Self-guided exercises
Six short exercises gathered from the articles on this blog. You can do them on your own, on paper, with no need to get in touch — these are practical tools, not a sales pitch.
A decision on one page
From the article: How to make a difficult decision when no option seems ideal?
Take a sheet of paper and answer the questions below, briefly.
Write down your answers- What decision am I trying to make?
- What am I afraid of?
- What do I know for certain?
- What don't I know, but could find out?
- What values sit on each side of this decision?
- What is the cost of not deciding?
- What is the smallest responsible step I can take right now?
- If I treated myself with kindness, what would I advise myself to do?
Evidence of competence
From the article: A promotion, yet doubts — where they come from and how to work with them
Take a sheet of paper and answer the questions below — specifically, without downplaying anything.
Write down your answers- What decision have I made in this role that turned out well?
- What did I specifically do well in the past month?
- Who gave me concrete, positive feedback, and when?
- What have I learned in the past four weeks that I didn't know before?
- If a friend told me about their first months in a similar role, would I judge them as harshly as I judge myself?
Map your boundaries
From the article: How to set boundaries at work — without damaging the relationship
Do this exercise on paper — honestly, without self-censorship.
Questions to explore- Where in your work do you regularly feel mounting frustration or exhaustion? (That's usually where a boundary is missing.)
- Is there anything you regularly agree to — and then regret?
- What would you say if you weren't afraid of the other person's reaction?
- Where in your work are your boundaries clear and working well? (That's your reference point — what are you doing differently there?)
- What's the smallest step I can take this week to set one boundary I've been avoiding?
Where am I right now?
From the article: Burnout at Work — How to Recognise It and What to Do Before It Becomes a Crisis
Answer these questions on paper or in your head — honestly, without self-censorship.
Pause and answer- On a scale of 1–10: how much energy do I have at the end of a working week? (1 = complete exhaustion, 10 = fully restored)
- When did I last finish a working day feeling I had done something worthwhile?
- If I could let go of one thing in my job today — what would it be, and why have I not done so yet?
- What helps me recover? When did I last actually do it?
- Is there something my body or mind has been signalling for weeks — that I keep not acting on?
What to do tonight
From the article: How to regain clarity in career decisions
Pick whichever of the three questions below stirred the strongest reaction in you. Take a sheet of paper. Write your answer by hand — not on a keyboard. Give yourself ten minutes. Don't edit. Don't judge. Write what comes.
Choose one question- What am I really afraid of, if this decision doesn't work out?
- Is this decision really mine?
- How will I judge this decision in three years — regardless of how it turns out?
Coaching or mentoring — a quick check
From the article: When a Coaching Session Must Become Mentoring
See how many of the statements below fit your current situation.
Check what applies- I have a specific question and I'm looking for a substantive answer, not space to think.
- I keep returning to the same topic week after week because I'm missing knowledge, not courage.
- My questions start with "how," not "why am I afraid."
- After talking to someone, I'm left with: "I need someone to show me this, not ask me again what I think about it."
Want a more precise result? Take the full coaching-or-mentoring quiz — 5 questions, instant result.
Done the exercise and want to go further?
Sometimes reflecting on your own is enough. Sometimes it helps to talk it through with someone from outside, who can help you make sense of what came up.
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