Space To Shift Your Career

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/25

Imagine you’re standing on a lookout, scanning the horizon with a pair of binoculars.

At first, everything looks a bit blurry. So you adjust the focus. 

Suddenly, certain things become sharp and clear… while others fade into the background.

Now here’s the interesting part: What you see isn’t just about what’s out there. It’s about how you’ve adjusted the lens. 

The same landscape… but a completely different view.

When it comes to their career, many publi...

Find the full transcript - and other resources - at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/24

At some point in my work with public sector leaders exploring their next career move, someone always asks me, sometimes half-joking, sometimes half panicking:

“What am I going to do with my life?”

That is such a BIG question. And big questions feel HEAVY.

Your career influences where you live, how much you earn, how you structure your days, the people you surround yourself with, and the impact you feel you you're making. Of course, it feels stressful not...

Find the full transcript - and other resources - at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/23

Imagine you’re standing on one side of a river. 

On the other side is work that energises you. That aligns with who you are now and how you want to contribute in future.

The problem? 

The water feels fast and unpredictable. Leaping straight across feels risky. Staying where you are feels safe - but stagnant.

Some people find a log to cross. Others hop across stepping stones. Sometimes, the smartest thing to do is build a br...

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/22

Changing careers can feel a bit like a divorce. But not just from a job.

It can feel like breaking up with a part of yourself. 

The part that introduced you at conferences. 
The part that signed emails with a certain title. 
The part that felt proud when people asked: “So what do you do?”

When public sector leaders tell me they’re considering a career change, they say it feels like a confession.

Because it doesn’t just feel like l...

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/21

Many public sector leaders feel guilty for wanting something different, even when their work no longer lights them up.

They stay in roles not because they still love them. But because they feel loyal. 

Loyal to the mission. Loyal to their team.  Loyal to the public sector.

What if loyalty isn’t just something you owe your organisation, but something you owe yourself?

In episode 21 of the Space To Shift Your Career podcast, we explore the flip side of loyalty. 

And...

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Do you feel like you’re performing a role you’ve outgrown? 

There’s a significant difference between resigning yourself to a career on auto-pilot and living out your ideal career and life.

Your ideal career:

It’s easy to get excited about work on Mondays because what you do is right...

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/19

As a public sector leader, you don’t make big decisions just based on vibes. You work with evidence. 

You don’t just throw ideas around casually. You use frameworks, analysis, robust processes.

So when I say: “Just tap into your creativity about your future…” you’ll probably think it sounds a bit ... fluffy. 

But creativity isn’t about doing something vague or impractical.

It’s an essential part of the exploration process. 

It’s the phase where you step back and ask: Wh...

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/18 

Have you ever noticed how old scripts stick around long after they’re useful?

Like a template that’s been copied and pasted for years. 

No one remembers any more who actually wrote it originally. But everyone keeps using it - because they’ve always used it.

It once served a purpose. It reduced risk. Avoided embarrassment. Helped things run smoothly and efficiently.

But over time, that familiar old template can turn into a handbrake.

In this episode of Space to...

Find the full transcript at http://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/17

As a public sector leader, you are used to working on wicked problems that don’t have easy answers.

Think back to the last time you led through a complex piece of work in uncertain conditions. 

You didn’t have the perfect brief. You and your team just got on with it. 

You gathered information. You tested assumptions. And you adjusted as you went.

And yet, when it comes to their own career, many public sector leaders do the opposite.

They...

Find the full transcript at https://spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/16 

In the public sector, we’re trained to scan the horizon: New policy challenges. Political cycles. Economic trends. Resourcing needs.

We’re used to a working environment where advisors give advice, decision makers decide, implementers implement. That’s just how it works, right? 

But lately, it feels like the old certainties are gone. 

Geopolitical and economic forces are challenging what we long took for granted. 

Things that used to happen out there in the world are starting to feel closer to home.

Get your FREE copy of the 'Re-Define Success' Workbook at https://SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/15 

Many of us entered work in the public sector with a strong sense of purpose and duty.

We measured success by impact: how well we served the public, supported our teams, or upheld fairness and accountability.

Over time, those external measures became deeply internalised: performance reviews, recognition, pay bands. They started to define us.

And yet, the longer we stay, the more we notice a dissonance: that our own definition of success hasn’t been updated in years.

Find the full transcript at SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/14

As public sector leader, you witness how the world is shifting quickly. Long-term strategies like five-year career plans don’t hold up anymore. 

But letting go of certainty doesn’t mean letting go of your desire to have impact.

The reason you entered this work was clear: you wanted to solve big problems, make a difference, and contribute to something larger than yourself. 

But here’s the challenge: once you’ve framed your impact in that way, it can feel like there are NO alternativ...

Find the full transcript at spacetoshiftyourcareer.com/13

Today, on the last day of 2025, I want to share with you my personal end-of-year reflection framework. 

Yes, it’s THAT time of the year again!

Why do people do this?

I do it…

To notice and acknowledge what has been. Things that went as I had hoped for and the sur...

Find the full transcript at https://SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/12

You know how every year, as government agencies approach the end of the financial cycle, we rush to close off reports, tidy loose ends, and get the numbers lined up before the cut-off?

We prepare briefing notes, ministerial updates, budget forecasts, end-of-year performance papers. 

But we rarely prepare ourselves to transition into downtime.

It’s almost like we assume rest will somehow squeeze itself into the calendar between end-of-year events, office lunches, staff farewells - and last minute emergencies.

But rest doe...

Find the full transcript at https://SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/11

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If you’ve ever worked on a Cabinet paper, a briefing, or programme update, you’ll know the drill.

Before anything sees the light of day, you run it past the front-page test: 

“How would this look if it landed on the front page of the newspaper tomorrow morning?”

It’s automatic – like muscle memory.

I was speaking recently with a group of public sector leaders about their career journeys.

One of them shared that in their team, the ris...

Find the full transcript at www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/10

Have you ever watched a hamster running on its wheel? 

From the outside, it looks like motion, progress. All that energy. But from the inside, it must feel like endless circling with no way out. 

That’s what it can feel like when you live on autopilot. Work and life are busy. You’ve got your routines to keep moving. But you’re going through the motions. And it’s hard to step off and pause.

The same is true when your...

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Imagine being handed an old manual to run a department in today’s world. 

The structures have changed. The funding streams have shifted. The stakeholders are different. But you're still expected to make things work, using outdated tools.

That’s what it feels like for many public sector leaders considering a career change. They rely on ideas and beliefs shaped decades ago. 

Ideas about what a successful career ‘should’ look like. About changing careers being unwise, naive, impossible. Simply an own goal. ...

Find the full transcript at SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/8  

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You wouldn’t set out on a long journey without a compass or GPS. Or the maps app on your phone. 

Even if you think you know the route, things change: road closures, traffic, better paths you didn’t know about. 

And yet... this is how many of us move through our careers in the public sector: we follow the expected road. The logical promotional path. The well-known track, carved out by someone else. 

But logic isn’t the same as what’s meaningful...

Find the full transcript at www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/7 

Imagine a bird in a beautiful cage.

From the outside, it looks like the perfect home: polished bars, regular meals, shelter from storms. The bird is safe.

But when you look closer, you notice the way it stares at the sky. It’s comfortable in there… but the bird longs to fly.

That’s what I hear consistently from public sector leaders who’ve been thinking about their next career move. 

They value the stability and benefits of their curr...

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>> 5 Meanings Of Space Public Sector Leaders Should Consider When Exploring A Career Change

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Let me ask you something: When you hear the word ‘dream’, do you roll your eyes - even just a little? 

You’re not alone. 

To many of us ‘dreaming’ sounds lofty. Naive. The opposite of what we need. 

Especially in the public sector, where realism, facts and measurable outcomes are the currency - what place does dreaming have? 

But here’s a thought: imagine your career without a vision. No direction. Just duty. 

That’s not realism. That’s resi...

Find the full transcript on www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/4

Have you ever been on a boat that slowly loses momentum? 

It starts off strong. Full speed ahead. Purpose clear. Destination in sight. But over time, it begins to slow. Not because something is wrong. Just because something shifted. 

The scenery outside is still beautiful. The passengers are still kind. But your gaze starts to drift towards the horizon. You’re not feeling lost completely, but no longer sure where you’re headed. 

You begin to wonder: ‘Is this still where I want to...

Find the full transcript and more resources at www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/3 

You know those creeping silent changes you don’t notice until one day something feels… off?

It’s subtle. You’re not miserable, not exactly. But you’re also not thriving. 

Maybe you notice the Sunday evening blues more often. Maybe it's a tightness in your chest you can’t quite explain. 

And then there’s this question emerging in the back of your mind:

“Is this still the right path for me?”

As a leader in the publi...

Find a downloadable worksheet for your career audit at www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/2

We audit all kinds of things in life. 

We check our finances to make sure we’re on track. We get our cars inspected regularly to stay safe on the road. We go to the doctor for check ups.  

Even if nothing seems wrong, we still do it. Because little problems can build up quietly over time. 

But how often do we do that for our careers?

We just keep going. New role, new challenge, new r...

Find the full transcript at www.SpaceToShiftYourCareer.com/1 

Have you ever had that moment, maybe in the middle of a Zoom call or while walking back from a policy briefing, where something in you pauses?

Where, for a split second, you hear a quiet voice asking: 

Is this it? Is this what I want for the rest of my life?

You’re not unhappy exactly. You’re doing important work, making a difference, serving the public good. You’ve helped shape programs that matter, maybe even helped shift systems for the better. ...

Welcome to my podcast, Space to Shift Your Career. 

Do you want to get energised and design your next bold career move? This is for you!

This show is hosted by me, Yvonne Davidis. I'm a career change coach for leaders in the public sector.  

I invite leaders like you to explore new paths that reflect who you are now and how you want your career to evolve in future. 

Episodes in this show will cover: