Soar past the Thriving Threshold, with these three steps to career happiness

Many of my clients come to me feeling fed up and frustrated with their careers. They have this niggling feeling that there must be MORE.

They might not be miserable, but they’re not thriving.

If this is you, on a Sunday evening, you might have a nagging feeling of dread, that another busy week on the hamster wheel is ahead of you.

You’re going through the motions, making sure you’re doing everything that’s expected of you, but probably not going the extra mile to do things really well. Or on the flip side, you’re working yourself to the bone trying to prove yourself but not getting the recognition you deserve.

You might have tried asking your boss for clearer direction on what kinds of next steps are available to you. And you might have found their answer as clear as mud.

You might have read books on personal development, like Start With Why by Simon Sinek, or Atomic Habits by James Clear. And the ideas sound great, and you could totally see how they would work. But a month goes by and the book is gathering dust while you’re on the same hamster wheel as before.

Or maybe it’s the LinkedIn learning or Odemy courses that get you. Ah yes, “time management for managers” – that will save me! But a year after watching the videos on 1.5x, nothing has changed.

None of these methods are hitting the mark.

This blog is for you if you want something in your career to change, but you don’t know your options.

Or you know what you want, but are having trouble making it happen.

Or perhaps you’ve changed jobs recently and realised that you’re still not feeling fulfilled.

You might be feeling like you SHOULD be able to just carve out some time to think and work this all out for yourself, but it’s not happening.

If you don’t do this work, you can end up either burning out because you’re throwing yourself into doing work that isn’t valued, or disengaging completely with your job and your career meaning that your potential is wasted.

I know because I’ve been there! And because other people have told me that they’ve been there too.

In March 2025, I surveyed 51 people in the travel industry to understand how they feel about their careers, and 53% are not happy where they currently are.

By analysing what these people want from their careers, and integrating observations from client work and personal experience, I’ve mapped out the five key stages on our Runway To Happiness.

And there is a distinct point where people begin to feel truly satisfied with their career trajectory.

These are the three steps to take, to get to the Thriving Threshold.

(I work on these steps with my clients in MANIFEST.)

1. Potential & Plan:

Much like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we start with the basics. Assuming our human physiological needs are met, our journey to professional fulfilment starts with career growth.

We need to know our careers are headed in the right direction, with better pay, new opportunities, and a clear path forward. That sense of progress gives us a feeling of security. When we have an actionable plan, we believe we can avoid major career setbacks and continue to provide for ourselves and our families.

When you move onto the first step of the runway, you’ll start to feel a sense of control and security about your career. This is all about working out where you want to go, and how to get there, on purpose, not by chance.

To create more and better opportunities for yourself, spend some time working out what you want to do and build a career plan around that. Think big, then work backwards.

Also, be good at your job; seek out opportunities to build your technical skills.

Emily worked her magic helping me discover my strengths and uncover direction I never knew I had. She didn’t just ease my anxieties; she illuminated a clear path forward.

With her guidance, I was able to transform my uncertainty into genuine trust, confidence and happiness – it was truly amazing how she helped me reconnect with my body and believe in myself in such tangible ways I never knew were possible.

I wholeheartedly recommend working with Emily. No matter what you’re struggling with, she’ll empower you and guide you towards new perspectives, unlocking potentials you might not even know exist in you.

– Cristina, Head of Supply

2. Make it Public:

Next up: recognition. Sure, financial recognition plays its role in making us feel secure (money makes the world go round, after all). But more than that, fair pay, genuine appreciation, and not being taken for granted makes us feel like part of a safe, solid tribe. We then believe we’re in a fair exchange of value, and as long as we hold up our end, others will too.

Once you’re here, you’ll feel a sense of support and recognition from your community.

To get this support and feel more valued, you’ll need to learn how to get better help from your network, how to communicate your unique value to others, and set your minimum standards of what you will accept from a role or company.

Working with Emily has been transformative.

Emily helped me define a compelling personal value proposition, articulate my strengths with confidence, curated to the audience and helped develop a clear focused mindset for effective decision-making.

Her guidance has been instrumental in preparing me for success in job interviews and later as I took up the role from one such successful interview.

– Jacob Jimmy, Senior Commercial Leader

3. Prioritise You:

Then comes purpose and balance. We don’t just want to belong, we want to be respected members of the group. And respect isn’t just lip service.

It looks like this:

➡️ Not being run into the ground

➡️ Being able to make space for life outside of work

➡️ Getting real rest, not just ‘time off’

Working with purpose brings clarity and resilience. It gives our work meaning and steers us to make better decisions. It earns the respect of others too; people notice when you’re driven by something deeper.

Reaching the third step on the runway gives you a sense of purpose, and balance, which comes from knowing your WHY and your HOW.

Learn to set boundaries around your time and your energy, showing other people how to treat you. This enables you to focus on working towards your bigger purpose.

I remember the first contact with Emily; I was completely blocked by the situation I was experiencing at work. I had been in a new role for 12 months and was not feeling well.

I was working long hours, and the feedback I received from my manager was not positive. I felt extremely insecure and did not know what the problem was.

Thanks to the sessions with Emily, I began to find the tools to stay connected with myself and understand the reasons I was going through this situation.

The result was that I started to find recognition within myself and, subsequently, from my boss, leading to promotion opportunities. In my personal life, a long-desired change finally happened. I strongly recommend coaching sessions with Emily to anyone; they are a fundamental piece for personal development and self-awareness.

– Barbara, Customer Success Manager

Congratulations, you are now thriving!

Once you’ve done the work of building the blocks of your Runway to Happiness, and experience a role and career which fulfils all those needs, there is a fundamental shift.

Self-esteem and self-actualisation are the gateway to thriving. And once we get there, something powerful happens: a self-reinforcing loop kicks in.

People who feel secure, valued, and driven have more energy and headspace. They stop operating in survival mode and start thinking bigger. Ask yourself: when you’re worried about losing your job or feeling stuck, do you have the capacity for deep, creative work?

Once you’re thriving, and trust yourself to deal with any detours, you’ll start to hone your expertise. This is where you sharpen your Prowess and become the go-to expert in your field.

You’ll focus on having a bigger impact on the people and companies you work with, beyond your job title. This is stepping into your Power.

All of which makes YOU hot stuff at work.

But remember, if you don’t do this work on your foundations, the whole lot could come tumbling down.

You might find a role that is lots of fun, but if you don’t know how to get the right support, you could falter.

Or you might get a new project that has impact for the company, but if it isn’t matched to your strengths and career plan, it doesn’t help you.

This is the work I do in MANIFEST.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to create your Career Manifest in 6 weeks, or less, so you can find your calling, make a plan and communicate it to others.

Learn more about MANIFEST