“You are too passionate about what you do”
“You care too much. You are not the right fit for us”
This was the feedback I received following a job interview a few years ago.
Hard to take, right?
Well …yes at first.
But what did I learn from this?
That, as a person who has worked as a teacher for many years, its no wonder that being passionate and caring deeply is important to me! I will always need a job role where you have to care and be passionate about what you do - it’s what motivates me - to me there’s no point if you don’t. Career fulfilment, for me, comes from caring about what you do.
That, as a coach, I only want to work with people who also care deeply about what they do. When I think about all my previous wonderful clients every single one of them is passionate about career fulfilment, want roles that they care about and they are not prepared to stay somewhere that doesn’t do this for them.
To not be afraid of feedback. Whilst I know I used to avoid taking action for fear of feedback, I now actively seek it out as a way to learn and grow. Many of my clients fear being stronger with their boundaries for fear of what might be said back to them, they avoid applying for new positions for fear of rejection. Navigating career development as a teacher requires you to reframe the fear of feedback, but doing so will reap huge rewards.
What’s been the most useful feedback you have received?