OK, spill the beans…what was it like being in The Fierce Emporium?
Harvey talked about…non-existent dreams
I’ve never been one to dream and to think what I want from the future and this is the first time in my life that I’m really excited about what’s ahead. I have a vision of where I want to be in ten years and, more importantly, I know the steps to get there. I know what I have to do.
One of the highlights was the completely unexpected layout. I didn’t see it as a ‘course’ it was more of an experience. As I immersed myself in the experience and learned a lot about me.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who hesitates to answer the question “Do you love what you do for a living?” The Emporium will help you hone your answer to that question.
Carter talked about….dread that I might stay stuck - forever.
I’d been in my industry for 20+ years when I came across The Fierce Emporium.
One of the biggest takeaways is that you can’t think your way out of feeling career stuck - which I’d been trying to do for a while!
And I’m still working through the programme but somehow, I’ve become comfortable with uncertainty and I don’t feel trapped anymore.
I have a new-found trust that I will be doing something different - that I can design to be more energising and have more meaning. I know I’ll take my Superpowers with me. I know what to avoid. I’ve learned new [career design] skills - that I will use forever.
I have a completely different mindset about my future and even about my current job. I’ve discovered ways to recover quicker from the bad days. I’m better able to build into my current job ways to do my current work differently.
I’ve been able to build more joy into my current work - and I can take that with me into all my future work.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who’s doom-scrolling through LinkedIn hoping for a brilliant new career to magically appear. Or if you’re already talking to career coaching - book in to speak to Lucia - a career designer - you owe it to yourself.
Adrian talked about…being driven by fear
What felt like a crisis [my redundancy] last summer now feels like a golden opportunity to do what I now know I want to do.
We are often driven by fear…fear of change, of taking too many risks or of looking stupid. The big takeaway for me is that what I fear most is not doing what I really want to do. And I don’t fear that much else. The biggest failure is not to try.
On the horizon I can see the chance of real fulfillment and I’m having fun.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…midlifers who are asking themselves “Is this it?”.
Amira talked about…not getting unstuck alone
“Before joining The Emporium, I worried if I was strong enough or had enough energy to make whatever change might come from the programme.
Over the course of the year, with a busy family life and full-time career, I was able to make good decisions to influence my future work and life positively.
One of the highlights for me was the balance between structure and playfulness. I was able to reassess different areas of life and work with a method - which was very helpful.
It spurred me into taking further actions that are now giving me confidence to make the right change for me.
I loved the experimental philosophy that is embedded in the programme - it helped me move from feeling stuck, into movement and now creating momentum.”
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for….anyone who is feeling stuck and doing nothing about it but wants to ready themselves for change. a
Catherine talked about…feeling paralysed
“I was stuck. I knew I was a a bit of a crossroads and was paralysed by the choices I had to make, and the decisions I saw ahead of me.
I had some real aha moments that were very powerful. I was always too ambitious for the future, so the notion of mini ideas was powerful for me.
I’ve now asked myself…what do I want to do with the last third of my life? And I’ve got some answers.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…Everyone. Obviously it’s targeted at midlifers, but the notion that you have agency over your future is really powerful at any age…It is certainly for people who are older, people like myself, who have realised there aren’t many people who look like us still in the business, and who are questioning what that means for our future.”
Dom talked about…not being in control
“I was feeling quite unfulfilled at work and wanted the next 10 years of my career to feel different to the previous 10 years.
I knew I needed to change, but I didn’t know how to…I felt very stuck and needed some impetus to help me out.
Just knowing there are other people out there who feel the same is massive.
Seeing something working for someone else in your group helps you to try their ideas to see if they might work for me also…
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for… people who are feeling stuck and are at a junction. They could stay in that rut, that comfort zone they’ve been in for the past few decades. But in back of their mind, they know they need to get out, but don’t know how or where to start.”
Jeremy talked about…two steps forward, one step back
I joined because I didn’t see myself continuing in my current career for the next 15-20 years…or if I was to stay, I needed something to change.
You only get one life, so I wanted to make full use of my talents.
Personally I have discovered a love for experimenting. It’s made me realise I can do things I never before thought I could do.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…everyone. I don’t even think you need to necessarily be looking to change your career, it helps open your eyes to different possibilities. But also for any middle aged people who has been on the train so long you’ve forgotten to look up.
Kaz talked about…needing to stop being a work robot
We just don’t pause to reflect in daily life because we’re so busy moving forward. The Emporium forces you to stop and think. Doing that through each of the exercises, I slowly reached a point of clarity where I now know exactly what I want.
I’m at a really exciting stage now, putting my new plan into action.
If you had told me 9 months ago that this level of change would be real, I wouldn’t have believed you.
The Fierce Emporium is absolutely intense, transformative and it gives you the power to create exciting change.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for someone: who wants to stop being a work robot and is prepared to invest time and energy into learning how to dump the robot. And then taking the required action.
Laura talked about…letting go of her success idea from her 20s.
Working on my Superpowers was really confidence-enhancing.
I’ve let go of the 20-something version of success and my new definition of success sits more comfortably with me now.
I was worried about the group sessions - that there would be someone who couldn’t stop talking but the way they were structured meant that that wasn’t possible. They were very supportive sessions.
I enjoyed the process and the learning and I didn’t want it to stop so the year programme means that I can drop in monthly, ask questions and keep up to date with how others are designing their futures differently - at the same time as creating my new future.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who is feeling stuck and don’t know how to think about their career differently and then make the right changes for them.
Chris talked about…repeating patterns
The future feels hugely more positive and a lot less scary. It’s really helped me to focus on the things that are important.
I liked getting becoming aware of the patterns of behaviour that repeated themselves throughout my career. I enjoyed becoming more aware of my Superpowers and Kryptonite.
There are so many sound psychological concepts dealt with in really innovative ways and through very different exercises.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone has lost their mojo. Or been doing the same thing forever. Or been searching for a while but haven’t yet found something that fires them up.
Fiona Talked about…self-kindness
This course is not about re-doing your CV to get a new job. It’s about figuring out what’s going to make your work and life better.
I’ve noticed really strong patterns that I wouldn’t have recognised alone. I’m a lot more intentional about what I’m going to do next, and considering how I can fold in the things that bring me joy into my future work.
Even though I understand the psychology behind the exercises. they’re so cleverly put-together, it’s really powerful. I’m going to come back to so many of these exercises in the future.
Joining The Fierce Emporium is probably the biggest act of self-kindness you could possibly do. It was fun and unexpected.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who is in a career where there is a structured path or clear track that everyone is expected to be on. And it doesn’t feel quite right.
Nick talked about…feeling a bit daft
I joined because I was stuck in a job that I wasn’t enjoying. I didn’t know what I wanted to do but I knew I wanted to do something different. And I felt a bit daft that I’d got stuck - and needed help.
My biggest wins include: knowing what my future could look like, having a clear direction to go in and having new tools and techniques that will help me make each day more enjoyable. The future feels more positive and the mind shift I’ve experienced over the last eight weeks has been phenomenal.
The group sessions were fantastic for sharing and learning from other people. They were just a great experience.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone is in midlife and has been doing something similar for a long time. And they’re not sure what the next stage is or what it could look like.
Deirdre talked about…not being ready to retire
I’ve always invested in career learning but before joining the programme, I wondered if I would get enough value from the programme to invest from my own pocket. It’s been a fabulous investment.
I’ve realised that some of the skills and talents I’ve tried to mask in the past are actually some of my unique strengths. I also define success more personally and uniquely than before.
I loved being on the journey with other midlifers who are also designing their future differently. Knowing there are monthly meetings, after the learning phase, kept me on track.
I’m a lot more confident in making decisions about my future. I’ve a sense that my portfolio career will be success.
The programme has been very productive for me - I’ve moved on hugely.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who feels out of sync with the current workplace and anyone who is prepared to use the tools and resources to reflect on which parts of their past they want to bring into their future, and which they should to leave behind.
Sarah talked about…Stopping marking time until retirement
I joined because I was well and truly stuck. I was just marking time until retirement and I decided that I wanted to look back with no regrets. So I had to do something different to experience something different.
My biggest wins include: Learning exercises and tools that I still love using design my future, having focus and clarity on the way forward, knowing what skills I need to take into the future to feel good.
My future feels completely different. I've got a very different outlook. I can almost see a colour change ahead in my life. I feel energised. I feel almost like I've been plugged into a socket and switched on. I'm putting together my skillset with a new idea.
It's given me a new lease of life. Others have noticed that there's been a positive change in me.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who is either feeling very stuck or wishes to fine-tune their midlife career and life. For those who want to make sure they look back with no regrets.
Jo talked about…thunderclap moments
I think I had an expectation that there would be a moment, where I’d have an epiphany, a moment when I’d discover “OMG, I’ve always wanted to be an X” and I felt a bit of a failure for not knowing the answer.
One of my major learnings is that this type of change is a process. It’s not about looking for that thunderclap moment. I can now see a direction I want to go in and a path towards it.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for someone…who wants something else but doesn’t know what they want yet.
Pete talked about…blame
My main takeaway is the release of the blame or harshness I’ve attributed to myself around wrong career moves, situations or organisations I’ve found myself in. That de-coupling of emotion from the situation has been really helpful in allowing me to look at the kind of work that will allow me to operate at my best.
The field of opportunity has really opened up for me to use my talents in lots of different ways that could be much more fulfilling.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who’s so stressed that they envy simple jobs - maybe they’ve driven passed a council worker in a truck on a sunny day reading a newspaper and thought I’d love to be him!
Michaela talked about…circular thinking.
One exercise pulled out the repeating patterns in my career- that were keeping me stuck. They were right in front of my face - yet I hadn’t noticed them before.
My future looks different. I feel like I have given myself permission to do something different. I have a clear head and I know better what I want to do and don’t want to do and the reasons why. I also have a few more weapons in my career arsenal. And I know my personal USP - my Superpowers.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for… anyone who feels a bit restless or stuck or feels like they’re going around in the hamster wheel that’s going nowhere.
Bridie talked about…Precious time
When do you ever take the time to evaluate your career to date, to define what success looks like in your future and work out what you can put into practice to get there?
My time in the Emporium helped me to magnify a series of moments in my career that mattered. I may not have made the most of every opportunity along the way but I now know why.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…someone who wants to take a little time to lose their corporate cape, unmould and really think about what they’d love to do next. Read her career story here.
Warren Talked about…wasted brain power.
The work in The Fierce Emporium has stopped me potentially throwing the baby out with the bath water.
It feels really affirming to feel like I’m back on track - it’s reduced the huge amount of wasted brain power wondering if I’m going in the right direction.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…someone who wants a structured way to work through the fog in their mind to make sure they move in the right direction for them.
Katy talked about…not knowing where to start
I needed a kick up the arse. And a framework to work through and some active participation rather than reading another self-help book.
The language of being "stuck" and "in fog" really resonated with me. I didn't know where to start or what to do. I needed a career bootcamp.
The future feels different. I have the glimmerings of a plan, and a structure to work through it, and exercises I can repeat to work through a particular issue.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…Anyone who is still wondering what they're going to do when they grow up! And anyone who has been ducking tricky career questions for some time and wants a kind, supportive framework to work through them.
Laura talked about….going round in circles
I was stuck in my own head going around in circles trying to fathom how I could make some changes to my working life that would enable me feel more authentic and more joyful - whilst still carry the load of a single income family.
I have worked in the same industry most of my professional life and I knew I needed a change, but wasn’t sure what or how.
My time in The Fierce Emporium ignited the spark in me to help me take my own needs seriously and do something about it.
I negotiated a 4-day week on full pay. Which has allowed me to volunteer on my day, connect with others and have more fun. I don’t think I would have reached this conclusion half as quickly without the stimulus of the Fierce Emporium.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for...Anyone where work is a necessary part of their life but wants to refine and enjoy it more.
Shannon talked about…past “Failings”
I became more confident to reach higher and beyond my comfort zone - to expect and receive work that is right for me.
Since being in The Fierce Emporium, I’ve become much more comfortable with my windy career path. And, I’ve realised that my past “failings” were leading me somewhere.
The Fierce Emporium is perfect for…anyone who feels a little like a failure in their work.