Career & Work in Therapy

Challenges in our careers or daily work experiences can give bring about difficult feelings that can impede our day-to-day functioning. Unexpected or unwanted changes in career directions, difficult workplace relationships, and insufficient work/life balance can cause a range of feelings including stress, anxiety, depression, and a sense of failure or being “stuck” or “lost”.

Factors in Career Decision-Making

Career: A Whole-Life Issue

Often negative feelings arise from perceptions of lack of choice and control over the options available to us for work and at work.  Such feelings are often related to other life circumstances and perspectives, such as:

·       family life and relationships

·       finances

·       cultural expectations

·       personal interests and values. 

All of these factors shape our identity inside and outside of the workplace.  When we feel they can’t be changed or we are restricted by them, we may feel we lack choice about what, where, and how we work. 

How I Work with You

If you have career concerns I will help you to explore your situation in context of your broader situation and history.  My objective is to engage with you to understand your perspectives about your work and personal circumstances, exploring difficult thoughts and emotions that may be arising which impede positive change and progress.  

Together we will work to identify constraints to change whether real or perceptual, explore options available to you, and shift rigidly held beliefs.  The idea is to discover ways to make small changes in perspectives and set reachable goals that allow to leave counselling with a more positive outlook and a renewed sense of control and choice. 

For some clients, the therapy process sometimes changes from therapy with primarily a career focus to therapy more focussed on other aspects of their lives.  To this end, our work is flexible and determined by your expressed interests and needs.   

Career Counselling:  Therapy vs. Coaching

When my therapy sessions with clients focus on career and work issues, some aspects of the work may be similar to the services offered by career coaches.  Both therapists and coaches explore clients’ interests and values, help to build their confidence, become curious about themselves, and a develop a sense of control. 

Career coaches, unlike therapists, almost exclusively focussing on the career path and work context.  They typically specialize in a particular career field or cohort of clients and are more directly focussed on skill development such as interview techniques, resume writing, applying for positions, and engaging with specific work environments.  Coaches may have a variety of credentials or certifications or may have no specific training. 

In contrast, as a therapist, I do not generally work on these specific “nuts and bolts” issues, nor do I specialize in specific career fields.  Rather, I work with you on emotional and psychological issues making you feel distressed and “stuck”, impeding change.  As a psychotherapist in Ontario, I am licensed by a provincial regulatory college.   

I tend to think of career-oriented psychotherapy as a precursor stage to working on the areas in which career coaches work.  For some individuals, both types of counselling may be helpful; for others, one or the other may be sufficient on its own depending on their circumstances and readiness for change.