Happen To Your Career - Meaningful Work, Career Change, Career Design, & Job Search

Hosted by Scott Anthony Barlow

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739

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Oct 2026

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About the show

You're not totally happy with your career (obviously!) You also know that there "has to be something out there that's better." That hope that you can find meaningful and fulfilling work, that also pays you well, has led you here! This is the show that provides the inspiration, tools, and roadmaps to move from where you are to work that matters to you and uniquely fits your strengths and talents.

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November 4, 2026Episode 7667 min

Why Researching Your Next Career Doesn't Work (And What to Do Instead)

After 20 years in tech, Caity lost her curiosity for her own profession, researched her next career for months, and got nowhere until she tested one idea by talking to people in the field. If your curiosity at work is gone and a career change is on the table, here is how to test an idea before you commit. What You'll Learn: Why months of Googling, books, and advice from friends did not get Caity closer to her next career How she used her strengths, including maximizer, to find the thread running through 20 years of roles How she tested a travel agent career by talking to people brand new to the field and people 30 years in Why ruling out a career brought relief instead of disappointment Where she ended up, organizational psychology and change management, and where to hear the full story in episode 582 Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Designing Career Experiments and Testing New Careers ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Six Career Experiments To Help You Discover Your Ideal New Role ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

November 2, 2026Episode 76533 min

Career Change or Role Redesign? Why You Feel Drained at Work Even When Your Job, Boss, and Company Are Great

After about 20 years in HR, with a great manager and a good company, Moira Quinlan was too tired to volunteer for projects she loved and decided she had picked the wrong career. Then her strengths results, AI, and her coach all told her the same surprising thing: You're exactly where you're supposed to be. If you're asking whether you need a career change when nothing seems wrong, this episode shows you how to find out what is actually draining your energy, and why Moira left her job, but kept her career. What You'll Learn: Why the first reaction to losing energy at work is "I picked the wrong career," and why that conclusion is often premature How to separate the parts of your work that give you energy from the parts that quietly drain it How Moira used CliftonStrengths and AI to explore career options, plus the questions she asked to push past the generic answers Why knowing your "why" changes how the same job feels, and the difference between falling into a role and choosing it Why career decisions should be holistic, including family, commute, finances, and your employer's stage, and how that led Moira to launch her own coaching and consulting practice Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Changing Careers (When You Don't Know Your Next Job Title) ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Designing Career Experiments and Testing New Careers ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 29, 2026Episode 7647 min

When the Dream Job Offer Falls Apart: What a Career Change Setback Is Really Telling You

After more than a decade of trying to leave law, Adam finally landed a job offer that looked perfect, and it fell apart the moment he started asking questions. If you are in the middle of a career change setback, this episode explains why that moment felt like the end and why it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to him. What You'll Learn: Why a job offer that falls apart can be the clearest signal that a role was never the right fit How Adam's strategic and observational strengths made him a natural writer, and what his negotiation revealed about the startup How an Ideal Career Profile, with minimums and ideals, turns a job offer negotiation into useful information Why nearly every successful career changer hits a wall, and why a setback that feels like it costs four months might save four years Where Adam ended up after more than a decade of trying to leave law, and where to hear his full story in episode 437 Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Figuring Out Your Perfect Career Match ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Stuck in a Career You're Unhappy With? Fear Of Taking Risks Could Be Keeping You There ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Mentioned Episode: Career Change For Lawyers Who Feel Stuck ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 26, 2026Episode 7636 min

Capacity, Not Age: What Really Decides Your Next Career Season

Susan is 61, doesn't need the money, and just took on more work. From the outside it looks like a mistake, but she understood something most people miss about what makes a working life fulfilling. If you are weighing retirement, a career change over 50, or what comes next, this episode will change how you think about your next season of work. What You'll Learn: Why going back to work after you have earned your way out can be a deliberate choice, not a step backward The seasons of a working life, and why obligations shape them more than age does Why capacity, meaning how much you carry compared to what you have to carry it with, matters more than the size of your load How two people with the same mortgage and the same kids can face the same season in completely opposite ways The question to ask yourself now so your circumstances stop picking your next season for you Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Executive Burnout: Making A Midlife Career Change ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Six Career Experiments To Help You Discover Your Ideal New Role ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 22, 2026Episode 76219 min

How Much Should You Be Earning? A 4-Step Process for Setting Income Goals That Fit Your Life

Ask most professionals what salary they're targeting for their next career change and the answer comes from the paycheck they already have. That is how people settle before the search even starts. This episode breaks down how to set a salary target by working backward from the life you want to build, and why your income goal should come from your future instead of your current situation. What You'll Learn: Why the three most common answers to "what salary are you targeting?" all lead to settling, and what they have in common The difference between circumstantial decisions and intentional ones, and why your current salary is the wrong anchor The four-step process for reverse engineering an income goal from the life you want, starting with "someday" instead of a fixed timeline A live walkthrough using AI to estimate lifestyle costs, factor in inflation and taxes, and set income milestones for next year, five years out, and beyond How a real client defined an extraordinary life around caring for her parents and what that meant for her income target Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Changing Careers (When You Don't Know Your Next Job Title) ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) How to Figure Out What You Really Want ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 19, 2026Episode 76120 min

Navigating Difficult Career Conversations: How to Tell Your Boss You're Leaving, Talk to Your Spouse About a Career Change, and Negotiate Your Salary

There is a conversation you have been putting off. You know exactly which one. The one with your boss about leaving. The one with your spouse about needing something different. The one about what you are actually worth. Most people treat these conversations as optional, but in this episode, you will understand why their important and you'll hear the exact words three real people used to navigate difficult career conversations and what changed on the other side. What You'll Learn: How Holly told her boss she was leaving after 20 years in law — without a speech, without a plan, and without burning a single bridge — and what she said in that first ten minutes that made all the difference Why most people wait until they have a finished plan before involving their partner in a career change decision and why that approach is what makes the conversation harder than it needs to be The single most powerful question to ask in any salary negotiation according to negotiation expert Kwame Christian, and why it works when everything else feels too aggressive or too passive Kwame's three-step Compassionate Curiosity Framework for navigating any difficult conversation — with your boss, your partner, or yourself — and why step one happens before you ever open your mouth Why the biggest negotiation mistake is not recognizing when the negotiation is already happening Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes How to Figure Out What You Really Want ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Should I Quit My Job? How to Know It's Time ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 14, 2026Episode 7606 min

How to Find Hidden Opportunities Inside the Organization You Are Already In

Laura liked her company. She just had no idea what to do next inside it. The posted internal roles were not what she wanted, and she could not find what she was looking for by browsing a job board. So she did something most people never think to try. She identified a problem the company had not solved yet, built a case for a role around fixing it, and proposed a job that did not exist. They said yes and four years later she did it again. If you have been assuming you need to leave to find work that fits, this episode will make you reconsider. What You'll Learn: Why the internal job board is not the universe of available options and where the real opportunities inside your organization actually live How Laura identified an unsolved problem, built a business case around it, and proposed a role that had never existed before she walked in with the idea The difference between networking for a job and genuine curiosity-driven conversations that surface invisible opportunities and build the relationships that make internal moves possible Why proposing a solution to a problem that people care about is dramatically more effective than asking your manager to help you find something new How Laura did this not once but twice and why that is not a sign something went wrong the first time but exactly how intentional career design is supposed to work Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Figuring Out Your Perfect Career Match ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Discover Your Strengths to Find Your Ideal Career ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 12, 2026Episode 75948 min

How to Find Meaningful Work Without Quitting Your Job

Most career change stories end with someone leaving everything behind and starting over. Alanna's doesn't. She came back from her honeymoon certain she needed to change everything about her career. After two years, a baby, three volunteer boards, consulting work, and a run for legislative office, she found what she was looking for without ever leaving the organization she was already in. If you have been assuming a big exit is the only way to find work that actually fits, this episode is going to change how you think about that. What You'll Learn: Why the assumption that you need to leave your job to find meaningful work is often wrong and what to do before you make any major move What the basket approach to building career clarity looks like in practice and why experimenting broadly is more effective than searching for one perfect answer How proximity to impact works as a career requirement and why the same role can feel meaningful or empty depending entirely on how close you are to seeing the results of your work Why pausing a career change during a major life transition can be one of the most strategic decisions you make and how to use that time intentionally What it looks like to recombine existing pieces of your life into something that finally fits rather than burning everything down and starting from scratch Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Should I Quit My Job? How to Know It's Time ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Designing Career Experiments and Testing New Careers ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 7, 2026Episode 75810 min

The Volume Game: Why Casting a Wide Net in Your Job Search Produces Significantly Worse Results in 2026

Stephanie was at application 91 with her work visa ticking down in London after a layoff. So she did what most people do when a job search starts to feel like a race against the clock — she applied to absolutely everything. She sent 54 more applications before something specific shifted in how she was approaching the search. Eight days after that shift, she had two offers. The real question is what changed between application 91 and application 145, and why applying to more jobs was the thing making her search worse. What You'll Learn: Why applying to more jobs when a search stalls feels logical and why the data consistently shows it produces significantly worse results What cognitive load is, how context switching between different role types and industries tanks interview performance, and why narrowing your focus fixes it How Stephanie went from 91 applications with zero offers to two offers in eight days by changing one thing about her approach without changing anything on her resume Why a visa requirement or any other constraint in your search is not a limitation to apologize for and how reframing it as a requirement changes everything about how you show up The one exercise to do this week with your last 10 to 20 applications that will show you exactly where your search is losing effectiveness Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes An Overthinker's Guide To Making Better Career Decisions ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Changing Careers (When You Don't Know Your Next Job Title) ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )

October 5, 2026Episode 75711 min

You Are Not Your Job Title: The Career Identity Trap That Makes Career Change Feel Impossible for High Achievers

What if the three words you use to introduce yourself at every networking event, every family gathering, every first conversation — "I am a" — are the very thing keeping you trapped in a career that no longer fits? Karen spent 30 years building an impressive career in higher education. She was wildly successful by every external measure. And she was completely burning out in ways she could not name until life forced her to stop and rethink everything she thought she knew about what career success was supposed to look like. What You'll Learn: Why the most successful people often struggle the most with career change and what the identity trap looks like for high achievers who have built decades of momentum in one direction The shift from asking "what job will express who I am" to "what does my life actually need right now" and why that question changes everything about the decision How Karen went from dean of students to student development coach, what most people would call a step down, and why she describes her current life as the healthiest she has ever been What life design actually means in practice and how the Ideal Career Profile helps you define what you need at your next role beyond what sounds impressive on paper Why past success does not obligate you to future misery and how to honor what you have built while choosing something that fits who you are becoming Our book, Happen To Your Career: An Unconventional Approach To Career Change and Meaningful Work, is now available on audiobook! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/audible to order it now! Visit happentoyourcareer.com/book for more information or buy the print or ebook here ! Want to chat with our team about your unique situation? Schedule a conversation Free Resources What career fits you? Join our free 8 Day Mini Course to figure it out! Career Change Guide - Learn how high-performers discover their ideal career and find meaningful, well-paid work without starting over. Related Episodes Figuring Out Your Perfect Career Match ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts ) Stuck in a Career You're Unhappy With? Fear Of Taking Risks Could Be Keeping You There ( Spotify / Apple Podcasts )