What’s Possible for You?

Every day I choose a word to guide my day. Go back to discover its roots in our language. Reflect on its meaning and what it means to me, here and now. What it could mean for you reading this now….

Today I chose possibility.  A world of possibility opens up when you reflect on this word..

Possibility — comes from possible, which in turn comes from the Latin possibilitas meaning ‘that which might take place or come into being’. The language here is really important — possible is what might or may take place.  Not what can take place.

That distinction is critical. And one few women leaders truly appreciate, mistaking what’s possible for what’s practicable — i.e., what can take place.  Conflating these two words can seriously limit your potential and what you see as possible for you.  

What we see as possible, though, is often restricted by our beliefs and cultural norms. Many of the assumptions that seem to block us in our daily lives may only appear to do so based on a framework of assumptions unconsciously embedded within us. Draw a different frame around the same situation, and a whole new world of opportunity opens up. Find the right framework and extraordinary accomplishment becomes an every day experience.

What if you simply became aware of some of those assumptions? Began to realise to what extent they are holding you back?  It can be hard to unearth them; they’re so deeply internalised that you probably don’t even notice them, or how a particular belief may be impacting you and your career. 

We call them unconscious biases. I often hear women leaders complaining about the unconscious biases they meet in the workplace. What about those hidden within?  The simplest way to bring these assumptions to light is by asking that question:

What am I assuming (that I’m not aware of) that’s giving me what I see or experience?

Keep asking until you have an answer that rings true for you.  Maybe even feels uncomfortably true for you because it’s hit a nerve — a deeply held fundamental belief about who you are.  Sit with that for a while. Let yourself fully appreciate how that fundamental belief has shaped your actions and your results. And then, get creative. What might you create that would give you other choices? Given what you now know,

What might you create? What impact might you make? 

Notice these are all questions with the word ‘might’ in them. Possibility. What might, not what can take place or come into being.

Get curious and explore what’s possible for you.  Join us for the Career Transformation Advantage, and discover what else is possible for you right now.