Category: Career Advice Blog

4-Quarter Lives Podcast: The Second Career Revolution: Holistic careers for longer lives

Rob Nathan was a guest on the 4-Quarter Lives Podcast, hosted by Avivah Whittenburg-Cox,

In this episode, they explore why the traditional three-stage life – education, work, retirement – remains so stubbornly entrenched.

Recorded on his 77th birthday, Rob argues that the systems around us were designed for shorter lives and have yet to catch up, while individuals can become financially and socially bound to their employers. Drawing on William Bridges, he distinguishes between change and transition, and explores the self-limiting beliefs that can keep us stuck on the edge of the diving board.

The conversation ranges from cultural contrasts – including the respect afforded to elders across Southeast Asia versus Western workplaces that can view older workers as slower or replaceable – to the value of career conversations and genuinely multi-generational teams. 

Listen now

Association for Coaching Podcast: The Role of Self-Assessment Tools in Career Coaching

Rob Nathan was a guest on the Association for Coaching Podcast, hosted by Mark Crossfield,

In this episode, they explore the benefits of using self-assessment tools in coaching, including helping coachees find focus, manage their time, and reflect between sessions.

Rob shares practical exercises he uses with coaching clients, as well as how he chooses the right assessment tool for a particular client or situation. He explains the five-stage process of career coaching and the different tools that can support each stage.

Discover how these tools can enrich the coaching conversation and often help coachees reclaim parts of themselves they may have lost along the way. In seeking support with their careers, they can gain a deeper understanding of who they are, develop a longer-term perspective, and explore a more stretching reality for themselves.

Listen now

Write up by Rachel Wright and Rob Nathan

Karen has expertise of working as an AI strategic leadership coach, career coach and transformation coach alongside her experience of working in recruitment, outplacement, and supporting military service leaders. 

This is where self-assessment tools come in. When thoughtfully integrated into coaching and career development, they provide both structure and freedom – guiding individuals to uncover insights while giving managers and coaches a shared platform for dialogue.

Who is using AI in recruitment?

• UK organisations using AI in hiring has gone up from 16% in 2022 to 31% in 2026 (CIPD)
• 90% of large UK businesses now use AI in their recruitment process (Ernst & Young)

AI recruitment facts:

• AI doom loops, what are they? This is when candidates use AI to apply for multiple roles at a time. As a result, employers receive high volumes of applications which then leads to them adding more AI filters. AIl applications start to look similar as AI has written them and so the challenge then comes in to how a candidate can get noticed.
• If you use ChatGPT to write your CV it doesn’t mean you will get flagged and rejected.
• Jobscan (jobscan.co) now has an AI detector which can tell you if your CV lacks humanity! Try this out!
• AI driven ATS platforms have moved beyond just looking for key rich search words. Platforms such as Eightfold AI predictive performance uses modelling to try and predict potential and career trajectories of candidates. It does this by looking for similarities of other people’s profiles on LinkedIn. The purpose being to identify how likely a candidate possesses or could acquire the skills needed for a role and company culture as well as how they will perform if hired. Even though this is not always right, recruiters do use it.
• If you try and insert keywords in white (invisible) text, your CV will be automatically flagged or rejected so avoid doing this.
• Integrated platform tools such as Teal can enable you to write achievements in a way that fits the organisations culture and terminology in real time.

Combining AI and networking with your CVs/applications:

• Instruct AI to identify patterns from your past performance.
• Use AI as a guide and tool but not to write your CV.
• Ensure strategic networking is a key part of your job search strategy. Build relationships with your network so that your CV gets seen by a person.
• Stay authentic and make your achievements real and results-orientated to avoid your CV becoming generic and devoid of the human touch. Include facts and figures.
• Demonstrate career trajectory and patterns. Focus the CV on what you bring and what you can take forwards for the future. AI recruitment tools need to see evidence of forward momentum in your career and the impact you have made.

The digital filters:

For your CV to reach a human being one key basic check is to ensure your CV and LinkedIn profiles match exactly when it comes to dates and job titles otherwise they will be automatically rejected. AI will cross reference and it is also not looked upon favourably if a candidate doesn’t have a digital footprint.

The era of rigid keyword stuffing is over and now emerging is the importance of contextual meaning. This means that just having key words isn’t enough. You need to contextualise. AI can understand context if the candidate provides it. 

Organisations are increasingly recognising that career conversations are central to engagement, retention and performance. But for many managers and HR leaders, these conversations can feel daunting. How do you go beyond performance reviews? How do you help people reflect deeply without stepping into “therapy”?

This is where self-assessment tools come in. When thoughtfully integrated into coaching and career development, they provide both structure and freedom – guiding individuals to uncover insights while giving managers and coaches a shared platform for dialogue.

Why Self-Assessment Tools Work in Organisations

1. Structured focus for career conversations

Tools give conversations a clear starting point. They help managers and coaches focus on what matters to the individual, avoiding the trap of slipping into appraisal or evaluation.

2. Psychological safety and voice

Because individuals generate the insights themselves, the process feels less judgmental and more empowering. Employees can voice what is important to them – in their own language – rather than relying solely on external labels or manager assessments.

3. Connecting careers with wellbeing

Career development is inseparable from mental health. Tools help uncover values, motivators and strengths, highlighting where energy is gained or drained. This link can inform not only career planning but also wellbeing strategies.

4. Efficient use of time

Employees can complete self-assessments between coaching sessions, creating continuity and momentum. Managers can also use them as conversation aids, making career discussions more productive and less dependent on their own interpretations.

5. Building coherent career narratives

Self-assessments often surface themes that employees can use to articulate career goals, prepare for internal mobility, or strengthen applications for development programmes. They create consistency between the individual’s story and the organisation’s talent strategy.

Two Brief Examples from Practice

• Values Clarification Exercise: A high-potential employee used a simple card-sort activity during a coaching programme. “Learning” and “collaboration” consistently ranked highest, helping her and her manager identify a development path involving cross-functional project work. This not only increased her motivation but also contributed to organisational knowledge-sharing goals.
• 360 “Best-Self” Feedback: A leadership development initiative invited participants to collect feedback about moments when they were at their best. One manager described the experience as “moving and motivating” seeing his strengths reflected back gave him confidence and clarity about where he could add most value in the organisation.

The Crucial Role of the Coach or Manager

It’s important to note: the tool is only part of the process. The real impact comes from how it is introduced, contracted and debriefed. Skilled coaches and managers help individuals interpret the results, link them to organisational opportunities, and translate insights into clear actions.

When used well, self-assessment tools don’t just create individual insight. They:

• Strengthen trust between employees and managers
• Encourage career ownership, reducing dependence on HR for “answers”
• Improve internal mobility by clarifying skills and aspirations
• Support mental health and resilience by reconnecting people with times they’ve thrived

Takeaway for HR Leaders

Three ways to integrate self-assessment tools effectively:

1. Embed in career frameworks – make tools part of talent programmes, leadership pipelines, or internal mobility schemes. Position them as standard elements of career conversations, not optional extras.
2. Equip managers – train managers to use tools as facilitators of dialogue, not as evaluators. This shifts conversations from performance to potential.
3. Link to organisational goals – encourage employees to connect personal insights from tools to current business needs, creating a win–win between individual growth and strategic priorities.

In short: self-assessment tools are not add-ons. They are strategic enablers – helping organisations to align individual aspirations with business needs, while ensuring employees feel heard, empowered and energised.

More Information

Rob Nathan talks more about Career Coach Tools on the Association of Coaching Podcast. 

CCS offer Accredited Career Coach Training on open programmes as well as running in-house courses.

CCS also offer a one day Career Tools Days for In-House Coaches.

Join a free Career Coaching Tools session here.

By Gilly Freedman, Senior Career Coach, Tutor & Supervisor

Sir Charlie Mayfield, former John Lewis leader, is producing a report which warns that too many employees slide into long-term sickness. He argues that GPs are called on to produce sick notes but it is often too late to address the underlying causes of anxiety and depression leading to absenteeism.

“Prevention is better than cure” says Mayfield

He argues it is in businesses’ interests to have more support in place to prevent people falling out of work when they first develop mental health issues, managers could play a pivotal part here.

As careers and mental health are inextricably linked, the quality of their career conversations can make the difference between an employee silently struggling and one who feels supported, valued and able to thrive.

Taking a holistic approach with employees can lead to an understanding of what they might be experiencing outside work and the impact that is having on their mental health and can invite discussion around questions.

Such as:

• How can I balance the different demands of my family and work?
• How can I bring my best self to work?
• How do I manage challenging relationships at work?
• How can I ensure a healthy balance between home and office working?
• How can I develop my career in line with my personal aspirations?

Managers don’t need to be therapists, but they do need the confidence to ask open, empathic questions and create a safe place for employees to talk.

A case study relating to the chapter: ‘Later Career’ in our book: ‘A Holistic Handbook of Career Coaching for Managers’(Routledge, 2025) illustrates the powerful impact of a manager taking a holistic approach.

Case Study: Rediscovering Confidence

Aisha, a 56-year-old project coordinator, began to lose confidence as her younger, tech-savvy team took the spotlight. She worried she no longer belonged and started to hold back in meetings. Her ideas stayed unspoken and she gradually began to withdraw. At the same time, supporting her elderly father with frequent hospital visits. Her manager noticed the change and rather than ignoring it or jumping to conclusions, took the time to set up a career conversation.

Using career coaching-style questions to open the conversation, she asked:

• How are you feeling about your work and life at the moment?
• What’s been on your mind?
• What feels different for you in the team at the moment?
• What support would help you feel at your best?

This opened the door for Aisha to share her fears of being ‘the odd one out’ and her need for flexibility around her caring responsibilities.

Together they agreed on a practical plan:

• Aisha could adjust her hours when needed making up the time later.
• She would share her expertise by mentoring junior colleagues drawing from her wealth of experience
• In return, she would receive digital skills training to build her IT skills.

The impact was transformative. Aisha’s sense of value returned, her confidence grew and she re-engaged with the role. This restored her sense of value, rebuilt her confidence, and re-engaged her with her role.

This case shows the power of a simple career coaching conversation. By treating employees as whole people, acknowledging both professional and personal realities, organisations can prevent disengagement, ease anxiety and unlock hidden strengths.

By Kate Mansfield – CCS Programme Director

• How mature is your organisation’s approach to career development?
• Are you building an agile, future-ready skills-based organisation? 
• Are career conversations happening in practice, not just in principle? 
• Do your managers feel equipped to guide, not just evaluate, their people?

Career development is no longer a side issue. It matters deeply; to employees seeking purpose, to organisations striving for agility and to society that depends on a resilient workforce. Yet too many organisations still fall into a familiar trap: good intentions that don’t translate into meaningful, sustainable action.

Our Career Strategy Insights (CSI) research confirmed what wider studies also show: the gap between aspiration and reality in career development is stark. Employers talk about mobility, learning and opportunity, but employees often experience confusion, inconsistency, and limited support in practice.

Why Quick Fixes Fall Short

Wellbeing apps, stress workshops, or “career conversations” bolted onto performance reviews may look good in HR playbooks, but evidence suggests they rarely move the dial. The Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, in a landmark survey of 46,000 UK workers, found that individual wellbeing initiatives had no lasting effect on workplace wellbeing. Instead, the real levers are structural: job design, leadership behaviours, and career opportunities.

Similarly, our CSI findings show that career support collapses when it isn’t integrated into culture and systems. Career conversations blur with performance reviews, managers feel ill-equipped to guide employees, and initiatives fade when project leads move on.

What Works?

The role of embedding career coaching and career conversations

Evidence is mounting that career coaching, done well, has a transformative effect.

• A study of 662 healthcare professionals in England found that structured career coaching significantly improved wellbeing and resilience, with participants less likely to consider leaving their roles. Sustained programmes with multiple sessions proved most effective.
• In Nigeria, cognitive-behavioural career coaching helped public employees reduce anxiety and depression, linking career clarity to mental health benefits.
• And in our own Saint-Gobain case study, 74% of employees reported that career coaching positively influenced their decision to stay, while 66% said it opened new development opportunities. 

These findings echo a wider truth: career development is not simply about helping individuals plan their next move. It is a strategic driver of wellbeing, engagement, retention and skills mobility. 

At CCS, we have over many years supported numerous employers with creating sustainable in-house career coaching and career development solutions. One of our key values has always been sustainability; in practice, this means finding ways that employers can own their career solutions that align with their infrastructure and culture. 

How can you convince others of the business case?

As a Career, Talent or People development leader, we know you care whether career development programmes are relevant, accessible, supported by managers, aligned to business goals and whether they’ll deliver measurable results that help attract, retain and grow talent.

We know the challenge is more about convincing others of the business case. 

Here are some ideas of how to approach this:

By Rob Nathan – CCS Founder & CEO

People have not infrequently told me that they join an organisation because of the job, but they leave because of the manager or the culture. We know that work can be stressful and challenging, and there is nothing necessarily wrong with that. What is unacceptable however is when such pressure is exerted on employees that they believe, for whatever reason, they have to work harder and harder, to such a point where they find it difficult to draw a boundary. This is when burnout beckons.

But not all organisations are like this, or need to be so. Research conducted by Anne-Birgitte Albrectsen lead to the creation of a model titled:

Help! We need colleagues: Creating the workplace everyone wants. 

I share this model below as a focus which could be used to evaluate what is already working and where needs attention. One way to use this would be to scale your view of where your organisation stands on each of the fifteen factors listed below, and then indicate which top three factors, if they moved 2-3 points up the scale, could make a significant difference to the ‘workplace everyone wants’.

Key to Model:

1 Reputation: Do you have a good reputation? Is the organisation positively mentioned in the media? Is the organisation recommended by its employees? Do you actively work on employer branding?

2 Recruitment: Do you have a professional recruitment process that ensures even the candidates who are not offered a position would recommend that process to others? Is there alignment between the jobs you describe in job postings and the reality that employees encounter?

3 Onboarding: Do you have a systematic onboarding process that is tailored individually and ensures both professional and social onboarding?

4 Culture and Values: Have you formulated explicit values that can serve as the foundation for the desired culture? Are these values upheld in reality?

5 Leadership quality: Is there coherence in the leadership chain vertically and horizontally? Are time and resources allocated for leadership development and leadership evaluation?

6 Balanced demands: Do you focus on preventing and managing work pressure and stress? Are demands and resources in balance? Is there social support?

7 Physical work environment: Do you have up-to-date physical facilities and digital equipment? Do you actively work on health promotion and the prevention of workplace accidents?

8 Psychological environment: Are you working to create a psychologically safe environment? Do you focus on preventing and addressing conflicts, bullying and abusive behaviour?

9 Competency development opportunities: Do you allocate resources for competency development that enables both personal and professional growth for individuals? What is your practice for supervision, feedback, peer learning and apprenticeships?

10 Career development opportunities: are there clear and attractive career paths for different profiles? Are there opportunities to take on new challenges and more responsibility?

11 Collegial networks:  What do you do to strengthen the collegial cohesion in the workplace, fostering relationships where employees connect with each other? How do you support the creation and maintenance of meaningful professional and social communities?

12 Flexibility: Do your employees have flexibility, in terms of working hours, place of work and employment arrangements? Is there the opportunity for hybrid and remote working?

13: Purpose and Influence: Do you systematically work to combat meaningless bureaucracy and rules? Are there opportunities to make a positive impact? What do you do to empower and increase employees’ influence in their work?

14 Inclusion: Do you have a diverse organisation in terms of gender, age and expertise? Are you doing enough to create an inclusive workplace?

15 Compensation and benefits: Do you offer a competitive compensation package and attractive employee benefits that match industry standards?

By Rob Nathan – CCS Founder & CEO

Why Holistic Career Coaching Matters

The pandemic changed how many of us see work and life. Take Sarah, for example. In her late 20s, she came to me for career coaching after realising how much she valued family time during COVID-19 lockdowns. She’d been separated from her parents and decided she needed the flexibility to visit them for longer stays, not just weekend trips. For her, balance and flexibility became non-negotiable.

This is a common story. COVID-19 has forced many to reassess priorities, and workplace conversations about well-being are now front and centre. For managers and in-house career coaches, the challenge is to approach these conversations holistically – considering not just professional aspirations but the person’s whole life.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) highlights risks to mental health at work, including:

• Skills underuse or mismatch.
• Lack of control over workload or job design.
• Negative workplace culture.
• Minimal support or overly authoritarian supervision.
• Conflicting work and home demands.

Holistic career coaching helps people reconnect with their strengths, regain autonomy, and make plans that align their work with their broader life goals.

A Strengths-Based Approach

Many workplaces have traditionally focused on fixing weaknesses instead of building on strengths. This approach can lead people to feel they don’t belong, damaging engagement and performance. That’s a huge loss for both individuals and organisations. Research by Rath and Harter (2010) underscores this point. A Gallup study found that when employees use their strengths, they’re six times more likely to be engaged and three times more likely to report excellent career well-being. These employees often thrive even with demanding workloads, while others burn out much sooner. Holistic coaching focuses on strengths drawn from all areas of life, not just the workplace, creating a foundation for sustainable engagement and growth.

What is Holistic Career Coaching?

Holistic career coaching looks at the whole person. It recognises that life and work are interconnected and that personal circumstances inevitably affect workplace performance. At Career Counselling Services (CCS), we define it as helping individuals identify and use their resources – skills, values, strengths, networks, and external support systems – to navigate career decisions and challenges. This approach is more than just setting professional goals or discussing development plans. It acknowledges and respects personal factors like family responsibilities, health challenges, and significant life transitions. Ignoring these aspects risks missing the root causes of disengagement or burnout.

When to Use a Holistic Approach

Certain statements during career conversations signal the need for a holistic approach.

For example:

• “I need better work-life balance but still want to add value at work.”
• “I feel stuck and want to grow in my role.”
• “I’m not making the impact I want.”
• “I’m exhausted from caring for aging parents.”
• “After returning from parental leave or secondment, I feel overlooked and underutilised.”

These kinds of challenges often reflect deeper conflicts – such as between wanting to progress professionally and needing more autonomy or balance. An empathetic coach can help individuals clarify their priorities and find alignment between their inner values and outer actions.

A Real-Life Example: Layla’s Story

Layla, 39, came to coaching feeling burned out and unfulfilled. Two years earlier, she’d hit a breaking point:

 “I was firefighting all day, overwhelmed by 200 emails daily and constant client demands,” she said.

After her burnout, Layla took a three-month sabbatical and reassessed her priorities. The experience changed her. She realised she didn’t need external recognition to feel fulfilled. Instead, she focused on leading with empathy and helping others avoid burnout. Layla’s story shows how holistic coaching can guide people through profound inner transitions, aligning their values with their professional choices.

Making Holistic Coaching Work

Pitfalls to Avoid

Holistic coaching requires careful boundaries. Avoid these common mistakes:

• Panicking at emotions: Don’t rush to give advice or offer quick fixes.
• Confusing sympathy with empathy: Sympathy reassures; empathy empowers.
• Rushing the process: Career transitions often take time and clarity.
• Overstepping your expertise: Some issues may require specialised help outside your role.
• Focusing on solutions, not the journey: Coaching is about helping people navigate their path, not dictating it.

Practical Tips to make holistic coaching effective:

• Respect emotions: Acknowledge personal challenges and their impact on work.
• Prioritise self-care: Encourage individuals to put their well-being first.
• Set boundaries: Clear contracting ensures coaching stays on track.
• Balance short and long-term goals: Help individuals think beyond immediate fixes.
• Know your own biases: Stay mindful of your personal career experiences.
• Use tools wisely: If using assessments or frameworks, ensure they serve the coaching process, not overshadow it.

Holistic career coaching isn’t just about career progression – it’s about fostering alignment between work and life, supporting people in becoming their best selves, and creating workplaces where everyone can thrive.

CCS offer a 1-day ICF Accredited Career Coaching Certificate in Holistic Career Coaching. Click here to find out more.

By Rachel Wright – Career Coach, Course Tutor and Client Relationship Manager at CCS

In today’s dynamic job market, career development often requires creativity and strategic thinking, particularly when making a career change or returning to work after a break. Recently, a coaching client of mine introduced me to the concepts of “Passion Projects” and “Proof Projects”– two powerful tools that can help strengthen your personal brand, expand your professional network, and demonstrate your skills to potential employers or collaborators.

Here’s how these two concepts can work for you:

Passion Projects: Showcase Your Interests and Skills

A passion project allows you to explore and showcase your skills, values, and unique expertise in a way that reflects your personal interests. These projects can range from creating a blog or online portfolio to launching a small research initiative or curating a social media series. The key is to align the project with your professional goals while staying true to your passions.

By Rachel Wright – Career Coach, Course Tutor and Client Relationship Manager at CCS

Can People Professionals add strategic value to the many challenges organisations face?

In today’s ever changing and uncertain environment, HR professionals have to navigate multiple challenges as well as opportunities.  These are often vast and diverse and amongst many others include supporting employee well-being, adapting to new ways of working, changes in employee expectations, fostering inclusivity and the use of AI.  From my previous HR background and through supporting the HR community I know that people professionals can indeed add strategic value with each of these challenges and are known for being enablers of change.  So, what do these challenges and opportunities look like in the current climate and how can career development initiatives add value?

1) Wellbeing as a core work practice

Employee burnout continues to be a significant concern.  Contributing factors often include feelings of being undervalued, mistreated or underappreciated. These feelings are often linked to a lack of career growth opportunities. A fundamental aspect of employee well-being is closely connected to a sense of purpose and motivation. It can add huge value if employees see that there is support in place for them to manage and progress their career in the right way for them. If employers don’t engage their employees in conversations about skills development, career progression, and potential growth prospects, this can lead to a dip in morale and the feeling of being stuck in a rut. A recent CIPD report* indicates that sickness absence levels have increased post-pandemic and that this connects back to health and well-being.