I recently walked through the Storm King Art Center, a 500-acre outdoor sculpture museum in New York’s Hudson Valley. It took my breath away. Imagine extremely large sculptures carefully placed among vast meadows and forests. It was a magical blend of nature and art that beckoned me forward to discover what lay beyond the next vista.
Whenever I am awestruck, I like to remember that what I am experiencing began as a single thought or idea. Like a seed, it grew into something big and amazing. Note: “Big and amazing” do not do this place justice. The magnitude and magic of Storm King is hard to describe.
As a career counselor, my mission is to help people listen to their thoughts, tune into the whisperings of their hearts and minds, and nurture their creative seeds of inspiration. Whenever I see a client grappling with whether or not to follow their dreams and bring an idea to fruition, I am energized. I feel a deep yearning to see the dream come alive – for the client but also for the countless other lives that will shift as a result.
I fervently believe that every one of us has a special gift to offer. Not all clients are ready – emotionally or financially – to take creative risks. Some are simply overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin. Yesterday, a client shared a dream of becoming a documentary filmmaker. I know deep inside my belly that this client needs to make films – not just to fulfill his own dream but to inspire real change. And, lucky me, I get to help tend and nurture this little seed of creative hope. Yep, I have the BEST job in the world!
Books like “Bursts of Brilliance” by Teresa Funke, “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron and “Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert provide tools and inspiration for people who need help tending their creativity. I find each of these authors compelling! They keep me hopeful and provide tools as I support the creative souls that find their way to my career counseling practice. You can also check out the book I helped co-author with the talented Carol Eikleberry: The Career Guide for Creative and Unconventional People.
In “Bursts of Brilliance” Teresa Funke offers tactical advice and emotional support to inspire creative living and working. It is clear she has faced all sorts of fire breathing dragons along her own creative journey. She has dealt with inner demons and external forces intent on snuffing out her creative spark. I picture Teresa Funke in a superhero cape handily keeping the dragons at bay so she can put her heart and soul into the next project.
So, what is YOUR next project? What little whisperings do you need to listen to today? What seeds of inspiration could use some nurturing? Just like Storm King, your brilliant offering will begin with a single thought. Tune into these thoughts and then be ready to take tiny baby steps to bring your unique dream to life. The whole world will be brighter and better if you do.
Here is what clients are saying…
“I enjoyed working with Carrie. I felt comfortable with her from the very beginning; she’s very warm, supportive, and easy to talk to. She helped me retool my resume and linkedin profile after taking care to learn about my experience, skills and desires. I highly recommend working with her if you have the chance.”
Going in for meetings with Carrie was the best thing I could have possibly done for my education and career. With her tremendous help I was able to figure out what I wanted to do and how I needed to go about my career. I can’t possibly thank her enough for her crucial role in jumpstarting my career and getting me headed in the right direction.
Carrie was an informative, supportive and thoughtful guide during a time of career refinement. She served as a sounding board in assessing benefits and challenges of positions, reviewed application materials, prepared me for interviews and debriefed and supported decision-making. The mock interview coaching sessions were incredibly valuable to me.
As a recent graduate with my master's degree in biomedical sciences, Carrie and Pink Sky Career Counseling were immensely helpful in the process of landing my first "real" job. I was at a loss for how to apply for a position to start my career in such a specialized field. With little to no work experience, Carrie was able to help formulate my resume, cover letter and references, and manage my LinkedIn page as well as provide general career counseling. Thanks to Carrie's help and guidance I recently accepted an intraoperative neurophysiologist position for NuVasive in Minneapolis, MN. I could not have done it without Carrie's help. Long story short - I highly recommend Pink Sky Career Counseling for any career counseling you may need.
Not a day goes by that I don't thank Carrie in my mind on the way to my new job. Calling her was one of the best things I ever did for myself. Carrie is very intuitive, connected in the community, genuinely caring, and a master of her craft. Of course if you sign on for this, you have to dig deep and do things that are outside your comfort zone to get to where you want to be in life. But she held my hand all the way till the end and beyond. I cannot thank or recommend her enough.
I highly recommend Carrie. She did an amazing job helping me with my resume and providing valuable guidance in my job search process. I ended up being offered a great new job and wouldn't have gotten there without Carrie's assistance and support.
Carrie is amazing, I had a position open that I didn't know about until 4 days before it closed, just before the weekend. She went above and beyond to get it accomplished for me. I highly recommend working with her.
Carrie was fantastic to work with. She listened to what I was wanting and she produced a excellent product, responses to my resume increased and just recently landed a great job!