Thriving through career transitions – Interview with career coach Anna Weissenberg
I must admit that I had slightly selfish motives for interviewing career coach Anna Weissenberg (CareerWeiss)! You see, I’m in the middle of a career transition from research scientist to something new (most likely scientific communications with creative writing on the side, but I am still investigating all the possibilities – you can read more about my career pivot here). Short story is, I’m a bit terrified at the prospect of entering into the unknown of a new job, not to mention all the various application processes I will have to go through to get to that point!
Anna and I ‘met’ on Instagram (she’s known as @careerweiss there) – which is where I’ve met all of my interview guests so far; turns out it’s a great place to meet like-minded people! I was attracted to Anna’s profile because she offers some really useful and practical tips and tricks about careers, making them better, making transitions, and navigating the working world in general.
In this interview, Anna discusses her somewhat diverse and winding career and how she ended up as a career coach, her thoughts on imposter syndrome, how she manages her business, as well as loads of incredibly useful advice for those undergoing a career change. Enjoy!
Background
You’ve had quite a diverse career – can you tell us a bit about what you’ve done previously and what you do currently?
My career is diverse in the sense that I’ve had different jobs and roles - but I’ve only ever had one employer! I was with the Finnish Broadcast Company for over 20 years, initially as a news journalist. I’ve worked as a news and current affairs radio host, in lifestyle content production, and as a producer in various areas of journalism.
My partner’s job then took us to Malaysia, and I took a career break, studying sociology and organisation & management.
After that, I did not feel like a journalist anymore and felt a pull towards HR instead. At this point, I was fortunate: my fantastic employer offered me a temp position as an HR manager, since I had managerial experience from within the organisation.
I got the opportunity to mentor international students in Finland, which turned out to be my path to career coaching.
After a few years, we moved overseas again, and I left my job, trained as a career coach, and started my coaching practice.
You are originally from Finland but you’ve lived in a variety of places, and have now settled in Budapest, Hungary – what made you decide to move around and live for so long away from the place you were born?
My husband had lived in Asia before we met and always traveled in his job. When he started his job within an international organisation, our plan was always to live abroad. We saw it as a fantastic opportunity, our kids thrived, and we loved it as a family. Initially, we maybe thought it would be a one-off, but now we’re on our third posting in 10 years and don’t see ourselves returning to Finland anymore.
Career transitions
What made you decide to transition from a career in media to coaching?
It wasn’t a very conscious decision, to be honest. Initially, it was probably due to working with human resources development as an HR manager. In that capacity, I worked only with journalists and sometimes felt like there would be so many other career opportunities for them, but I was, of course, not in a position to suggest that to them. The idea of working with people from different areas and industries felt exciting.
I then figured I needed a portable job since we by then had turned into serial expats, and finding employment in new countries is difficult and sometimes not even possible. Entrepreneurship as a career coach was where I landed.
What were some of the challenges associated with your career transition? (And how did you cope with them?)
I had a steep learning curve when I started in HR. It was extremely challenging, and I suffered a burn-out, but I’ve probably never learned and developed as much as I did then. I also started working as a career coach without knowing what coaching really was. Finding my way in coaching, career coaching, and incorporating everything with my service and skillset took some work.
Did you experience any ‘imposter syndrome’? If yes, how did you manage that?
I struggled with justifying to myself that I am an expert, an actual trained coach, and I can help others. I manage the impostor syndrome by relying on my solid qualifications, continuously learning and developing as a coach, and being very clear with what is not my expertise - for example, I’m not a résumé writer, a job search coach, or a career consultant.
What were some things that were surprisingly easy about making the move?
Realising how much I can use my “old” skills in coaching and entrepreneurship. Journalists are trained to listen actively and ask intuitive questions - super useful and one of the very basic coaching skills. Communicating, writing, talking, building rapport are something I enjoy as well.
This is very common in career change - we always tend to take the skills we enjoy most into our new career.
How did you attract your first coaching clients?
I’m an admin for a Facebook group for women who want a career change and did market research in that group. Someone in the group felt that my market research questions really resonated with them, and they became my first client. After that, my clients have mostly found me through word of mouth, via Instagram or LinkedIn. Whenever I meet new people, I always make sure to tell them what I do in a very clear and concise way, which I’ve noticed almost always makes people go, “I need career coaching!/I know someone who needs career coaching!”
What’s your favourite aspect of running your own business?
Freedom! Being my own boss and making all the decisions without having to consult others. I've also discovered I really enjoy making the initial client contact and discovery call and building rapport. I thought this would be scary, but I've enjoyed it! Here I've also made use of journalistic skills not to be afraid of calling lots of people and making journalistic "cold calls."
What’s something you don’t enjoy about running your own business?
I’m not a very structured person, and I don’t enjoy making to-do lists and detailed plans. Although I enjoy managing myself, I’m not very good at it!
Time and project management
How do you stay motivated?
New clients are the best motivator, and it’s such an energiser to talk to new potential clients and learn about their career stories. If times are slow, I try to plan or do something new to keep me motivated - a mentorship, a mini-course, a new coaching exercise, or volunteering.
What does a typical workday look like for you?
I start with a workout - which is another favourite aspect of running my own business; that I can do this in the morning and get it over with. Then I plan and write my social media posts, take care of any admin, and prepare for client calls. They are usually later in the afternoon since my clients are busy with their work during the day.
You also have children: What are some strategies you use to balance work and family life?
Luckily my kids are already 11 and 13, so they don’t need me as much as they used to. If I’m in a coaching call when they get home from school, I always tell them before and ask them not to disturb during the call. Working remotely from my home is great because I can be there for them if they need me, and I think it’s still nice for kids to have mum in the house when they get home.
How do you manage working remotely?
This is a bit tricky since I don’t have a separate office space in my home. If my children are not home, I might use the desks in their rooms for client calls. If anyone else is home, I use a foldable desk in my bedroom. I always put up a “COACHING ONGOING, DO NOT DISTURB!” post-it note on the door and use headphones so only I can hear my clients’ voices.
Advice
What’s the best piece of life advice you’ve ever heard?
To always be supportive and kind (it’s my own advice :)
What is the most common career ‘issue’ your clients come to you with?
They’re in successful careers and well-paid jobs - and they hate it or are starting to hate it. They start doubting their life choices and professional identities and feel they need a change. I help them figure out what that change is. Sometimes it’s a new training or course, sometimes it’s job crafting, and sometimes it’s quitting their jobs and starting their own business.
What would be your key piece of advice for someone wanting to undergo a career transition? Asking for a friend, of course ;)
To not dismiss it immediately, by thinking you’re too old/don’t have the right education/don’t have the right experience or qualifications. There are always obstacles and constraints, and you have to work around them and over them instead of letting them get to you. They are, honestly, most of the time internal, and if you’re ready to put in work (like a new training or even a new education) to achieve a career transition, then you can do it!
Do you have any resources for those undergoing a career change?
I have a guide for a career change and an action plan for how to start in a new industry. These two guides are free and downloadable on my website. In addition to that, I share career change resources, tips, and insights on Instagram.
What would you say to someone who is not feeling completely qualified for their next career step? (aka imposter syndrome).
Is there anything you can do to make you feel more qualified? Do a training? Can you take a course? Start working with clients as a side job to gain experience?
Focus on what makes you qualified: your motivation, transferable skills, and wish to develop and learn.
How do you recommend one leverage their skills from a previous, but perhaps unrelated, job?
You need to be creative here and try to imagine how your core skills can be transferred. Think of actual situations in the new job or field; what can you bring to them? Here’s a good breakdown of transferable skills.
Okay, say someone has decided they want to move away from their current job, but they’re not exactly sure what they want to do next – What do you suggest for them to do to begin with?
I’d suggest taking the time to really figure out what they want to do with their life, what is meaningful for them, and what work would be aligned with their life values.
Here are some questions to help figure this out:
What have you enjoyed learning?
What subjects did you love reading about as a child? What fascinated you?
What kind of problems do you like to solve?
What is your ideal working situation? If it’s with an organisation, what kind? What are their values?
If money wasn’t an issue, how would you spend your time?
If all jobs paid the same, what would you do?
What did you love about your current/past job? What was missing?
What subjects do you love to talk to people about?
What do you secretly dream of doing?
What would you like to try if you could fail or succeed without anyone knowing?
If you could start your work-life over now, in a place where nobody knew you or your history - what would you do?
And then after they’ve decided what kind of job they want next – What do you suggest to do next?
Make a plan for how to get there. What actions are required? Saving money, applying for a loan, selling assets, starting a new education or training, going part-time, networking, starting a side business, building a website, planning time for research? Include a timeline or schedule for the actions. Some of these actions can usually be taken straight away; some may take months or years. Then, take the first step in your plan.
Do you have any tips for coping with nerves in job interviews?
Essential tip: prepare well. Not just roughly going through what you’re going to say, but systematically going through every line of your résumé, preparing to tell the interviewer about it and connecting it to the job you’re applying for. Practice out loud and record yourself on video when you do this. Look at the video, go through it again, practice. Prepare a response for all the classic interview questions. Try a power pose right before the interview, and consciously calm your breathing.
What’s next?
Do you have any plans to expand upon your coaching business? (eg Offering online courses, writing a book, starting a podcast etc).
I did plan to start an online course this year. But, now I’m starting a full-time job – I started a full-time job in February as a career coach helping foreign job seekers on the Finnish job market - so my business development plans are on hold for now.
Do you have long-term career goals or do you plan for the short-term and see where various projects/ideas/whims lead?
My current goal is to become an ICF certified coach, which I’m hoping to achieve in 2022. Other than that, my goal is just to become a well-experienced career coach!
Final words
I hope you found this interview as insightful as I have, and that this is a resource you can return to if/when you make a career transition of your own – I know I will be coming back to this one over the next few months as I navigate my own career change.
Tell me: Have you been through a career change, or are you contemplating one? If yes, how did you approach it/how do you plan to approach it? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below!
Today’s post was an interview with Anna Weissenberg
I’m Anna Weissenberg, a career coach who works with people who want a change in their career. I work with people who feel stuck and don’t know what they want, and with people who are looking for inspiration and clarity about their careers and perhaps even a completely new career direction.
Note: This article contains affiliate links. Using these links will not cost you anything, but may give me a few cents or dollars. If you do use an affiliate link - thank you! You are supporting me and my writing.
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