Sep 28, 2023
114: How Emotion and Intuition are Powerful Career Tools with Sara McElroy
In this episode, Dan sits down with marketer, author, and two-time resigner turned bonafide career transition master Sara J. McElroy. Sara’s journey looks a lot like the picture of success: academic achievement followed by a steady rise in marketing and ultimately to a CMO role. But in the midst of the Great Resignation, her battles with overwork, toxic workplaces, health crises, and sexual harassment all led to two resignations, a spiritual awakening, personal empowerment, and a mission to help women find their voices and take charge of their careers. Now, as founder and CEO of Raze to Rise, she’s on a mission to “uplift the voices of women from the Great Resignation across diverse walks of life, industries, functions, and career stages” and empower women to “make bold career moves.”
She and Dan cover a lot of ground as Sara challenges conventional, “rational” career choices and argues that emotions, intuition, and physiology have a massive role to play in making life-changing decisions. Here’s a taste of what you’ll learn about through their conversation:
* How and when to manage your career.
* Career management is a mindset and an inside job.
* The most important times in your career before making the leap.
* Career transitions can be messy and it’s necessary … the Messcessary.
* The life experience that prompted a life change.
* The unlikely gift of Shingles.
* Getting off the grid can often be the best thing.
* Most professionals need more than a weekend to plot their next moves.
* The critical role sexual harassment played in her life choices.
* Seeing the connections of random events.
* Forward-thinking themes that came from the pandemic, especially for women.
* The value of self-discovery and the role it plays in balancing life.
* We can have a plan, but until we experience it, we don’t know.
* Missing the senses of when it’s time to move on.
* How to learn and leverage body signals.
* The danger of internal capitalism.
Notable Quotes:
* “The moments of our careers that are most impactful are the ones that are coming in the in-between, not the big moment of turning in the resignation and walking out the door.” (4:26), Sara.
* “I just had the idea that if I just follow the playbook, that perfect life playbook where you climb the ladder and chase the fancier titles and fatter paychecks, and everything will work out.” – (9:01), Sara.
* “I went off to Peru and began reconnecting with the parts of me that weren’t just lost over the last couple of years and even childhood.” – (13:01), Sara.
* “The lather, rinse, repeat of our current lifestyle keeps us really stuck.” – (14:40), Sara.
* “Valedictorians by in large don’t become leaders.” – (19:44), Dan.
* “Sexual harassment is not a style.” – (25:22), Sara.
* “I felt like I could not be the only woman who was getting mired in the spin cycle of being burnout, overwhelm, toxic culture.” – (32:20), Sara.
* “Designing a fulfilling career is an inside job.” (34:27), Sara.
* “The expression listen to your gut is more than just a metaphor.” – (36:35), Dan.
* “Our bodies are hardwired for experience of joy and bliss.” – (42:55), Sara.
* “We are built to move through all of the things we’re facing in life through our senses.” – (45:19), Sara.
* “In a professional world, you’re kind of like a brain, floating around in an apparatus that allows you to execute what you need to do.” – (50:40), Sara.
* “We have been taught to ignore the signs that things are not working for us.” – (51:27), Sara.
* “Disease is the last attempt to get our attention when we’re doing things that are not good for us.”- (51:27), Sara.
* “We have the ability to feel into what we think is good.” – (54:44), Sara.
* “It’s also important to meditate.” (1:01:08), Sara.
* “When consequences are larger and bigger and weighs on you, you really need to tune in and listen.” – (1:07:00), Dan.
* “Sometimes your employer is unable to give you what you need to grow.” – (1:10:00), Dan.
About Dan Nestle
* The Dan Nestle Show (libsyn.com)
* Daniel Nestle | LinkedIn
* The Dan Nestle Show | Facebook
* Dan Nestle | Twitter
About Sara McElroy
* Sara McElroy - Instagram
* Sara McElroy - Linkedin
* Raze to Rise – Website
The key moments in this episode (as generated by my AI buddy, Capsho) are:
00:00:00 - Introduction
00:02:01 - Sarah's Career Journey and the Importance of the In-Between Moments
00:07:52 - Sarah's First Resignation and the Need for a Reset
00:12:47 - The Great Resignation and Finding Resilience
00:15:20 - The Impact of Divorce and Mental Health Issues,
00:18:07 - The Pressure of Being a Valedictorian,
00:22:51 - The Lack of a Life Roadmap,
00:25:26 - Resignation and Self-Reflection,
00:28:45 - The Journey of Personal Growth,
00:30:49 - The Journey Begins,
00:33:27 - The Power of Women's Stories,
00:35:17 - Designing a Fulfilling Career,
00:39:37 - The Unforeseen Path,
00:43:35 - The Role of Physiology,
00:47:29 - The Importance of Sensory Reactions,
00:49:10 - The Impact of Lack of Sensory Information,
00:50:59 - Ignoring Emotional and Physical Signs,
00:53:30 - Recognizing Signals and Taking Action,
00:58:15 - Using Visualization and Body Reactions,
01:02:51 - The Impact of a Job on Relationships,
01:03:30 - Measuring Readiness to Leave a Job,
01:04:58 - Balancing Rationality and Emotion in Career Decisions,
01:06:07 - Expanding and Growing Outside of Work,
01:10:30 - The Individualized Nature of Career Paths,
01:18:36 - The Impact of Self-Objectification and Internalized Capitalism,
01:19:06 - The Historical Origins of Work Culture,
01:20:25 - Challenges for Women in the Business World,
01:21:23 - Overcoming Biases and Empowering Women,
01:23:12 - Keeping an Open Mind and Trusting Yourself
Timestamped summary of this episode (also presented as generated by Capsho):
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Dan Nestle Show
Dan Nestle introduces the podcast episode and his guest, Sarah McElroy, who is a high-performing chief marketing officer turned CEO and career transition expert. They discuss the importance of managing one's career and the power of the in-between moments in career transitions.
00:02:01 - Sarah's Career Journey and the Importance of the In-Between Moments
Sarah McElroy shares her personal career journey, including a difficult divorce, job loss, and health issues. She emphasizes the significance of the in-between moments in one's career and how they can shape the direction and decisions for the future.
00:07:52 - Sarah's First Resignation and the Need for a Reset
Sarah talks about her first resignation and how it came after experiencing physical and mental health issues due to overworking. She decided to take a pause and went on a wellness retreat in Peru to reconnect with herself. This reset led her to make significant changes in her career and personal life.
00:12:47 - The Great Resignation and Finding Resilience
Sarah discusses the concept of the Great Resignation and how it has impacted many people's career decisions. She emphasizes the importance of finding resilience during challenging times and shares her own experience of quitting her job after being diagnosed with shingles. This decision allowed her to prioritize her well-being and seek a more fulfilling career path.
00:15:20 - The Impact of Divorce and Mental Health Issues,
Sara discusses how her divorce, mental health issues, and childhood trauma affected her. She shares her hospitalization and estrangement from her family, leading to feelings of worthlessness and a need to prove her value.
00:18:07 - The Pressure of Being a Valedictorian,
Sara and Dan discuss how being valedictorian can create pressure and expectations. They explore the idea that valedictorians often become followers rather than le…