The COVID crisis has triggered another paradox our modern world is keen on. We are locked down, our freedom and means of action are restricted, in theory as everything around us accelerates: space dimensions and time seem to distort and concentrate, blurring the border between private and professional lives.  Maybe this is pure perception, but  I have the feeling that for many (including myself) hyperactivity, combined with hyperstress is a consequence not to say an answer to the situation:  never ending connected days for homeworkers, presence on social networks, webinars to get connected with anyone from the moment there is somebody on, purchasing (Black Friday is coming soon), even the political and the sport shows (circus?) actively go on.
Why? Are we so short-term and action-oriented? Is our System so fragile?  Do we feel so isolated or threatened in our identity?
The Western education does not teach us to pause, at least after kindergarten, and I believe it should be a wonderful antidote to the abovesaid paradox. I am not talking exactly about having a full break, but to step back deeply enough and contemplate what is at play for us and what is emerging from the present situation, before moving into action; reflecting on what we keep, release and need to acquire in ourselves before moving forward. A pause before action, a “contemplaction”, with or without goals.
Looking in the rear-view mirror, I realized some time ago that I have probably not allocated enough time for this when it would have made sense, at critical moments of my life or my career, being under constant pressure to take decisions and move forward fast, eager to get results; a pressure that I might have entertained myself.
I may have lost sight on essential things, some precious time as well, and taken hazardous directions.
There are multiple ways to pause, meditation and arts, spirituality can guide us for instance, and we can do it alone or with someone’s help.
This is why I have decided that it will be an important component of my coaching offer: To propose a space and a frame for “contemplaction”, in relation with people's occupation or business concerns; particularly for people reaching a pivotal moment in their career or business development, or facing unknown environments or conditions.
The aftermath of the COVID crisis will be tough. More than ever I believe this is the right time for pause and "contemplaction".
What about you, are you ready for it?

Jean-Philippe Gauvrit

in a famous inspiring poem ("the Road not taken") Robert Frost writes : “I took the one (path) less traveled by, and that has made all the difference”

This philosophy has shaped my career, made of unexpected moves, rebounds and dives in the Unknown.  It has become a golden rule for my photography practice, and  I cannot count the amazing things and people I discovered,  the wonderful pictures  I shot by exiting large avenues to narrow back alleys, for instance in China or in India.

The Future of Work and the evolution of professions are sketched by technological evolution, global challenges, by the promotion of diversity and the emergence of younger generations. From what I see, I am convinced that careers will become less and less linear and predictable, sources of uncertainty but also of promising opportunities. Hybrid and borderless roles will become the new normal, as well as heterogeneous teams; Career drift the new career path.

Walking the less traveled by path is exciting, a rich experience, a unique way to challenge who we are, our worldviews, our certainties. People going that path take risks, face unknown situations, they have to revisit social interactions, and develop self-esteem and self-efficacy. But it can destabilize, and questioning oneself may be difficult. It may not be comfortable, but it can reveal undervalued facets of our identity and of our personal story, if we take the right amount of time to look at them.

I am not suggesting to systematically choose this path. But at least, to pause  and scrutinize the landscape to identify new paths, to consider and explore these options and decide. Its worth’s a try and this is where I assist you as a coach.
What about you? Your trajectory is unique, where do you want to bring it to now? Are you ready to take the less traveled by path?

The road not taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
​
Robert Frost