We’ve entered a new era where new rules apply. We experience an accelerated pace of change, raising dependence on automation, shrinking workforces, dispersed teams, hybrid working, and continuous uncertainty in the world around us. We stand at the precipice of what many are calling the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which combines digital, biological, and physical innovations all at once.
Organisations are questioning their sustainability in future markets and people are anxious about reskilling, losing the value of the skill base they developed over the course of their life. The intuition and skills leaders and workers have learned over the past 10-20 years will no longer be useful. A 2022 report by the American Psychological Association found that 81% of workers experienced work-related stress, with 50% citing concerns about job stability as a significant source of stress. The integration of AI is reshaping the world of work, with the World Economic Forum predicting that by 2025, 85 million jobs may be displaced by automation and a similar amount will see a significant wage decrease.
We see it in people too. People are experiencing more frequent feelings of emotional exhaustion, detachment, and lack of motivation. Harvard Business Review quotes their recent research on executive education students with nearly 90% describing feelings of powerlessness, depression, anxiety, struggling to perform, having intense imposter syndrome, and repressing their authentic selves at work at least once over the past few years. They question their way forward in their career and personal lives and take stock of what’s possible and who they are.
A normal flux of life transitions, such as moving country, changing relationships, moving house, parenthood, divorce, managing health issues, etc doesn’t stop either of course. However, it seems that the range of emotions that accompany them is now exacerbated by the compounding effects of uncertainty, which creates a varying level of opportunity and challenge for individuals.
With all this change surrounding us, it’s natural we’re feeling overwhelmed. It’s normal to question yourself, your skills, and your future in the face of the unknown. Big life decision still needs to be made though and people seek to feel a sense of control and hope. Whilst the traditional career development methods and personal growth strategies are rapidly becoming obsolete, it’s not all doom and gloom. Amidst this turbulence lies opportunity.
As Nassim Nicholas Taleb argues in his concept of “antifragility”
Some things benefit from shocks; they thrive and grow when exposed to volatility, randomness, disorder, and stressors. Our challenge, then, is not merely to survive change but to thrive within it.
For me as an org psych and leadership coach, starting a coaching business can seem daunting in this climate. However, I think that in an era where it is likely that AI technology will replace at least some parts of the coaching process, client engagement, sales, and marketing, the need for being authentic and human, who is able to develop real connections forged in real life, become a rare occurrence and yet the very key to our growth and wellbeing in the long run. Empathy, true presence, deep reflection, and compassion will, in my view, be some of the most sought-after experiences in the future. Our need to be the human BEINGS, not the human DOINGS will get us the resilience we need to thrive.
I started to think about what is a non-negotiable for us as individuals to thrive in uncertainty. Not only to navigate change successfully and with adequate levels of resilience but also being able to navigate it with a sense of purpose, commitment, and unwavering strength that does not succumb to external pressures. Thrive in this context means to find own sovereignty, the “myself in myself” and the strength and clarity to live (and work) as our whole genuine selves, with inner congruence and authenticity.
Authenticity here refers to being true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character; acting in accordance with one’s genuine self. Congruence on the other hand is a state of being in which a person’s inner thoughts, feelings, and values align with their outward behaviour and expressions. It involves achieving a balance between one’s internal experience and external presentation.
I strongly believe that getting the two of them in alignment will mean improved resilience, less stress, less internal conflict, and more trust and integrity during periods of change and beyond.
What does this outlook mean for leadership development going forward? And then how will this look like for organizations wanting to shift their culture toward what they really believe in or enhance the overall well-being of their people?
As I was reviewing current trends and frameworks in the psychology of change, transition coaching, and emerging research around thriving in uncertainty, a few common threads began to appear:
- We need to slow down, pause, and reflect; distance and perspective will mean more wise choices.
- Self-awareness is a starting point for defining our baseline authenticity, inner congruence, and growth.
- The question “What matters to me” is critical for building own sense of meaning, purpose, and personal vision.
- To truly find and integrate authenticity is both – a challenging process and a privilege.
- High uncertainty tolerance is the bedrock of resilience. Luckily, it can be learned.
- We need to cultivate our uniquely human skills like empathy, creativity, and the ability to build meaningful connections to thrive in this world now.
Then the SHIFT-It Coaching Model Was Born
I have designed my coaching model to address those common threads and give them a framework. Not only for clients who are going through a life transition, current or anticipated, but also to reflect the need to effectively equip individuals, leaders, or teams with confidence to navigate an uncertain future with a sense of authenticity and purpose.
Shift as a verb means to exchange for or replace by another, to change positions, change gears, or undergo a change. That SHIFT is at the core of my model as it represents the dynamic internal and external changes we undergo.
At the fundamental level, the model is about recognizing that in times of great change, our greatest asset is our capacity for growth and transformation. Our capacity to SHIFT.
SHIFT-IT acknowledges that embracing each individual’s uniqueness supports personal growth and fulfillment while simultaneously equipping our adaptability and resilience.
The SHIFT-IT model can be applied in both individual leadership or individual coaching and organizational change contexts. Ideally, this will be used over the period of 6-9 months coaching process with individuals and about 4-6 months with teams.
In a simplified version it can also be used in a space of one conversation, especially for clients who feel stuck on their way forward but feel that there is something they need to do, be, or achieve.
Let’s break down all the components of the coaching process based on my model.
The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.– Carl Rogers
What’s Happening During This Stage?
The purpose of this discovery stage is to conduct an exploration of personal values, beliefs, strengths, attributes, and characteristics. The coach explores patterns in past responses to change and growth opportunities and helps the client identify elements of their identity that remain constant through change. The self-insight gains form a strong base for all change. The client also normalizes the emotions and context for change for the client, setting the scene for calm and safe self-exploration.
Self-awareness is the basis of the model because, in my view, it is a cornerstone of any transformation or change work. As Gabor Mate said,
Compassionate self-inquiry is the way to liberation, not self-judgment and self-abuse.
Cultivating self-awareness during the first part of the coaching process yields numerous benefits. As clients engage in deep self-reflection, they gain an understanding of themselves, which is crucial before attempting to make changes or adapt. It gives them immediate access to their current state, which can be motivating. It can also help with goal alignment in the next stage and establish a point of measure through the process.
Shift the SHIFT-IT, as needed
Some clients might find it overwhelming to confront deep self-reflection right at the start, so the coach needs to make sure to establish trust first. The recommendation would be to start with the foundational self-awareness phase, including some basic psychometric tests and self-reflection exercises. This provides a starting point and engages the client in the process.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Psychometric tests that surface values, strengths, and character, promote learning from past transitions e.g. Big Five, Wave, Leadership Circle, LSI, GLWS, etc.
- Strengths-based assessments (e.g., VIA Character Strengths, Gallup)
- Adaptability quotient test (online)
- AQ-Ability dimension, focusing on self-awareness and identifying personal strengths in adaptability.
- RS-14 resilience scale – focus on resilience
- Exercise: “Life Line” – plotting significant life events and identifying patterns
Powerful coaching questions:
- What core values have guided you through previous life changes?
- When have you felt most alive and happy? What were you doing?
- How have your past experiences prepared you for this current change?
If you do not know which port you are sailing to, no wind is favourable. – Seneca
What’s happening during this stage?
During this stage client is encouraged to focus on their personal purpose and meaning in the context of the impending change. This is a critical stage where the coach uses various techniques to elicit the client’s vision of self and of the future. A compelling vision can serve as a framework for making decisions, especially when faced with uncertainty, and ensures that goals and actions are aligned with the client’s beliefs and values.
The client articulates a goal or set of goals that are based on their vision. Coach might choose to use concepts such as “Envisioning future possibilities” to help clients align their core purpose with future aspirations.
Shift the SHIFT-IT, as needed
It’s important to approach this stage as an iterative process. The vision and personal purpose may evolve as the client gains new insights and experiences. The coach’s role is to facilitate this process, asking probing questions, offering different perspectives, and helping the client refine and clarify this over time.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Technique: Future Self Visualization
- Exercise: Create a “Day in the Life” of your future self
- Technique: Guided Visualization of Ideal Future
- Exercise: Create a Personal Mission Statement
- Method: Values-based Goal Setting
Powerful coaching questions:
- What matters to me?
- How does this vision/goal reflect what’s most important to you?
- Imagine yourself 5 years from now, living your ideal life. What does that look like?
- How does your envisioned future self embody your core values?
- What skills or qualities does your future self possess that you’d like to develop now?
- How does this vision of your future self inform the decisions you need to make today?
- What aspects of your current self do you want to carry forward into your future self?
- If you were living your most purposeful life, what would that look like?
- How does this change align with or challenge your core values?
- What legacy do you want to create through this transition?
Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.- Brené Brown
What’s happening during this stage?
The client explores what it means to be authentic in this next phase of life/ work for them. When facing uncertainty, authenticity is like a North Star. It’s not about being rigid in our understanding of self, it’s more about anchoring our fundamental values so that our transformation aligns with the essence of who we are. In this way, authenticity becomes not just a state of being, but a dynamic process of becoming – allowing us to evolve courageously, without losing sight of our core identity. Congruence comes into play when we are fully able to present that authenticity externally with consistency, irrespective of circumstances or challenges. Masks off, no façade.
During the coaching process, the client identifies and addresses fears or limiting beliefs that hinder authentic expression. Having completed the work on self-awareness, purpose, and future vision, the client will ensure that their goal and approach to change align and integrate with their authentic self fully.
Shift the SHIFT-IT, as needed
The SHIFT-IT model is dynamic and iterative, encouraging clients to continuously increase self-awareness, develop valuable insights, and experiment with actions to evolve and build on their authentic expression. As such, the authenticity stage could move up or down the process as needed.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Technique: Reframing Negative Self-Talk
- Exercise: “Future Self” Letter Writing
- Method: Solution-Focused Brief Therapy techniques
- Technique: Persona vs. Authentic Self Exploration
- Exercise: Journaling on “Masks” worn in different situations
Powerful coaching questions:
- What beliefs about yourself or the world are holding you back?
- What parts of yourself do you feel you need to hide during this change?
- How can you bring more of your authentic self into this new situation?
- What would you do differently if you weren’t afraid of judgment?
- If you knew you couldn’t fail, what would you do differently?
- How might this change be a gift in disguise?
- Going forward, how will you incorporate the idea of “cultivating authenticity” in the face of change?
- What are the barriers holding me back from my authentic expression?
I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it. – Maya Angelou
What’s happening during this stage?
This stage prepares the client for the future. Coach and client explore developing the skills, mindset, and adaptability necessary to thrive going forward. This is a rich stage and could take up a significant portion of time.
The coach uses techniques to help the client build emotional and mental resilience, forward-thinking about how to overcome barriers, foster adaptability and growth mindset, develop cognitive agility, and emotional regulation, and anticipate challenges in various potential future scenarios. The client’s attention should be drawn to support networks, particularly social support, building meaningful connections as this has been shown to have a significant impact on resilience (also in the Human Connection stage). The coach will draw on the work of expressing authenticity, vision, and meaning to emphasize the importance and building motivation and direction in challenging times. This will help to build the client’s self-efficacy and belief that they can handle tough situations.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Use scenario planning and safe experiments to build adaptability skills.
- Cognitive Flexibility: The ability to reframe situations and consider multiple perspectives.
- Directly address the need to prepare for an uncertain future
- Incorporate the AQ-environment dimension, helping clients understand how their environment impacts their adaptability.
- Creating a toolkit of coping strategies and self-care practices
- Technique: Resilience Wheel (identifying areas of strength and growth)
- Exercise: Developing a Personal Stress Management Plan
- Method: Mindfulness and Meditation practices
Powerful coaching questions:
- What strategies have helped you bounce back from challenges in the past?
- How can you reframe this change as an opportunity for growth?
- What support systems can you leverage during this transition?
- If you were to imagine yourself thriving in an uncertain future, what skills and qualities would you possess?
- What emerging trends in your industry or field do you find most exciting or concerning, and why?
- What’s one skill you don’t currently have that you believe will be crucial in the next 5-10 years?
- If the opposite of your current assumption were true, how would that change your approach?
The essence of the human condition is relationship itself. We are because we’re connected.– Gabor Maté
What’s happening during this stage?
This stage is a recognition that empathy, deep listening, shared experiences, the impact we have on others, and the fundamental human need for meaningful relationships are not just nice to have. They are crucial elements of our well-being and success. The Human Connection stage emphasizes that the core of effective coaching lies in the relationship between coach and client.
The reason why I highlighted human connection in my model is twofold; one being to drive a successful coaching engagement of course, but also to highlight the need to create a supportive context for the client beyond the safe coaching bubble. During the coaching process, the client is encouraged to foster social connections, find their tribe, and seek meaningful relationships in many ways. This will also provide the basis for long-term success beyond coaching engagement.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Introduce Micro-Moments of Connection – “micro-moments of positivity resonance.”
- Exercise: Rapid rapport building
- Social Network Mapping: Have clients visually map out their key relationships and connections.
- Empathy Building Exercises: Role-playing or perspective-taking exercises to enhance empathy.
- Gratitude Journal: Focused on relationships and connections.
- Connection Ritual Design: Creating meaningful rituals for nurturing relationships.
- Communication Style Analysis: Identifying personal communication preferences and how they impact relationships.
- Vulnerability Challenge: Structured exercises to practice being more vulnerable in safe settings.
Powerful coaching questions:
- Who are the five people you feel most deeply connected to, and what makes these connections special?
- What does a meaningful connection look like to you in a professional context?
- When do you feel most authentically yourself in your relationships?”
- How might you leverage your strengths to build stronger connections
- What would it look like to bring more authenticity into your key relationships
- How can you create more opportunities for meaningful connections in your daily life?
- What kind of support do you need from your relationships that you’re not currently getting?
I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work. – Thomas A. Edison
This section is all about action. Clients develop action steps, strategies, and commitments that align with personal values and vision. That may include tiny habits, safe experiments, or setting small, achievable goals to build momentum and confidence. The client builds on the resilience strategies, including support connections and authentic expression, and implements a new behavior, a habit, or makes any other desired, intentional SHIFT.
The coach encourages the client to identify behaviors that increase creativity; seek novelty, break old patterns, and make new ones. As this is an iterative process, the coach regularly provides space for reflecting on progress and adjusting the approach as needed. Coach encourages reframing and transformational thinking to embrace ambiguity, challenge, and shift limiting beliefs. This is done in order to cultivate curiosity and openness to new experiences. At the same time, as much as it’s important to develop and try new things, it is also the stage where the coach encourages the idea of unlearning, i.e. letting go of outdated knowledge or methods that no longer serve the client.
This loop between innovate-implement-iterate can be repeated as many times as needed, adjusted as needed until clients feel that they are closer to their goal. The client is invited to reflect on their experience and new insights.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Creating a creativity hygiene
- Exercise: encourage incubation time. Mind wandering time. Engage in undemanding tasks. Do just little enough to set free-flowing spontaneous ideas.
- Technique: SMART Goal Setting
- Exercise: Creating a 30-60-90 Day Plan
- Method: Accountability Partnering
Powerful coaching questions:
- What’s one small step you can take today toward your vision?
- How will you measure progress and success?
- What potential obstacles do you foresee, and how can you prepare for them?
- What’s one unconventional approach you haven’t tried yet?
- If you had to solve this problem using only resources currently available to you, what would you do?
- How might you break down your big goal into smaller, actionable experiments?
- What assumptions are you making that might be limiting your options?
- If you had to implement your idea in just one week, what would you prioritize?
What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.– Zig Ziglar
This stage is about consolidation, integration, and celebration of success. It may work well that there is some time to pause and consolidate. The coach might give the client some extra time here to allow sufficient time to work through the transition and consolidate.
The idea is that the client integrates all learned skills and insights to navigate the change process and show up as a full self in the new circumstances. It implies that the client is not just assimilating information, but fundamentally changing how they operate in the world. At this stage of the coaching process, the client will not only cope but flourish in their circumstances and is now ready to create strategies to sustain the desired SHIFT achieved. The coach encourages the client to find further opportunities for growth and self-expression within the new circumstances celebrates progress and acknowledges personal growth throughout the transition.
This is the last sage that ensured the changes and growth experienced throughout the SHIFT-IT process are deeply integrated and sustainable, setting the client up for long-term success and continued growth.
Coaching techniques and tools relevant for this stage
- Technique: Appreciative Inquiry
- Exercise: Gratitude Journaling
- Method: Narrative Therapy – Reauthoring Life Story
- Success Autopsy: Analyse past successes to identify key factors that led to thriving.
- Celebration Ritual: Design a meaningful ritual to celebrate growth and transformation.
- Adaptive Habits Tracker: Create a system for tracking and reinforcing new adaptive behaviors.
Powerful coaching questions:
- How has this change process helped you grow as a person?
- What new opportunities are now available to you?
- How can you use your experience to help others facing similar transitions?
- How has your definition of ‘thriving’ evolved throughout this process?
- What’s the most significant change you’ve noticed in how you approach challenges now?
- In what ways are you now better equipped to navigate uncertainty?
- What new strengths or capabilities have you discovered in yourself?
- How might you leverage your transformation to positively impact others?
- What does ‘living authentically’ mean to you now, and how has this changed?
- How can you ensure you continue to grow and adapt beyond this coaching relationship?
Potential uses of SHIFT-IT
SHIFT-IT for individuals:
It can be used as a personal growth framework that drives self-awareness, creates personal vision, and fosters a deep sense of purpose, authenticity, and resilience during a time of transition or uncertainty. Through an empathetic yet challenging coaching style, clients will feel more equipped to handle their circumstances and better able to make decisions and solve problems in the long term.
- It is for people who:
- undergo a life transition or a milestone.
- Feel they have hit a wall in life, career, relationship
- Want to feel confident when faced with ambiguity or uncertainty
- are feeling stuck out overwhelmed, exhausted, or fear?
- want to reclaim their voice, freedom, and alignment in a time of distraction, uncertainty, and chaos.
- feel like they wear a mask at work or home and experience a sense of internal conflict.
- are asking themselves a question” So what now? What do I want my story to be? What should I have experienced so that in the end, I can say to myself “I have lived” “Where is my true self in all of this? Is this really me?”
- need to give their emotion and intuition a thinking partner in order to move forward.
For leaders who:
- are looking for coaching to build innovative, adaptable leadership based on real human connection, empathy, and authenticity.
- Are unable to bring their whole self to work or might feel exhausted by putting up a front at work that feels incongruent with who they really are.
- Want to be prepared for upcoming challenges, including potential job disruptions and the need for reskilling.
- Want to cultivate emotional steadiness and psychological safety, reduce bias and groupthink in decision making.
It is also for teams that:
- Are looking to create authentic connection in a more dispersed work environment.
- Need to navigate uncertainty and shift from change resistance to change readiness.
SHIFT-IT can be used in organizations:
- The model can be embedded in any change efforts such as culture shift, reorganization or transformation, implementation of new ways of working, technology, etc to help create environments that value authenticity, human connection, and continuous adaptation.
- It can be integrated into change management practices, supporting a shift from reactive to proactive approaches to change. (E.g. coaches can be embedded into the process to shift from resistance to change and facilitate transition).
- The focus on human connection and integration of authenticity supports the creation of cultures that are driven by psychological safety where vulnerability is welcomed.
References
Schwab, K. (2016). The Fourth Industrial Revolution: what it means, how to respond. World Economic Forum, 14 January.
McKinsey & Company. (2021). Beyond hiring: How companies are reskilling to address talent gaps. McKinsey Global Survey.
World Economic Forum. (2020). The Future of Jobs Report 2020. Geneva: World Economic Forum.
Toffler, A. (1970). Future Shock. New York: Random House.
American Psychological Association. (2022). 2022 Work and Well-being Survey. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Taleb, N. N. (2012). Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder. New York: Random House.
Brown, B. (2010). The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are. Center City, MN: Hazelden Publishing.
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. New York: Random House.
Seligman, M. E. P., & Kellerman, G. R. (2023). Tomorrowmind: Thriving at Work with Resilience, Creativity, and Connection―Now and in an Uncertain Future. Atria Books.