m super conscious of all the effort that goes into my meal when I eat out. And I bring fun into the workplace.

Statistics

Yep. I used to work in statistics. A little crazy for me really considering maths was never the subject that lit me up like fireworks.

Taught me how to consider the whole picture. Sometimes when we’re analysing stuff (in life too, not just stats) it can be easy to only see one thing, to only listen to the one fact that you learn. When you start taking in more, the outcomes could change big time.

How do I use this today? I’m pretty cool, calm and collected when in reviewing mode. I get that it’s a process. I can take on feedback. I can step back. I can ask all the questions to check we’ve taken it all in. That’s in business and in life.

Public Policy

My foundation. My building blocks. This was a big era for me. Jam-packed with lessons. For now, the one I want to mention is how to write. I learnt to be super sharp with my language. You had to really ‘know your stuff’ and then be able to distil all of it into a short, sharp, simple brief.

How do I use this today? I am an ace editor. I love writing. And I love pulling things together, piecing them together, finding the bumps and the super possible roadblocks and figuring out a way through together. And that really resonates for me for how I work with my clients now.

Selling Flowers

I almost forgot about this one. I helped out for just a couple of shifts for Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day (busiest trading days for florists).

So. Much. Fun.

And not just because I got to talk lost and scared looking partners into buying the most gorgeous bunches. ? But because it had a pace to it. You had to multi task with talking, listening, wrapping, taking calls, placing orders, tying things together, calculating in your head.

I loved being able to pull it all together, to juggle a few things and to see how happy people were once they left. I felt like I really contributed in some way to making their days a little brighter.

Useful today? Yes indeed! This skill for managing to move swiftly from one thing to the next and complete a project with pride is with me always. The pride comes from truly listening to what it is people wanted and needed and then being able to translate that into something (like the perfect bunch of flowers). And when I’m coaching that’s very much a part of what I’m doing.

What could you take away from this post today?

Whatever path you’re walking right know, it’s a thread in your very own tapestry. You get to change colours, switch the thread’s direction, at any time you choose. And, for right now, you could just be exactly where you need to be.

We could all do with a little step back to notice our very own tapestries taking shape. Share this with a friend today to help them see the beauty in their life right now. ?