People of Purpose: 019: Susan Peppercorn -- Helping Other People Find Career Purpose and Satisfaction

019: Susan Peppercorn -- Helping Other People Find Career Purpose and Satisfaction

Apr 15, 2018

Susan Peppercorn is an executive and career coach who has a passion for helping individuals thrive in their career. Having made four career changes herself, Susan knows what it’s like to feel stuck in a job you hate as well as the self-recrimination that goes along with it. Susan transformed her career and developed a scientifically-validated approach to help others do the same that she practices in her work and teaches in her best-selling book Ditch Your Inner Critic At Work. In the book Susan makes the most compelling case yet that career satisfaction―and the full engagement that comes with it―is more important than ever in today’s workplace. Susan has been tapped for career advice by high profile publications such as the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Harvard Business Review and U.S. News and World Report. Susan is a graduate of the Whole Being Institute with a Certificate in Positive Psychology, and was a teaching assistant in the same program under Dr. Tal Ben Shahar. Also Accredited by the International Coaching Federation, she is a frequently requested speaker and an executive mentor for the Healthcare Business Women's Association (HBA).

Listen as we talk about:

Why purpose in the workplace comes from a focus on internal rewards, rather than external rewards [8]
How a severance package forced her into career purpose [10]
What gave Susan the confidence to know she could coach people before she was "qualified" [15]
Why her certificate in Positive Psychology changed her life [19]
Why we need to integrate and acknowledge emotions to thrive [20]
Why its important to acknowledge the emotions experienced in the body through your job [28:30]
Specific exercises Susan uses to guide her clients into greater self-awareness and the grieving process of losing a job [32]
Why the 20's are a time to experiment and try different things [36:30]
A three-step process to come into your career purpose [40]
What is a "stretch goal" and how if helped her write a bestselling book [42:30]
Scientifically-backed findings that are proving misconceptions in American work and career happiness [47]
How to think about money as it relates to purpose - especially if your financial situation is destitute [50]
Why you should highlight something that is not on your resume [54]
How failing at technology sales brought her into a greater sense of purpose [56]
The importance of creating a "Personal Board of Directors" or a "Kitchen Cabinet" - i.e. why you must surround yourself with people that can support you in what you're trying to do [1:02]
The right mindset to approach an informational interview [1:07]
The necessity of formal education and trianing to climbing the career ladder [1:14]