On October 12, I celebrate the fifth anniversary of the publication of my book, Career ReCharge: Five Strategies to Boost Resilience and Beat Burnout. My book journey proves that life is unpredictable and sometimes, the best achievements are a result of something else. You can have specific goals, but you never quite know what will lead to your next exciting accomplishment!
I still remember the day when I presented at the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association conference in Boston. I was pleased with the impact I made by sharing my Benatti Resiliency Model®, but I felt like I was missing something. All the other presenters had books and I wondered if writing a book should and could be part of my career journey. It did not seem realistic, though, with everything going on in my life, including managing my business.
While working at Millennium Pharmaceuticals, there was a span of time when many of my leadership coaching clients were telling me they loved their jobs but were exhausted all the time. They were working hard, and I could see many of them going down the burnout escalator—yes, even when you enjoy, and are passionate about, your career, burnout can happen. These clients found it helpful that I made them focus not only on their leadership, but on their resilience.
During this time, I shared with a few of my coaching clients that I had a long-term goal of writing a book on my resiliency model and including stories from my clients. One of them, Ann, was my first cheerleader. She would not let me put this goal behind me, even when I wanted to put it on hold. Ann is now a Chief Scientific Officer but when I began coaching her, she was a mid-level manager identified as having high potential but clearly dealing with burnout. She embraced my Benatti Resiliency Model and developed habits that recharged her to a point where she made changes to have the career she always dreamed of and a healthy personal life too. At the end of every coaching session, she would say to me, “Beth, how is the book coming?” I would say how distracted I was by new clients and training opportunities and traveling. She would tell me that the book was a way to share my resilience vision with more people than just my coaching clients. Thank you, Ann, for your support!
Those conversations with Ann made me realize that like my coaching clients, I needed guidance, support, and accountability. I enrolled in a program facilitated by the late Barbara Sher, one of the top career coaching authors in the world. The program was quite motivating, and I cherish the memory of the one-on-one book coaching session I had with Barbara. She loved my idea but also said, “You cannot wait for the book to come out; you need to be developing resilience training classes at the same time.” I took her advice and was facilitating Career ReCharge training even before the book was completed. These classes continue today to teach resilience and help prevent burnout for employees.
The book was in process, but it had a long way to go and thankfully, my friend Lisa Dolce found another writing program. This one was different because you went away four times on writing retreats. This was what I needed to make my dream come true! I made a 100% commitment to the retreats and Career ReCharge really began to take shape. On the one-week writing retreat that took place in Costa Rica, Lisa and I sat under the gazebo looking at the beautiful ocean and palm trees and could feel the power of being around supportive people. This was a huge milestone for me, and Career ReCharge was getting closer to the finish line! Thank you, Lisa!
Melissa Corcoran, a past coaching client of mine from The Gillette Company, became the book project manager. Melissa always had a way with words and now Career ReCharge benefited from the way she meticulously looked at every detail and kept me moving in the right direction. I learned the importance of getting feedback from individuals I trust, just as I suggest to all my coaching clients. Thank you, Melissa!
Then it happened: Career ReCharge was published!
I had so many incredible learnings and opportunities even after the book came out.
At the launch party of Career ReCharge, I was so touched that my entire family came from New York for the celebration and coaching clients who were featured in the book shared the impact of my model and the joy of being resilient. This event was a highlight of my career!
That led to the honor of being quoted in numerous articles and asked to speak at conferences around the globe. A few highlights were:
- In May 2018, I presented at the Career Thought Leaders Conference and Symposium in Madrid, Spain.
- In February 2019, I was invited to present about career recharge at the Globe and Mail Executive Performance Summit in Toronto, Canada.
- In May 2019, my husband Patrick and I went to Sifnos, Greece to celebrate our anniversary. While we were there, the World Health Organization announced that burnout would be included in the 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases as an occupational phenomenon. On May 28, I received phone calls from journalists in the USA asking if I would be willing to do an interview on burnout that day. Talk about timing—some things in life you just cannot plan!
- I was honored that Career ReCharge received two book awards.
- I listened to feedback from clients, who were interested in having a way to determine the extent of their resilience. The Resilience Benchmark, currently available on my website, was developed. I also use it as pre-work for my Career ReCharge trainings.
- The book provided me with opportunities that took me outside my comfort zone and enhanced my own resilience. One of the incredible invitations I received in 2022 was to give a TEDx Talk at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. I had so much fun working with the students that organized the entire event. I learned that life is not about perfection but about preparation, connection, and being open to new challenges.
I was recently asked by another coach who is thinking about writing a book what my greatest learnings were. I tried my best to keep it to six special learnings!
- It’s important to get out of your comfort zone. I could feel the stress bubbling up before each Career ReCharge speaking event but then I would feel the amazing gratification and energy from the experience. Part of risk-taking is trying something new.
- Having fun is crucial for success! At times, I had so many deadlines and so many to-do lists all while being self-employed, I asked myself how I would manage all the deliverables. I decided at the very beginning that part of my mantra was, “It may not be easy, but I am going to have fun with every step”, and I did.
- Connection is the key to career fulfillment. I am so grateful for leadership coaching clients who allowed me to share their resilience journey in my book. I thank my lucky stars every day that I get to coach some of the best people on the planet. Our relationship does not end after their coaching engagement; we continue to stay connected and seeing them enjoy fulfilling careers is an inspiration to me.
- Support can move you through scary and audacious goals. I would never have seen the success of Career ReCharge if I did not have amazing family, friends, colleagues, and coaching clients on my career boat providing support.
- It is important for my personal brand to walk the talk. I have made resilience a priority for the past 25 years of my life. Sometimes this means saying no to some requests to be able to stay recharged and on brand. I am honored when my clients and friends notice that I embrace and practice the concept of resilience. I learned the importance of having clear boundaries and for someone like me, it meant blocking out full days for this unique project.
- When you accomplish a meaningful goal, celebrate! As my two daughters will tell you, celebrating is important in our family. My dad was good at celebrating my accomplishments when he was alive. When he passed away, I told my coach my accomplishments would never mean so much. She said, “Yes, they will. You will continue to celebrate your achievements in his honor.” Cheers to my dad who taught me about resilience and is one of the reasons I wrote this book. He loved his career but worked way too much and his well-being struggled as a result.
I am grateful for the chance to celebrate Career ReCharge and share my journey with you!
