Careerology

Your job is comfortable. It's familiar. It's reasonably secure. So why do you keep thinking about leaving?Sometimes the hardest jobs to leave aren't the ones that make us miserable.They're the ones that are just about good enough. In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne explores why we become stuck in jobs that no longer fulfil us, even when nothing is particularly wrong.You'll discover:​Why becoming comfortable in a job can make the idea of leaving feel overwhelming. ​How boredom and a lack of challenge can affect your motivation. ​Why job security can sometimes make career decisions harder. ​What to do when you know you want something different but have no idea what. ​How to start making changes without necessarily leaving your current job.If you've been telling yourself that you should be grateful for the job you've got, while secretly wondering whether there's something better out there, this episode is for you.Because there's a difference between being comfortable in your job and being happy in it._________________________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each week!Download your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Join our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your Way ForwardCheck out our upcoming FREE webinars - Book your place now!

Losing your job can affect much more than your bank balance.Whether you've recently been made redundant, your contract has ended or you're worried about losing your job, you might be finding the experience harder than you expected.Perhaps you're struggling to motivate yourself to look for work.Maybe you're feeling angry, anxious or completely overwhelmed.Or you simply can't understand why updating your CV suddenly feels like such an enormous task.In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne explores the emotional impact of job loss and explains why moving straight into job-search mode isn't always as easy as it sounds. Drawing on the Kübler-Ross Change Curve, Claire discusses:​Why losing a job can feel like a form of grief - even if you didn't particularly enjoy the job.​The different emotional reactions you might experience following redundancy.​Why there's no fixed timetable for coming to terms with job loss.​How to recognise when you might need additional support.​How to begin looking towards your next chapter without putting unnecessary pressure on yourself. If you've recently lost your job, are facing redundancy or know somebody who's going through it, this episode offers some perspective, reassurance and practical encouragement.Because losing your job doesn't mean you've lost your future. _________________________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each week!Download your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Join our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your Way ForwardCheck out our upcoming FREE webinars - Book your place now!

Do you regularly finish work feeling completely exhausted, overwhelmed or emotionally drained?You might have a work vampire on your hands.And no, we're not necessarily talking about that colleague who talks for 40 minutes when you've only asked them a quick question.Although they might have something to do with it.In this Halloween-inspired episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne explores the things that quietly drain our energy at work - and what we can do about them.You'll discover:​How to recognise the warning signs that work is taking too much out of you. ​The different types of work vampires, from difficult relationships to exhausting job demands.​Why your working environment might be affecting your energy more than you realise.​How everyday habits can contribute to exhaustion. ​A simple exercise to identify your biggest energy drains and start making changes.Because finishing work tired is one thing.Finishing every day feeling as though the life has been sucked out of you is quite another.And the good news is you don't necessarily need to leave your job to change things.Listen now and discover what's draining your energy - before the work vampires get their teeth in any further… _________________________________Useful Resources:​Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠​Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each week!​Download your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠​Join our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your Way Forward​Check out our upcoming FREE webinars - Book your place now!

Do you ever feel like you should have some grand purpose in life - but you've absolutely no idea what it is?Perhaps you used to feel motivated by your work, but something has changed.Or maybe you've never felt particularly driven by a big life purpose and you're wondering whether you're missing something.In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne explores why the pressure to find your purpose can sometimes make career decisions even harder.She shares her own experiences of questioning her sense of purpose, explains why you don't need to change the world to find work meaningful, and introduces a much more manageable alternative: creating a personal mission statement.You'll discover: ​Why trying to find your one true purpose can leave you feeling stuck. ​The difference between having a life purpose and finding meaning in your work. ​How a personal mission statement can help guide your career decisions. ​Five simple questions to help you create your own mission statement. ​How to use your mission to explore career opportunities that fit who you are.Whether you're thinking about changing career, feeling unfulfilled in your current job or simply wondering what you want from the next stage of your working life, this episode will help you approach those questions a little differently.Because you don't need to figure out what your entire life is for. You just need to think about what matters to you right now.____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Visit the ⁠⁠Careerology⁠⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each weekJoin our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your Way Forward

AI is everywhere right now.People are using it to write CVs, prepare for interviews, analyse job descriptions and even decide what career to pursue next.But how much should you actually rely on it?In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne looks at some of the ways AI can genuinely help during a job search - and where you need to be careful.You’ll hear:​How AI can help you analyse job descriptions and person specifications; ​How to use it to strengthen a CV without letting it write the whole thing for you;​How it can support interview preparation;​Why perfectly scripted AI answers can work against you;​How AI can help with career decision-making;​And why human judgement still matters.The message isn’t “don’t use AI”.It’s use AI where it’s useful, but don’t outsource yourself.Because employers still want to hear from a real person.And your job search still needs to sound like you. ____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Visit the ⁠⁠Careerology⁠⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each weekJoin our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your Way Forward

If you’re looking for a new job, how do you know whether your job search is actually working?Sending more applications might feel productive. Spending hours scrolling through vacancies might feel like job searching.And doing everything online from the comfort of your laptop might certainly feel easier.But none of those things necessarily gets you closer to a job offer. In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne shares three common job-search mistakes she sees people making again and again:​Prioritising the number of applications over their quality;​Hiding behind a screen instead of talking to real people; and​Moving straight on after rejection without trying to learn what went wrong. You’ll discover why a smaller number of carefully targeted applications can be more useful than sending the same CV everywhere, why human conversations still matter in a very digital job market, and how asking for feedback can help you improve your next application.If your job search feels incredibly busy but isn’t producing interviews, this episode might help you work out why.Because successful job searching isn’t about doing more.It’s about doing more of the things that actually work. ____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Visit the ⁠⁠Careerology⁠⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each weekJoin our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your WayForward

Is it too late to change career?It’s one of the questions Dr Claire Wrynne hears most often from people in their 40s, 50s and 60s.The simple answer is no.But that doesn’t mean changing career later in life is always straight forward.In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Claire looks beyond the usual “you’re never too old!” advice and explores some of the very real challenges that can come with mid-career change.You’ll hear:​why age itself isn’t always the biggest barrier;​why a long career history can sometimes confuse potential employers;​how to explain your career change without making the story entirely about you;​why your CV may need a very different approach;​how recommendations and connections can help reduce an employer’s perceived risk; and​why your experience can be one of your biggest assets - if you know how to communicate its value. If you’ve spent years building a career and are now wondering whether you’ve left it too late to do something completely different, this episode is for you.You haven’t.But you may need to approach the change differently. ____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Visit the ⁠⁠Careerology⁠⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each weekJoin our guided self-coaching programme: Find Your WayForward

You may have a written contract with your employer - but there’s usually another contract in the background too.It’s unwritten. Often unspoken. And yet it shapes how you feel about your job every day.In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne explains the idea of the psychological contract: the unwritten expectations between you and your employer.You’ll hear:​What a psychological contract actually is;​ Why it often sits underneath career dissatisfaction;​How changes at work can quietly damage trust and engagement;​What happened when Claire’s own psychological contract broke down in her NHS role; and ​What to do if you think your relationship with your employer no longer feels right. Claire also shares a client example to show how psychological contracts can break down in real life - and how understanding what’s really going on can make the next step much clearer.Because sometimes the problem isn’t just the workload, the role or your manager.Sometimes the real issue is that the relationship between you and your employer no longer feels fair, supportive or sustainable. ____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠Visit the ⁠⁠Careerology⁠⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠⁠Sign up for ⁠⁠CareerMail⁠⁠ – free career tips each week

Thinking about leaving your job can feel surprisingly complicated.You might know something isn’t working anymore, but that doesn’t mean walking away feels easy.There’s the salary.The pension.The flexibility.The security.Your colleagues.Your family.The job market.And then there’s the small matter of wondering whether leaving will turn out to be a terrible mistake.In this episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne shares her own experience of leaving a secure NHS career after more than 18 years to start Careerology.She explores why we can feel pulled in opposite directions when making a big career decision, and how the things we think are keeping us “safe” can sometimes be keeping us stuck.You’ll also learn a simple push-and-pull exercise tohelp you separate:​What is pushing you away from your current job.​What is pulling you towards staying.​What is attracting you towards something new.​What is making you afraid to move. Because deciding whether to leave a job isn’t always about working out whether your current role is good or bad.Sometimes it’s about asking whether it’s still right for you.____________________Got a question? Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠Visit the ⁠Careerology⁠ websiteDownload your free ⁠Career Change Toolkit⁠Sign up for ⁠CareerMail⁠ – free career tips each week

What actually makes a career successful?A big salary?An impressive job title?Working your way up the ladder?Or earning enough money to retire at 40?In this first episode of The Careerology Podcast, Dr Claire Wrynne challenges some of the assumptions we make about career success and introduces Career ARCH – the framework that underpins Careerology’s approach to career management.You’ll discover the four ingredients Claire believes are essential for building a career that works for you:Alignment – finding work that fits who you are, what matters to you and the life you want to live.Reality – balancing what you want with what is realistically available in today’s job market.Clarity – knowing where you’re going, what you can offer and what you need to do next.Hope – believing that change is possible, even when your career hasn’t gone quite to plan.You’ll also be encouraged to complete a simple five-minute Career ARCH check-up and choose one small action you can take this week to move your career in the right direction.Because a successful career doesn’t have to look impressive to anybody else.It just needs to work for you.____________________Got a question? Email us at [email protected] the Careerology websiteDownload your free Career Change ToolkitSign up for CareerMail – free career tips each week