dream first, lay off after.
Layoffs are tough. Even if you’d been thinking about leaving, and the settlement isn’t too bad—they still hurt.
Why? Because someone else made that choice for you—crushing all your expectations and future plans.
At least, that’s how it was for me. I had everything carefully lined up, and then—poof—everything changed overnight.
Am I grateful it happened now? Yes. Could it have been less painful? Absolutely.
Looking back, I wish I’d spent a little more time dreaming up what might come next instead of waiting until my safety net disappeared. It would have helped me hold on to a sense of ownership—and made it easier to spot opportunities when they showed up.
I’ve put together a simple exercise to support clients in reflecting on their next steps, and I’m sharing it here in case it’s helpful to you, too.
Future possibilities
Career paths aren’t as linear and predictable as they once were. This exercise reflects just that: future possibilities are some of the different options we might choose to engage with—but they aren’t a rigid plan or a final destination for our work life.
Research confirms that we are happier focusing on the journey. By consciously identifying possibilities, we are more likely to spot opportunities in our days—whether through the people we meet, events we attend, or the content we consume.
In the next slides you’ll find a step-by-step tutorial that can help bring clarity and confidence to your next career-steps.
step 1: Draw four shapes on a piece of paper and label them as obvious, ambitious, dreamy, and pivot.
An obvious possibility is the most straightforward move you can think of—like broadening your skills with a lateral shift or aiming for a promotion.
An ambitious possibility is a role that has been on your mind but comes with a but. “I could see myself doing this, but I would need more of this, or I would need to move there.”
A dreamy possibility is whatever feels exciting. If you could do anything, what would it be? There are no limits here.
A pivot possibility is a role where you could apply your strengths in a completely new way. Here, you could have an impact without any prior industry experience or the employment setup.
step 2: Start filling out the shapes with future possibilities. Don’t worry if they “don’t make sense” or if you feel like they could fit more than one label. If you need some inspiration, don’t hesitate to ask for help from an AI tool.
step 3: Once you are happy with the number of possibilities you have, choose the ones you would like to explore further. What else would you like to know about this possibility? Is there someone you could connect with about it?
step 4: These questions might lead you to some actions and clarity on your next steps. You might also want to craft a vision board for one or more of your possibilities (Pinterest is a great tool for this). Visuals and images can be very helpful in spotting more opportunities and clues.
(This exercise is heavily inspired by one of the chapters of “The Squiggly Career” by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis. I couldn’t recommend the book more.)
about the author:
Hi there! I'm Silja, the founder of the wholesome growth club, an inclusive hub for career coaching with a soft spot for introverts and perfectionists. I’m an Amsterdam-based expat, but I love connecting with people worldwide. With a background in recruiting, I know the struggle of crafting a career path that feels truly yours. At the wholesome growth club, we're all about fostering sustainable growth, meaningful engagement, and authentic connections. Our blog is dedicated to making coaching accessible and sharing insights to approach work and life with an extra dose of confidence, slow productivity, and self-compassion. If you are curious to make things happen for yourself, get in touch—we offer personalized coaching journeys that will get you closer to your (dreamy) goals in no time.
