“This would make an amazing puzzle.”  

These were my first thoughts as I looked up from my book & finally took in the view.  

Donnie & I were stretched out on a beach in Portugal, trying to convince ourselves that we enjoyed lying on the ground.

I mentally framed the dark rocks against the deep blue of the ocean & with colorful  swimsuits scattered in the water like an amateur Gray Malin.

I love doing jigsaw puzzles & once I get myself started on one, the lines start to blur between healthy hobby & borderline addiction.

“I’ll go to the bathroom once I finish this orange building”.

Then I discovered jigsaw puzzle apps for iPad.  

Stick a fork in me, I’m done.

Creating a colorful waterfront scene in Copenhagen while kicking back on the sofa & watching Joao disastrously try to break up with Ellie on Below Deck is almost equivalent to a day pass in a luxury spa for me.

The result of all this puzzle obsession?  I see amazing jigsaw puzzles everywhere.

After spending enough time immersed in something, your brain starts looking for it everywhere.

In Shawn Achor’s book, The Happiness Advantage, he describes a hilarious experience where he found himself about to yank open the door of a police car, pull out the officer in the driver’s seat & speed away.  How did a Harvard Professor find himself in this situation?  Clocking too many hours playing Grand Theft Auto.

Psychologists call this the Tetris Effect.

Spend enough time doing jigsaw puzzles & you start seeing puzzles.  

Spend enough time playing Grand Theft Auto & stealing police cars feels reasonable.

The same thing happens with the beliefs you rehearse about your career.  And your brain treats them like reality.

If you’ve spent years telling yourself, “Changing careers would mean starting over,” “I’m too old to learn new things,” or “The grass is never greener,” your brain gets really good at filtering out anything that challenges those beliefs.

One of the first things I help clients do is uncover those limiting beliefs & replace them with a much clearer picture of work that would genuinely energize them.

Once that picture becomes clear, the real fun begins.

Their own version of the Tetris Effect kicks in.

They start noticing conversations, opportunities, and career paths they wold have walked right past six months earlier.

Those possibilities were there all along.  Their brain just finally knows how to see them.

Now instead of feeling stuck, they know they have options.

And once you can see options, you’re no longer trapped by the story you’ve been telling yourself.

If you’re curious what else might be possible for your career, shoot me an email at [email protected] or schedule a free consult here.

Let’s open up your world!

P.S. Was anyone else disappointed that there was no Below Deck Down Under Reunion?  Does Joao have any idea that the thoughts in his brain did not remotely translate to the words that were coming out of his mouth?  Inquiring minds want to know!