I'll be the first to admit that I'm a walking example of why systems matter.

There are days when I'm completely in the zone and everything gets done. Then there are days when I know exactly what I need to do and still can't get out of my own way. 

Systems are what keep me moving on the second kind of day, when motivation alone isn't enough.

I've seen the same thing play out with clients more times than I can count. The more I sit with it, the more I think it's one of the most underexamined ideas in our field.

Career development is completely in love with goals. 

SMART goals, short-term goals, long-term goals, program goals, client goals. 

I understand why. 

When a client walks in after a layoff or a bad performance review, a goal gives them direction and something to hold on to. That part makes sense.

But what happens after they reach it?

The US Department of Labor has conducted research suggesting that people hold an average of 14 jobs across three careers in their lifetime.

That number has always stuck with me, because it means the client sitting across from you right now isn't solving a one-time problem.

They're often in the midst of a pattern they'll repeat again and again.

When we treat a career transition as a single transactional project, we're seeing our work through the lens of a one-time event.

But what happens when the market shifts again, or the company restructures, or their priorities change?

They'll be back at square one with the same problem again.

That's the cost of being too focused on the goal.

A resume is a tool.

A job board is a tool.

LinkedIn is a tool.

These are all things the client needs during a search, but using them isn't the same as understanding the process behind them.The deeper question to ask is what the client is actually learning while you work together.

Do they know how to research an industry they know nothing about?

Do they have a job search rhythm they can sustain over weeks, not just days?

Do they know how to evaluate whether a role is genuinely a good fit, or are they just relieved to have an offer?

Do they know how to manage the mindset spiral that sets in when the search runs longer than expected?

Those are systems. Those are the things that travel with a client into every future transition.

Your clients need that same structure you need for yourself. Something they can return to when their confidence dips, when the search takes longer than expected, or when the market just doesn't cooperate.

Starting next week, I'm kicking off a series of newsletters on exactly that. 

We'll go through the core systems that I believe every career professional needs to understand, and more importantly, how you can start weaving them into your work with clients to create a much more impactful experience.

Heather
The Coach for Career Coaches