Have you ever felt a longing for more meaning, purpose, and fulfillment in your career but didn’t know where to start?

This newsletter is adapted from a workshop I led where we explored a science-backed approach to creating meaningful change in our lives and careers. Rooted in neuroscience and inspired by the work of the late Dr. James Doty, this process is about harnessing the power of your brain, quieting the external noise, and aligning with what truly matters to you.

Why Vision Matters

Proverbs says, “Without a vision, the people perish.” In my own life and coaching work with lawyers, I’ve found this to be true. When we lack a compelling vision for our career, we drift. We get distracted. We feel drained and depleted.

But when we have a vision, we:

• Feel inspired and resilient
• Stay motivated through challenges
• Cultivate a strong sense of purpose
• Feel more alive
• Fulfill our potential
• Inspire those around us

Creating a compelling vision is just the first step. Taking aligned action to bring our vision into reality is essential.

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Lessons from Trees: The 6-Step Process to Create a Career You Love

As a forest bathing guide, I love spending time with trees. They are my teachers.

This method of career transformation mirrors the way a tree grows. Each step supports the next and can be practiced at home.

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1. Prepare the Soil

To access the clarity and courage needed to create a career we love, we must prepare the soil of our inner state. We first do this by calming our nervous system, shifting from doing-mode to being-mode.

Through breathing practices, we can shift not only our nervous system but also our brain waves to create the ideal inner state to plant the seeds that can grow into the tree of a fulfilling career.

To prepare our soil, we also must reclaim our attention from distractions. When our attention is repeatedly hijacked by text messages, email and social media notifications, Teams or Slack messages, etc., the quality of our attention degrades.

Creating a career we love requires us to become the masters of our attention, training our minds to focus on what we do want (rather than what we don’t want) to leverage our brain’s salience network.

By training our brain to focus on what we do want, our brain begins screening for opportunities to help bring our desires into reality.

Try this: Set a 5-minute timer. Put your phone on Do Not Disturb. Take 3 deep breaths. Then, bring your awareness to your five senses—what do you hear, feel, see, smell, and taste? This grounds you in the present moment and begins to calm your nervous system.

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2. Choose the Seeds

The seeds that we plant are our deepest, heartfelt intentions for our career. We get clear on what we truly want, including how we want to feel each day.

Try this: Journal in response to this prompt: “It’s two years from now, and I’m thriving. I feel deeply grateful that I get to do the work I do. Here’s what I see myself doing . . . ” Allow yourself to write freely, without editing or overthinking. Let your imagination speak before your inner critic has a chance to interrupt.

As Einstein said: “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.”

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3. Pull the Weeds

The weeds that will choke the growth of our little sapling are the limiting beliefs we inherited or developed over time, our fears, and the opinions of others.

We can identify the beliefs that are keeping us stuck and begin the work of dissolving and replacing them.

Try this: Write down one belief that keeps showing up when you think about pursuing your vision (e.g., “I’m not good enough” or “It’s too late”). Also consider asking, “Do I know for a fact this belief is true?” and “Who would I be without this belief?” Then, on a new line, write a reframe in the present tense (e.g., “I am worthy of a career I love,” or “It’s never too late to grow.”). Post this new belief somewhere you’ll see daily.

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4. Plant the Seed

We embed our intention into the subconscious through visualization and repetition.

Research shows that the more positive emotions we feel while visualizing, the more our brain’s salience network is recruited to support us in bringing our intention into reality.

Try this: Right after you wake up and right before bed, close your eyes and visualize your intention as if it’s already come to pass. Feel what it would be like to be doing work you love. See the details. Hear the sounds. Let your body feel the emotions of that future version of you.

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5. Nurture the Tree

We nurture the vision we have for our career by continuing the practices above and taking aligned action to bring our vision into reality.

Try this: Write a short list of the ways your intention will positively impact others—your clients, your loved ones, the wider world, your future self. Then ask yourself: “What’s one small step I can take this week that aligns with this vision?” Small steps add up over time.

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6. Allow the Fruit to Surprise You

Finally, we let go of expectations and trust the process. Often, the outcome is better than what we imagined.

Try this: At the end of each week, write down any synchronicities or unexpected moments of progress, support, or clarity, even small ones. This trains your brain to see how the universe (and your own subconscious) is working with you.

“Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

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This Isn’t Just About Career. It’s About Who You’re Becoming.

Aligning our career with our values, strengths, and purpose is about more than just work. It’s about showing up more authentically in all areas of our lives and living from our true nature, one small shift at a time.

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Want to take the first step?

Download my free resource, The Career Alignment Map, and begin clarifying what alignment looks like for you. This workbook will help you discover where you are in your career journey and how to move toward more meaning and joy.

In your corner,

Jessie