Key outcomes
- Gained a renewed energy and belief in the future
- Discovered a passion for his work again
- Had the energy and enthusiasm to put behind a key business opportunity when it presented itself
- Identified his Passion Core
- Created a tool to help him focus on what lights him up
- Created a graphic of his Passion Core as a frame (consisting of the various elements he had identified), within which there were multiple opportunities for the future
- Shifted his focus from, “I need to do it all” to “I need to do the pieces I really love.”
- Figured out ways to remove the elements that drain his energy
- Realized that his career direction didn’t have to be one single point. That there are multiple right possibilities
- Discovered that committing to a direction doesn’t have to chain him to it forever
- Moved away from black and white thinking (the possibilities are many)
- Found more willingness to explore with an open mind
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In the beginning...
Depressed. Worried. Stuck. Those are just a few of the words that described Dave when he made the decision to begin the Passion Catalyst process.
Previously he had been the COO of a software company. After helping the company go public and move their headquarters to another country, Dave found himself in the job search because he didn’t want to leave Seattle. He reverted to his entrepreneurial past and started a number of projects, but had no energy for any of them.
Somewhere along the way, his “impenetrable belief in self” had crumbled, and the future looked bleak unless he made a change. The trouble was, he had no idea what that change should look like.
And now…
Dave is on fire about his career again. “I don’t drag myself to work,” says Dave. “I have to drag myself away from work. I get upset when I have to take time off. This is more fun than time off!”
During the time Dave was focused on the Passion Catalyst work, one of his entrepreneurial ventures started to take off. It is currently in growth mode. A second venture is showing promise.
“My Passion Catalyst work breathed new energy into my career. It allowed me to let the positive stuff come through and jump on it with more enthusiasm.” Pointing to the success of his current venture, Dave says, “Without improving my attitude, I may have squandered the opportunity.”
The change in Dave’s outlook on life was substantial. “I look forward to the future now, instead of dreading it,” he says.
Working with Curt
“I couldn’t have done it by myself,” Dave stresses. “Curt had a framework to keep me moving ahead. He is intent on discovering the underlying pieces to everything. With his insistence on exploring the ‘why’ behind the ‘what,’ I was able to get to a much deeper level of understanding. You can’t do that on your own, with a book.”
Dave also found that Curt brought a level of perception to the process that kept him honest. “He knew when I was really answering, and when it was b.s.”
He sees Curt as a long-term resource for his career. “My work with Curt helped me jump to a new level. And I’m not afraid to slip, because I know that I can always call Curt and he can help me figure out what needs to be done.”
