TLB #60🧠 A nudge to take the wheel of your own career

Hello Shaker,

Here’s all that you’ll experience in today’s issue:

💡Learning Bites: Be the Captain of Your Own Career

🗓️ Community Calendar: Be part of ID Power Hour, ThoughtLab, local hub meet-and other events happening in the Shakers Community

🖌️ Community Creations: Welcome new Core Team members

🔖 Resource Reel: A collection of resources on L&D, AI, Gatherings and many more

So much of career development advice tells us to “wait until the timing is right” or “have a perfect plan.” But what if growth begins the moment we take the wheel, even without all the answers?

This week’s Learning Bite comes from Enrique Gaya, a career coach based in Amsterdam who runs North Star Career Coaching. He helps professionals navigate transitions with clarity and confidence and here he shares a powerful reflection on what it means to truly own your career.

Now, over to Enrique.

“I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.”

This line from Invictus , the poem by William Ernest Henley, became iconic after Nelson Mandela embraced it. For me, it’s not just a beautiful quote, it’s a guiding principle for how I live.

For years, I moved through jobs thinking hard work and good results would be enough to take me somewhere fulfilling. But fulfillment doesn’t come from drifting, waiting, or hoping. It comes from steering. From choosing. From owning the fact that you are not a passenger, you are at the helm.

Being the captain of your career doesn’t mean knowing every answer in advance. It means choosing a direction that excites you, even if the map isn’t fully drawn. It means taking a deep breath and saying, “This is the life I want to build, and I’m going to start moving towards it.”

In my best career moments, I had a vision. Sometimes it was clear, sometimes fuzzy, but it was mine. That sense of ownership changes everything.

And yet, no captain sails alone. You need a crew. People who support you, stretch you, and remind you who you are when you’ve forgotten. Mentors, colleagues, friends, people who bring you back to possibility when all you can see is pressure.

When we’re stuck, we tend to stay in our loop. We talk only to those who share our frustrations. We get absorbed in what isn’t working. We lose perspective. We start believing this is just how it is.

But it isn’t. The world is wide, opportunities are abundant, and many of them are still unseen. To notice them, you need to lift your head, step outside your circle, and get curious again.

When I mentor clients, I often describe career ownership as a process with four parts:

1. Know Yourself : Get clear on your values, motivations, and strengths. They are your compass.

2. Find Your Crew : Surround yourself with people who challenge, support, and inspire you.

3. Experiment with Small Steps : Don’t wait for a perfect plan; take action through low-risk trials.

4. Reflect and Adjust : Notice what energizes you, what drains you, and refine your course accordingly.

Try asking yourself:

What activities energize me most in my current role?

When do I feel most proud of my work?

What values do I refuse to compromise on?

Who around me supports my growth, and who holds me back?

If fear weren’t a factor, what would I try next?

Here are four practical exercises to help you set sail:

1. Compass Check: Your Values

Write down your top 5 values (e.g. freedom, growth, creativity, stability, impact). Rate how much your current role reflects each one. Misalignment is a warning sign.

2. Crew Check: Who’s on Board?

List the people you regularly talk to about work. Who lifts you up? Who challenges you in a healthy way? Who keeps you stuck? Choose your crew with intention.

3. Small Experiments at Sea

Pick one small step this month: shadow a colleague, start a side project, or schedule a coffee chat with someone in a different field. Each experiment reveals new waters.

4. Future Logbook

Imagine it’s three years from now. Write a “day in the life” entry. Where are you, what fills your day, who are you with? Even if it feels rough, this vision becomes your North Star.

One of the most common mistakes I see is waiting too long to make a change. We adapt, we endure, and in the process we forget what we actually want. But you don’t need to wait. You don’t need every answer before setting sail.

You have more control than you think. You can explore. You can ask for help. You can lead from exactly where you are.

There will always be storms, always some disruption or wave of uncertainty. Your job is not to predict the sea — it’s to learn how to sail.

So don’t wait. Don’t hand the wheel to someone else.

You’re the captain. Own it.

Reading this piece is a reminder that careers aren’t something that just “happen” to us, they’re something we can actively shape. Thank you, Enrique, for sharing your thoughts with us.

Big ideas. Bright people. Bold learning.
Our next round of events is just around the corner—each one crafted to help you grow, reflect, and connect. Save your spot and bring your curiosity.

Join us here

Welcome to our new Core Team members! Our Local Hubs are growing, and we’re excited to see what’s next.

🇬🇧Birmingham Hub
Welcome Nik Mckiernan and Leena Patel! They’re joining forces with Daniel Driscoll to bring new ideas, coaching energy, and teamwork to keep the Birmingham Hub thriving.

🇳🇱Amsterdam Hub
A big welcome to Cash Hu! After helping bring last year’s Nonference to life, he’s now pouring his people development passion into the Amsterdam Hub.

🇪🇸Valencia Hub
Say hello to Dinara Galiullina! After rocking the Valencia Hub kick-off event, she now officially joins Barbora to co-create an inspiring community in Valencia.

We can’t wait to see the creativity, connection, and learning you’ll spark in your hub! 💛

1. The L&D Performance Academy - A free 9-part certification to help you step up as a confident, performance-driven L&D leader. Influence, impact, and credibility without the fluff.

2. Beyond the Classroom & LMS - Dr. Philippa Hardman unpacks fresh HBR research showing why AI coaching may finally deliver on the dream of “learning in the flow of work.” A must-read if you’re tired of courses that don’t stick.

3. AI in L&D 2025: The Race for Impact - Donald H Taylor & Egle Vinauskaite’s new report is here—data, case studies, and a framework for where AI is actually moving the needle in L&D.

4. ChatGPT Prompt Packs for HR - OpenAI just released role-specific “prompt packs” to jumpstart HR and workplace use cases. A handy resource if you’re experimenting with AI at work.

5. Strategies for Gatherings that Matter - A thoughtful piece on how well-designed gatherings can spark culture, learning, and transformation especially in times of burnout and hybrid work.

6. One Year of Agentic AI - McKinsey distills six lessons from early adopters of agentic AI, what’s working, what’s stumbling, and what it takes to turn hype into value.

7. The Research Brief: October 2025 - Fresh insights from learning science on retrieval, mistakes, sleep, instruction, interleaving, and more. Bite-sized evidence to sharpen your practice.

〜See you soon

Till then, keep spicing up your learning! 🧠🧂

Sejaal