Career Counseling

BECHTOLD LIFEWORKS COUNSELING & COACHING

helping you create a life that works

holistic career counseling

GOOD STORIES

An insurance company employee looks within and shifts her perceptions about what she is capable of; her newfound sense of self and personal vision help her land her dream job as a training consultant.

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A restaurateur listens to the voice of his soul and discovers his core values. The result: he sells his cafe to follow a more meaningful path as a non-profit development director.

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The owner of a successful consulting firm calls upon her inner warrior to give her the courage to return to the much-loved city where she grew up, and develop a women-only tour company.

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A mid-career manager gets through a difficult first year at a new job by sorting through old stories of scarcity and hard times. He recommits to the path he's on, and moves forward.

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"I am doing great and living my dreams. For me, it does not get much better."

--D.S.

"You've helped me answer one of life's most important questions: what should I do with my career?"

--H.S.

Does career seem like too small a word for such an important part of your life?

Vocation might be a better way to say it. It's from a Latin word. It means to be called. And ultimately, vocation is about the process of becoming ourselves -- the journey towards wholeness.

I bet you're on that journey. And you're probably yearning for more from your career. Maybe you're even asking yourself some big questions right now. Questions like...

What do I truly want?
Where am I going?
What's my purpose?
Where do I fit?

Big questions are important, but sometimes they're confusing. In fact, you may feel pulled in two (or more) different directions.

On the one hand the voice of calling encourages you to work in a meaningful way. On the other, the voice of safety and security cautions you to be careful, because maybe you can't afford to make a change. So you wind up feeling stuck and disconnected from your essence.

Wouldn't it be great to call a truce between those two voices?

How it works

First, we’ll take a holistic approach. If it's helpful for you, you’ll have a chance to explore the complexities of these questions, as well as the history, influences, and experiences that bring you to this place in your career and life.

And I won't automatically give you a bunch of career tests. That would be like needing a prescription to figure out your life. But you're not sick. In fact, you have access to a powerful medicine right inside of you: your imagination.

Your imagination can often lead the way out of career confusion.

So in our sessions together, I’ll invite you to ignite your creativity and stretch the muscles of your imagination:

Explore stories, images, themes, and patterns
Look for the wisdom lurking within day dreams and dreams
Play with imaginary lives and future scenarios
Identify how you project your gold (the gifts you haven't yet owned)
Meet parts of you who want space at the table of your life

Bolstered with these insights, I'll help you create a plan and start taking actions that will lead you to feeling better about your career. And I'll be right there with you, supporting you all the way.

Where would you like to go?

You get to choose the areas of your career you want to explore in this process. Here are some ways I've seen it help my clients:

discover the types of work that truly make your heart sing

express your gifts, talents, and passions

develop healthy, supportive work relationships

take a risk and step into a larger, more powerful work role

explore new ways to work: creative, entrepreneurial, portfolio

gain clarity about the intersection of money and work

redefine work as you transition to a different age and stage of life

release career shoulds and create a personal definition of success

gather courage and take action to leave a toxic job or organization

heal from a job loss or unexpected work transition

All the details

It's pretty simple -- no fancy packages or programs. Work with me for as few or as many sessions as you need. If you know at the beginning that you want at least 6 to 12 sessions, I offer a discount for the series (and you can pay as you go -- you don't have to pay it all up front). Otherwise, you can work with me on a session-by-session basis.

12 sessions: $90 each/$1080 total, completed in 6 months or less

6 sessions: $100 each/$600 total, completed in 3 months or less

1 session: $125; repeat as many times as you wish

We can meet in my office in Sacramento, or we can do phone/Skype sessions. Whatever you choose, we'll meet for about an hour. Some clients like to connect weekly, others prefer every other week. Either way, I'll try to schedule your appointments at a regular day and time because that creates a nurturing space that's just for you.

Before we start I'll send you some questions to reflect on. We'll dig into those during our first session to get a feel for what's most important for you right now.

After that, we'll just jump in and start. Because why wait, right?

Patty Bechtold, M.S. Holistic Career Counselor + Life Coach + Women's Circle Facilitator

Sacramento CA