#134 The moment that you are ready to hear it, the answer will come to you
"The whole time I could have left but I just wanted to believe so much that it was the right thing for me." What happens when you don’t get joy from your job anymore? I’m talking to Claire Fitzsimmons, co-founder of ‘If lost start here’. She shares her journey of closing a door on what was perceived as a ‘dream job’ in the art world and following her heart into the well-being world. We also talk about her Mum’s struggle with mental health and how it led Claire to starting a business where they create a unique "well-being prescription" designed to navigate life with creativity and joy. She also opens up about her struggles fitting into traditional roles and redefining what is important. Her story offers us invaluable lessons on embracing change and finding fulfilment. “I just love the feeling of walking through a gallery and then being around the art and I still love that. I think that's why it was so hard to let go of because it felt really good, but what I hadn't understood was what my role in it would be, and who I had to be in that environment.” Here are the highlights: 05:41 The struggle of leaving a beloved art world job 12:12 Monetising passions can diminish the joy 13:39 Prioritising personal curiosity over external expectations 17:57 Exploring my mother’s story to understand my own 23:53 Navigating external advice vs. internal connection 27:54 Creative spaces make therapy accessible and engaging 34:42 Different needs: nature connection, and a spiritual practice 37:09 Create your own life guide with support Claire Fitzwilliam’s Another Door go-tos The things that helped Claire navigate change. Book: "Tiny Beautiful Things", by Cheryl Strayed Music: "My Favourite Coffee House" playlist on Spotify The one piece of advice: “Feel your way through change and I say that because I often do work around emotions with people and it's often the missing piece.” About Claire Fitzsimmons: Claire Fitzsimmons helps people to have more good days by developing an everyday life practice that meets them wherever they are, with whatever it is they need. Claire draws from positive psychology, transactional analysis, somatics, neuroscience, Positive Intelligence, emotions coaching, and the science of well-being to help people understand what it means to be a person in this world, and how we can possibly do life with all that life now needs to contain. Claire also works with women in mid-life, particularly negotiating shifts associated with (peri)menopause. She is one of the world’s first certified Emotions Coaching Practitioners (with In Good Company), an ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC), and earned her Certificate in Counseling and Psychotherapy from London’s CCPE. Find out more: https://www.ifloststarthere.com/ Connect with Claire: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-fitzsimmons Substack: https://moregooddays.substack.com/ About your host Eleanor Tweddell: Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.” Eleanor is the founder of Another Door, and Get-Recommended.com and the author of Why losing your job could be the best thing that ever happened to you. Connect with Eleanor: Instagram:instagram/anotherdooruk LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/ Website: eleanortweddell.com Produced by winteraudio.co.uk