Is your Career Wheel Turning well?

Your Career Wheel is a simple yet insightful exercise that helps you take a moment to check in with yourself and see how satisfied you are with your career right now. It gives you a big-picture view of your career, breaking it down into eight key areas. It’s a great way to bring clarity and focus on where you want to go next.

Think of it like this: A wheel is a great metaphor for your career because, just like a career, a wheel is always moving. If that wheel is a bit off-balance or uneven, it’s not going to roll smoothly—it’ll slow you down, make the journey a bit bumpy, and keep you from reaching your destination as easily as you could. That’s exactly how our careers can feel sometimes!

Why Do This?

The goal of this exercise is simple: awareness. Here’s what it can help you with:

•    Get clear on what balance means for your career.
•    Plan your career more intentionally, with a focus on what’s most important to you.
•    Identify the small changes that could make your career more satisfying.
•    Help you prioritise and set actionable goals.
•    Most importantly, it empowers you to take action and move forward!

The 8 Career Categories:

Your career is made up of different areas, and we’ve divided them into these eight categories. Feel free to change these up if something else resonates more for you!

•    Strengths & Skills
•    Professional Relationships
•    Growth & Exposure
•    Values Alignment
•    Purpose Alignment
•    Work/Life Balance
•    Work Environment
•    Money

Create your own Career Wheel:

How to Create Your Career Wheel:

Here’s how to get started:

1.    Check In: Take a moment to see how satisfied you are in each of the eight categories.
2.    Visualise: Imagine the centre of the wheel is 0 (completely unsatisfied), and the outer edge is 10 (completely satisfied).
3.    Draw: In each segment, draw a line that reflects your level of satisfaction, from 1 to 10.
4.    Score: Write down your score for each category. Use the first number that pops into your head—no need to overthink it. This is just for you!

Questions to Ask Yourself:

These prompts can help you think about where your score comes from for each category:

•    Strengths & Skills: Are you making the most of your strengths and developing your skills?
•    Professional Relationships: Do you have strong working relationships? Are you building a network at work and beyond?
•    Growth & Exposure: Are you getting opportunities to grow in your role?
•    Values Alignment: Does your workplace reflect the values that are important to you? (e.g., trust, respect, diversity, creativity, etc.)
•    Purpose Alignment: Does your job align with your personal sense of purpose?
•    Work/Life Balance: Are you getting the balance you need between work and life?
•    Work Environment: Does your work environment suit your needs and preferences?
•    Money: Is your role supporting the lifestyle you want?

Reflect & Take Action:

Once you’ve completed your wheel, take a moment to reflect:

•    Pause: Look at the shape of your wheel—does it form a nice circle, or is it a bit bumpy?
•    Any surprises?: Did any scores surprise you?
•    What would a 10 look like?: Think about what it would take to get each category up to a 10.
•    Choose 3 actions: Pick 1-3 actions you can start working on today to move you closer to where you want to be.

Good luck!