The Bold Career Project

Countless senior professionals and executives have come to us in great need after the same pattern has already played out. They did good work. They stayed loyal. They kept delivering. They assumed strong performance would naturally lead to more security, more opportunity, or a strong next step. Then something shifted. Why Your Relationship With Your Employer Is Costing You TL;DR: Too many senior professionals treat career growth like a reactive search for posted roles. That is one of the...

Most career problems have a root cause that people don't want to look at. It's not a bad boss. It's not a wrong industry. It's not bad luck. It's over-dependence. A passive, clinging relationship with a single employer. And it quietly wrecks careers every day. I've coached thousands of senior professionals. This is the pattern I see most often. Why Your Relationship With Your Employer Is Costing You TL;DR: The most common career problem I see isn't a bad boss, a wrong role, or bad luck. It's...

By the time you're 15+ years into a career, you have something. Maybe it's the 13-month gap after a layoff. Maybe it's the job that lasted seven months. Maybe it's the lateral move that looks like a step backward. Or the company nobody's heard of. Or the fact that you've moved cities four times. Whatever it is, you know it's there. And every time you walk into an interview, part of your brain is managing it. Hoping they don't ask. Rehearsing the explanation. Bracing. Stop Apologizing for Your...

Here's something I see constantly in my client work. A senior professional…let's say director level, 15+ years of experience, loses their job. Maybe through restructuring, maybe through a bad-fit role that didn't work out. It happens. What follows is predictable. They dust off their resume, start applying to postings, and walk into interviews hoping that some light interview prep and their track record will speak for itself. It doesn’t. The Career Unlock Most Professionals Never Get TL;DR:...

If you have ever stumbled through “So, tell me about yourself” or “What do you do” and felt oddly flat afterwards, you are not alone. I see this all the time with senior managers, Directors, and executives. These are accomplished people. Strong track records. Real wins. Yet when they talk about their value, they often sound like they are reading a job description aloud. That is the story problem. How to Fix the Story Problem TL;DR: At senior levels, your story is the interface between your...

A client said something to me recently that made me laugh because it was painfully accurate. “Damn it, Ian. This newsletter keeps reminding me that I can't avoid working on my career.” Mission accomplished. I’m grateful when I hear from you on the value you're receiving from the newsletter and other resources. If you find this newsletter valuable, please forward it to someone who could benefit. Here’s the sign-up link. Thank you. If you are a senior manager or director who feels close, but...

I love referrals. Three came in over the last two weeks. Referrals usually indicate that the lead is already warm, based on the trust the referrer has bestowed. It is always a good reminder of something most senior professionals are already aware of, but rarely act on intentionally, let alone treat like a system. The Referral Economy: Why senior opportunities move through people, not just postings TL;DR: If you are a senior professional, I want you to activate your “referability.” Raise your...

If you are thinking about a career pivot or change, you probably have two feelings at the same time. One is excitement. The “this could be the move” energy. The other is the quiet fear that you might blow up something you spent a decade building. That fear is not irrational. At senior levels, you have real career capital. You have a reputation. You have a track record. You have relationships. You also have a compensation level that is not easy to replace if you make a sloppy move. So let me...

It's February 7th. First, a shout-out and celebration 🎉 for the three clients who landed next-level roles this week. One is making a significant step up into an Executive Director role. Another secured a career-building job at his dream company. And the third is stepping into an exciting stretch role. I can’t wait to see what each of you does with these moves. Way to go!! Last week, I had five discovery calls with execs and senior professionals. Different industries, different roles,...