• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
  • FCD Career Class
  • Online Learning
    • Info about Online Seminars
    • 12 Month Calendar
    • Anxiety and Career Development: Theory, Practice, and Resources
    • Building Your Coaching Business
    • Career Readiness for Justice-Involved Citizens: Factors, methods, and insights
    • Career Advising Using Happenstance
    • Career Trends of the Future: So Much More than AI and Robots
    • EQ at Work: Emotional Intelligence for Career Practitioners
    • Finding Purpose: Working with Clients To Find Meaningful Work
    • LinkedIn: Advancing Your Skills
    • Transition Theory in Career Advising
    • Retirement Coaching: Unlocking New Opportunities for Your Clients
    • Social Media Strategies for Career Practitioners
    • Understanding Holland Interest Theory and Practical Applications
  • Workshops & Training
Peak Careers

Peak Careers

Professional Development for Career Practitioners

  • About
    • About Peak-Careers
    • Meet The Team
    • Peak-Careers Advisory Board
    • Privacy Policy
  • Shop
    • Field Guide BOOK
    • The Adventure of Finding Me in New Zealand
    • Career Poster
    • Webinars
      • WEBINAR: Mindfulness, Positive Psychology & Neuroscience to Help Yourself & Your Students/Clients
      • How To Successfully Build Your LinkedIn Network and Beyond
      • How To Successfully Work With Recruiters
      • WEBINAR: Creating a Value-Added Resume
      • Develop Confidence in Clients
      • Linkedin Train-the-Trainer
      • Develop Value-Added Statements
  • Resources
    • Career blogs
    • Book Reviews
    • Interviews
      • INTERVIEW: Choosing 3 Words to Guide You
      • INTERVIEW: With a Few Book Lovers
      • INTERVIEW: Brand Yourself On LinkedIn
      • INTERVIEW: Staffing & Recruiting Agencies
      • INTERVIEW: Would You Benefit from Hiring a Business Coach?
      • INTERVIEW – Creating the Conversation Using Card Sorts
      • INTERVIEW: TED Talks for Career Practitioners
      • INTERVIEW: What is Mindfulness and Why Should Career Practitioners Care?
      • INTERVIEW: My Three Words to Guide Me in 2019
      • INTERVIEW: Reading Books for Professional Development
  • Contact

focus

Inhale the Future. Exhale the Past

October 9, 2023 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

Recently, my two backpacking buddies of 40+ years and I hiked a 70-mile section of the Colorado Trail, most of which was around 10,000 feet above sea level. It was, as always, a great trip being with people I have known for

3 men backpacking
Colorado Trail near Tennessee Pass

nearly all of my adult life. We have hiked over 2000 miles of trails together, mostly on the Pacific Crest Trail through California, Oregon, and Washington. We use our hiking time, uninterrupted by our typical daily living, to be together, to reflect, to talk about our lives now, and to set goals. It is a special time that makes me feel more like the authentic me than any other time.

On this trip, we met a woman who was backpacking by herself and had an interesting tattoo on her arm with a saying on it. We asked what it said. “Inhale the future. Exhale the past.” She had gone through a difficult divorce, and this was her mantra as she was dealing with it. It was so powerful for her, she had it tattooed on her arm. She is now happily remarried and backpacks with her husband or alone depending up on his schedule.

I can’t stop thinking about this statement. It resonates for me and for so many clients I have worked with. It is so important to move on from the past and to look to the future. It involves way more positive thinking than being stuck in the past.

Inhale the Future. Exhale the Past

inhale exhale
Photo bykathleenport @Pixabay

The trail provides us the uncluttered space to ask each about our lives over the past two years since we hiked a section of the Long Trail in Vermont in 2021. We each had more than two hours to talk about our past 24 months and ask each other questions or make comments on our stories. When do you get the kind of time to do that?

More importantly, we have always found ways to look to the future. We often create 3-5 year goals on our hikes and then hold each other accountable afterwards. This year was no different except that I brought a values exercise Brene Brown shared in her book, Dare to Lead. (The exercise can be found on her website if you’d like to do it.)

Brene has identified a list of over a 100 values. The first step is to circle 10 values important to you now. It is harder than you think. I didn’t tell Rees and Howard that after they were done struggling to get their list to 10, they would have to reduce it to five. Ouch. Brene says that to be a leader and to make your best decisions, you must make sure you are focused on what is important to you at all times. (She actually wants people to reduce it to two!)

The next step is to list three things that you are doing that support each of your top five values and to identify three “slippery slopes” or things that get in the way of you living that value. Then describe one activity you have done recently that exemplifies this value in your life at its best.

We then took the next four days (yes, four days) to share our values, what has been working, what gets in the way, and an example of living this value. The exercise gets you thinking about what has worked or is working for you with this important value, but most importantly what gets in the way.

Inhale the Future. Exhale the Past

The things getting in the way are the most thought-provoking as they led each of us to think about what we could change in the future to embrace this value more. For example: one of my five values is “family” and I recognized that my wife loves to veg out at night watching TV, and I don’t. So this means we don’t get as much time together as I’d like. I thought about one of my “successes” last year with this value when we binged watched Ted Lasso together. So this year, when I came home, I signed up for a month of Hulu so we could watch Murders in the Building together. 

It is a small way for me to exhale the past (me not watching much TV) and to inhale the future (identifying a TV show we could watch together).

Tech-Free-Retreat at Messalonskee Lake

Many of you know that I like to take regular “tech-free retreats” inspired by Richard Leider. I am drafting this blog right now on my September retreat. On these retreats, I take time to think, write, read, walk, and meditate. I listened to one of my favorite guided meditations from davidji, “Taking Your Life to the Next Level.” One line is about moving from the past, like lifting your back leg when walking, lifting it up and moving it forward to get anywhere (that is my interpretation). This resonated with me today as I Inhale the Future. Exhale the Past.

We cannot change the past. 

The question is, how do I want to move forward in the most authentic way? 

How are you moving forward in your life? 

Are you embracing and living the values most important to you?


Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a weekly email for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching.

He is the author of A Field Guide for Career Practitioners: Helping Your Clients Create Their Next Move and The Adventure of Finding Me in New Zealand. He is also the recipient of the 2020 Kenneth C. Hoyt Award from the National Career Development Association and the Mid-Atlantic Career Counseling Association’s Professional Contribution’s Award in 2020.

Sign up to receive my TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON. You will also receive the career practitioner’s weekly email on a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. (Sign up)

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, goals, mindfulness, purpose in life, reflection, slowing down

Survey Says…Engagement!

February 10, 2020 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

Survey Monkey

On my 8th anniversary of being full-time with Peak-Careers, February 3rd, I sent out a request to complete a short survey seeking insights to where people engage with Peak-Careers.

One of my 3 words to guide me in 2020 is “Strategic”, and I wanted to gather some information to help me be more strategic in my efforts.

Survey says “engagement”

A special “shout out” to the nearly 70 people who took the time to fill it out. Thank you so much.

The survey says I have strong engagement in these top 4 areas…and lessons learned in a few others.

  1. Many people do indeed read my weekly career emails that come out Tuesday mornings
    RESULTS: I will continue to send you career content each week.  (see below if you want to be added to the list).
  2. 55+% of the respondents follow me on LinkedIn and read my posts.
    RESULTS: I will make sure that I continue to share quality content to help you do your job and serve your students / clients / customers.
  3. 55% have watched at least one of my monthly career interviews! I am thrilled at this outcome.
    RESULTS: I love doing these interviews with other career practitioners and will definitely keep identifying experts and topics to interest you.
    REQUEST: Do you have topics or people you’d like to hear from in future interviews? Let me know and I’ll work at setting it up.
  4. 40% of the respondents have taken an online seminar
    RESULTS: I know that not everyone is interested in online learning, so I am actually very happy with this number and will continue to offer and develop more subject areas.

LESSONS LEARNED

Facebook Live has not been as popular. I will do one more FB Live and then reevaluate if I will continue them.

  • Tuesday March 3rd at 8:00 pm (Eastern)
  • I will talk about private practice
  • Tips on what has worked for me
  • Recommendations I have for anyone who wants to go into private practice.

Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram are also not where many of you are hanging out. I need to put more thought into whether I want to invest more into each of these to grow them or to “let some of them go”.

If you are interested in the graphic / chart results you can see them here.

Gratitude journal

Regardless, I am grateful for the many people who took time out of their day to give me feedback.

Knowing that so many people support me and find value in following me is wonderful to know.

Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a weekly career news email for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching. He is the author of A Field Guide for Career Practitioners: Helping Your Clients Create Their Next Move

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You can also receive the career practitioners newsletter which includes a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. 

Peak-Careers logo

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, instincts, reflection

INTERVIEW: Taking Retreats to Slow Down

November 20, 2018 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

  • How many things are on your “to do” list today?
  • How many times/day do you check your email and social media accounts?
  • Get control over your day again by choosing 3 things to do each day that “must get done” and then look at your list of 25 things.
  • Check your email 3 times/day…bunch them up so you are not chasing emails all the time.

And…consider taking a day, or a half day, retreat to slow down and rediscover your creativity.

 
Listen to this Peak-Careers Interview with three of us who have been doing retreats for a while now and learn:
  • What our typical “retreat” looks like
  • What motivated us to start doing them
  • What the benefits of doing them can be
  • and some advice & tips for getting started
tech free retreat

Interested in this topic? See my blogs on mindfulness

 

Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a monthly newsletter for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching.

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You can also receive the career practitioners newsletter which includes a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more.

Peak Careers - Professional Development for Careers

Filed Under: Interviews Tagged With: focus, meditation, mindfulness, reflection, retreat, slowing down, tech free, tech free retreat

3 Reasons to Practice Mindfulness at Work

June 12, 2017 by Jim Peacock 2 Comments

Sunrise over Honolulu

In our ever-busy world that we live in, it is important that we find ways to slow ourselves down as a way to better serve ourselves and clients. Our ability to manage the tsunami of information coming into us daily and hourly is inversely linked to the quality of services we provide. If we are constantly chasing emails, tweets, and other social media messages, we are not taking the time to slow down and “think”.  Yes, just “think” instead of reacting.

“Mindfulness is deliberately paying full attention to what is happening around you and within you – in your body, heart, and mind. Mindfulness is awareness without criticism or judgement.”                        

From Jan Chozen Bays, Author of  How To Train a Wild Elephant: And Other Adventures in Mindfulness

Here are three reasons why you should practice mindfulness as a career practitioner.

[Read more…] about 3 Reasons to Practice Mindfulness at Work

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, less is best, mindfulness, reflection, slowing down

Journaling: Taking ‘Fuzzy Thinking’ to Concrete Ideas in Career Development

May 8, 2017 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

As a career coach/counselor, do you ask  your clients to journal? I do occasionally because I believe the process of taking ideas out of their heads and putting them on paper can be a very powerful activity.

“A goal not written is only a wish.” I believe this is true in the career development process…write it down and think it through.

Personally I try to journal every day, first thing in the morning. I choose to free-style it and just write about what is important to me that day. It clarifies the ideas in my head and takes them from fuzzy thinking to something concrete. I also think it helps to journal on a regular schedule so it becomes part of your day.

[Read more…] about Journaling: Taking ‘Fuzzy Thinking’ to Concrete Ideas in Career Development

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, instincts, intentional serendipity, journal, journaling, reflection, slowing down, trusting your hunches, trusting your instincts

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. Cal Newport

March 20, 2017 by Jim Peacock 2 Comments

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. By Cal Newport

I needed this book to confirm a bunch of thoughts I have been struggling with in my busy life. Cal does a persuasive job describing the benefits for removing the clutter of our daily lives that eat of time he calls “shallow work” like emails, social media, and more. This is what I call “feeling like a golden retriever with 4 tennis balls in the room.”

Cal talks about the many benefits of Deep Work that requires longer periods of uninterrupted time that is much more productive. Carl Jung built a retreat for himself that he would go to and think and write and think some more. He still was active in his social life but not the days he was at his retreat.

Cal’s definition of Deep Work: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.

He gives many great examples of people who have mastered the ability to focus and to think deeper thoughts and produce great work from Woody Allen who wrote and directed 44 films that received 23 Academy Award nominations in 44 years! As well as some guy names Bill Gates who would take “Think Weeks” twice a year.

In 2012 a McKinsey study found that the average worker now spends more that 60 % of the workweek engaged in e-communication an Internet searching, with close to 30% of their time reading and answering email alone!

The Deep Work hypothesis: The ability to perform deep work is becoming increasingly rare at exactly the same time it si becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. As a consequence, the few who cultivate this skill, and then make it the core of their working life, will thrive.

Cal postulates and has research to support it, that by practicing Deep Work and thinking, you can grow this ability, much like a muscle. The more you can get into Deep Work daily, the more benefits you will produce. AND Deep Work will allow you to be focused enough that you can stop working evenings and weekends. Folks, it is a compelling book to read.

Filed Under: Book Reviews Tagged With: focus, less is best, mindfulness, slowing down

  • Page 1
  • Page 2
  • Go to Next Page »

Footer

Connect With Peak Careers

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

NCDA-approved provider

Career Practitioners Subscribe Today

Sign up for "the Top 10 Tips When Working With an Undecided Person" and also receive a weekly email on a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more SUBSCRIBE

Copyright © 2025 Peak Careers

Subscribe

Sign up here to receive my  “TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON”. 

You can also receive our weekly career practitioners email which includes a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. 

Subscribe Today