I faced an enormous upheaval in a five-week period in early 2001. In those 35 days, my marriage crumbled, I moved to a new place, I had two surgeries, I lost my job, and my close-knit family experienced a major crisis. I'd been a strategy consultant to major corporations, so I was so accustomed to making very detailed plans for the future. But in the face of so much change, I could barely forecast what each new day would bring.My most difficult situation? I faced an enormous upheaval in a five-week period in early 2001. In those 35 days, my marriage crumbled, I moved to a new place, I had two surgeries, I lost my job, and my close-knit family experienced a major crisis. I'd been a strategy consultant to major corporations, so I was so accustomed to making very detailed plans for the future. But in the face of so much change, I could barely forecast what each new day would bring. I was traumatized and confused. But somehow, I kept moving — figuratively and literally — through the chaos.
I discovered that I could find my direction in a new and satisfying way. Rather than following a linear, prescribed path, I began to listen to my inner wisdom by paying attention to my body signals (like the yearning of my heart or the churning of my gut) as well as my mind. I started to gain clarity about my future by listening to my body — from the inside out. I came to value and trust my own inner wisdom. Sure, I still sought input from others! But I no longer made them the experts on me. I knew, in my bones, that I was the greatest expert on myself.
I learned to follow my own energy and interests, rather than analyzing and figuring out the "right" companies, the "right" jobs, the "right" schools -- you get the idea. Because of my new awareness, I moved from a "should" path to "want to" path. I decided I didn't want to be a 70 year-old woman when I finally studied my first love, psychology. I'd put that subject off for years in favor of the more "practical" undergrad degree in economics and marketing and the supposed "ticket" to great work, an MBA.
So I found a unique PhD program in Somatic (mind-body) Psychology and loved the classes. I felt totally "at home," like I finally belonged somewhere that felt just right. And although I didn't know what I'd do with the degree, things fell into place, including part-time work as a career counselor -- of all places, where I'd done my MBA, at UC Berkeley. That job helped me to pay for my studies.
It was working with MBA students that I started seeing the connection between mind-body and career. My work became a laboratory, and let me test out ideas about the mind-body connection and helping people gain clarity and confidence to follow a more authentic career path. That got me wondering whether people really "trust their gut" or "listen to their heart" in the midst of career change...so I researched that for my dissertation. This past June, nearly seven years after all the chaos started, I can call myself "Dr. Susan" and the world's leading expert on using embodied wisdom in the career change process. So my own life experience, of listening to my body and mind became the foundation of how I live my life and what I teach others -- how to "work from within."
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