Success Tips for Expat & International Careers

Assessments

Career By Choice believes that assessments can provide useful insights into what kind of work and work environments suit people best. Assessments can tell us why we do what we do and how we do what we do. They can often uncover workplace values and personal values that act as hidden motivators not easily observable at work. 

However, assessments do not give us all of the answers. And they do not tell us who we are as people. They categorize behaviors or styles, not people themselves. The information we get from assessments can be useful when combined with other factors, including skills, experience, education, training, and culture, in discovering which careers would be fulfilling for a particular individual.  

Assessments I use with my clients include:

• 360° Personal Brand Assessment

• NLP Learning Assessment

• DISC Behavioural Assessment

• Personal Interests, Attitudes and Values (PIAV)

• Kiersey Temperament Sorter II®

Please contact me if you are interested in using assessments as part of your career development plan.

Why Career By Choice?

There are many career coaches and consultants out there in the world. There are many with years of professional experience and training, proven coaching methodologies and a strong track record of success. I would like to share with you the reasons why I am uniquely qualified to assist you in your search for professional satisfaction.

I am not limited to conventional thinking about jobs and careers….or about anything for that matter. I am known for my passion, creativity and out-of-the box thinking. Years of working with people around the globe has shown me that most of the time it is our thinking, not our circumstances, which is really holding us back from getting more of what we want. Sometimes just a slight shift in perspective can open up worlds of possibility.

It is my experience in the ‘school of life’, not my advanced degrees and professional training, which sets me apart. Yes, I do have years of study and relevant training which I draw from extensively. But there are things you just can’t learn in a classroom or from a book. My work with people from all walks of life and from all corners of the world, as well as my own personal challenges, have taught me to believe that almost anything is possible. I invite you to look back into your own life to see in which past experiences lie wisdom that may be the key to moving forward today.

Traditional coaching is about asking a lot of questions. I do ask questions, but I do much more than that. I believe that overcoming any challenge, be it in life or in your career, is about having the right tools, skills and strategies. For that reason I spend time teaching you new skills, as well as strengthen those that have gotten ‘rusty’ from lack of use. We work together to develop and test new strategies, and I provide you with tools to navigate through the challenges that come along with career change. I hold you accountable. I provide a safe space for you to be honest, get creative, and get curious about what is really possible. I don’t believe in mistakes, only learning opportunities. Most importantly, I teach you how to explore the possibilities and consequences of your choices so you can continue to make choices that serve you well.

I believe my job is to work myself out of a job. I not only want to help you change or improve your professional situation, I am going to give you the tools and teach you the skills to masterfully manage your career for years to come.

I believe every person and their situation is unique. There is no one system that is going to provide the perfect solution for everyone. Yes, there are general principles and processes that have proven extremely effective in the field of career development. But there are also things that can be done to respect each individual’s learning, working and communication styles, as well as their current life situation and culture, that can significantly amplify or increase their level of success. I believe that providing a safe space to do your own exploration and learning is essential. And because a tool that might be a key success factor for one person may not do much to facilitate discovery or action in another, I keep my tool box filled with everything from assessments and matrices to creative exercises and breath work.  

I know that my background, experience and approach are not a match for everyone. I feel that it would be a disservice to take on a client who would be better served by someone better suited to their needs. If it is not a good match, the chances of success for everyone involved are much less. Hence, if I feel I am not the best person to help you, I will say so and refer you to someone else.

I LOVE what I do. My primary purpose is to be of service – to help people create satisfying careers and businesses that support their lifestyle of choice. I am a living testament to the fact that it is possible to love your job or business and feel that your life is richer for doing it. My clients tell me that my enthusiasm is contagious…and are pleased to discover that committing to a process of lifelong career development and having fun are not mutually exclusive!

Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about how I help people create, develop and manage satisfying careers that fit them and their lifestyle.

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360° Personal Brand Assessment

360° Personal Brand Assessment provides you with the external insights that are essential to professional success. Developed by behavioral psychologists and branding experts, it gives you a focused portrait of your professional reputation – one that is invaluable for ongoing professional and personal development.

Who is 360° Personal Brand Assessment for?
If you fall into one of the following categories, you can benefit tremendously from a 360° Personal Brand Assessment:

• career-minded professionals who want to develop themselves professionally

• people who are looking to change jobs or are in job search mode

• executives who need to understand how they are really perceived externally

• independent consultants, entrepreneurs and small business owners who need external feedback to help guide their businesses

• sales people and consultants who want to increase their visibility, presence and effectiveness

• people who want to develop themselves personally and professionally

What kind of feedback does it provide?
The 360° Personal Brand Assessment enables those people you select to complete the assessment to provide input about your rational and emotional attributes, your greatest strength and greatest weakness, the team role that most suits you, etc. It also provides them with the opportunity to provide any additional comments they want to share. It includes two projective exercises to validate data and enable you to gain richer insights into what those around you think about you.

How should I use this information?
You can use the results to develop a personal brand profile and a powerful marketing message that will make you stand out amongst your peers and your competition.

Please contact me if you are interested in using the 360° Personal Brand Assessment as part of your own career development plan.

NLP Learning Style Assessment

Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) is a body of knowledge developed by two researchers, Richard Bandler and John Grinder, which explores the arena of human excellence. Bandler and Grinder formulated a model of communication based on a theoretical understanding of how people use systems to represent and recall information.

These representational systems provide insight into how people tend to think. For example, people who prefer the visual representational system think mostly in pictures. Those who prefer the auditory system think mostly in sounds. People who prefer the kinesthetic system think mostly in feelings. And those who prefer the Auditory Digital system think mostly in words, facts and details.

Because people tend to prefer one method of representing information, their preference will often determine their preferred method of learning. By understanding your representational system preference, I can tailor my teaching and tools to maximize your learning experience.

Please contact me if you are interested in using the NLP Learning Style Assessment as part of your own career development plan.

DISC Behavioural Assessment

This assessment was borne out of the research of psychologist William Moulton Marston, Ph.D. of Harvard University, and was specifically designed for work-related situations. The DISC Behavioural Assessment gives you insight into HOW you work with other people.  The assessment looks at your behavioural style in terms of how you solve problems (dominance), interact with other people (influence), the pace you prefer (steadiness) and how you respond to rules and procedures (compliance).

This behavioural assessment will show you:

• your natural behavioural style (how you intrinsically operate)

• your adapted behavioural style (how you respond to the demands of your environment)

• aspects of your own unique communication style

This information will help you see:

• when you are at your best (when you are operating in your natural style)

• where your strengths are not being leveraged

• the possible underlying causes of stress at work

• how others can more effectively relate to you

• how to adapt your unique style to more effectively relate to the unique style of others

The assessment is extremely user-friendly and takes about 10 minutes to complete.

Download DISC Assessment Information

Download sample DISC Report 

Please contact me if you are interested in using the DISC Behavioural Assessment as part of your own career development plan.