Narrator: Imagine being a bright, ambitious university student on a prestigious two-year placement at a major company. You're on a set path, a series of rotations designed by HR to give you a standard experience. This was the situation for Sarah, one of the book's authors, during her time at Boots. But she quickly realized the predetermined path was limiting. The experience she truly needed—a deeper dive into the commercial side of the business—wasn't on the menu. Instead of accepting the standard-issue career track, she did something radical. She identified an external supplier, pitched them the idea of creating a brand-new rotation, and then presented the fully formed plan back to her own HR department. She didn't wait for an opportunity; she created one. This proactive, self-directed approach to work is the central challenge of the modern career, a challenge that Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis argue can only be met by learning one crucial skill. In their book, You Coach You, they provide a roadmap for taking control of your professional life by becoming your own career coach.

Narrator: The fundamental premise of You Coach You is that the traditional career ladder is obsolete. For most people, a career is no longer a linear climb but a "squiggly" journey, full of twists, turns, role changes, and industry shifts. While this offers unprecedented freedom to explore and define success on one's own terms, it also brings uncertainty and the need for constant adaptation. The authors argue that the best tool for navigating this new landscape is coaching. However, with professional coaching costing an average of five hundred dollars per hour, it remains inaccessible to the vast majority.

The solution is self-coaching: the skill of improving your self-awareness and prompting positive action by asking yourself better questions. This isn't about having all the answers but about developing a coaching mindset. This mindset requires shifting from a "fixed" belief that your abilities are static to a "growth" mindset that embraces challenges and sees potential for improvement. It also involves developing a core coaching skillset: learning to listen to your own thoughts without judgment, asking open and empowering questions, and understanding your own tendencies—whether you're a "thinker" who can get lost in analysis or a "doer" who might leap before looking. By building this internal coaching capability, individuals can move from being passive passengers in their careers to being active, empowered drivers.

Narrator: Adversity is an inevitable part of any squiggly career. Projects fail, reorganizations happen, and setbacks occur. The common advice is to "bounce back," but the authors contend this framing is unhelpful. It implies a return to a previous state, when the goal should be to learn and move forward. True resilience is not a reactive trait but a proactive reserve of strength that you build before a crisis hits.

This involves consciously cultivating optimism by challenging the "3 Ps of pessimism": the tendency to see negative events as Personal ("it's my fault"), Pervasive ("it will ruin everything"), and Permanent ("it will never get better"). It also means building a robust support system. Eithne O’Leary, a president at investment bank Stifel, exemplifies this with her "10x Help" approach. When facing a tough problem, she doesn't just ask one person for advice; she identifies ten different people with diverse perspectives and asks them all the same question. This strategy protects her from echo chambers and provides a wealth of insights, demonstrating that asking for help is a sign of strategic strength, not weakness. By focusing on forward progress and leveraging a community, resilience becomes a tool for growth, not just survival.

Narrator: The modern workplace is plagued by the "barrenness of a busy life." Many professionals feel perpetually overwhelmed, yet unproductive. According to data cited in the book, people spend over half their week in meetings and receive over 120 emails a day, with many feeling they don't have time to do their actual jobs. The authors argue that the solution isn't a new app or a rigid time-management system. The problem isn't a lack of time; it's a lack of intentionality. As Stephen Covey said, "Time management is a misnomer, the challenge is to manage ourselves."

This means shifting focus from "balance" to "fit." Work-life balance is an outdated concept from an era before technology blurred the lines between the personal and professional. A more realistic goal is work-life fit, where individuals consciously integrate the different parts of their life in a way that feels sustainable and fulfilling. This requires making deliberate trade-offs, learning to say no, and protecting time for "deep work"—the state of flow where true productivity and creativity happen. By auditing where energy is spent and aligning actions with priorities, individuals can escape the trap of busyness and reclaim control over their work and its quality.

Narrator: Even the most accomplished people face self-doubt. The book quotes Maya Angelou, who, after writing her eleventh book, still worried, "Uh-oh, they’re going to find me out." This feeling, often called imposter syndrome, is fueled by the "comparison curse," a phenomenon where, according to one poll, 86% of people compare their career paths to others. You Coach You reframes self-belief not as a fixed trait you either have or don't, but as a skill that can be systematically developed.

The story of Lucy Gossage is a powerful illustration. A cancer doctor and triathlete, Lucy was plagued by such deep self-doubt that she would intentionally slow down during races to let competitors she felt were "better" pass her. With encouragement from a sports psychologist, she began to train her brain as rigorously as her body. She worked on her self-talk, challenged her limiting beliefs, and started seeing herself as a winner. The result? She became a fourteen-time Ironman champion. Her success in sports gave her the confidence to redesign her life, reducing her medical work to pursue other passions. Lucy's journey shows that self-belief is built through mastery, modeling others, seeking encouragement, and, most importantly, consciously choosing to see yourself and your potential through a more limitless lens.

Narrator: Success in a squiggly career is rarely a solo endeavor. It’s interdependent, requiring information, resources, and support from others. However, the book warns that relationships are becoming increasingly transactional. In the rush to be productive, deep connections are often sacrificed. The solution is to intentionally build a "career community" based on three key principles: difference, distance, and donation.

Difference means seeking out cognitive diversity—connecting with people who think differently to avoid echo chambers. Distance refers to the importance of both strong ties (close, trusted colleagues) and weak ties. As sociologist Mark Granovetter's research showed, weak ties—acquaintances and more distant contacts—are often the source of new information and opportunities. Finally, donate is based on Adam Grant's research showing that the most successful people are "givers," not "takers." They generously share knowledge and connections without keeping score. Building a career is not about collecting contacts; it's about cultivating a diverse and supportive community where you both give and receive, ensuring you have the stamina and solidarity to weather any storm.

Narrator: Progression is often narrowly defined as a promotion. You Coach You urges a broader definition that includes learning new skills, redesigning your role, or making a sideways move that better aligns with your strengths. The key is to take ownership rather than waiting for permission. Helen, the book's co-author, demonstrated this early in her career at the energy company E.ON. Just three months into her job, she realized her skills were a better fit for a different department. Instead of waiting for a year or two as was customary, she proactively built a relationship with the other manager, created a clear transition plan, and made the move happen.

This proactive stance is supported by the concept of prototyping. Rather than waiting for the "perfect" next step to appear, prototyping involves running small experiments to test possibilities. This could mean taking on a small project in a new area, volunteering, or having exploratory conversations. It’s about learning by doing. In a world where the lifespan of a skill is now five years or less, standing still is not an option. By personally defining, owning, and prototyping progression, individuals can build resilient and fulfilling careers tailored to their own unique goals.

Narrator: In a squiggly career, purpose is the "North Star" that provides direction when the path is unclear. Research from McKinsey shows that people who live their purpose at work are four times more engaged and report five times higher well-being. However, the search for purpose can create immense anxiety. The authors argue this is because we misunderstand what purpose is. It is not a final destination to be found, but a direction to be followed. It is not a perfect, finished answer, but an ambition that is a constant work-in-progress.

Finding this direction involves identifying what gives you meaning. This can be discovered by exploring three areas: using your unique strengths, finding a "purpose fit" where your values align with your organization's, and seeing the positive impact your work has on others. It’s about maximizing "moments of meaning" in your current role rather than waiting for a perfect job to deliver it. By treating purpose as an evolving guide, individuals can make more confident decisions and find satisfaction not just in the outcome, but in the journey itself.

Narrator: The single most important takeaway from You Coach You is that agency is the new currency of career success. In a world of constant change and uncertainty, the power to build a meaningful professional life has shifted decisively from the organization to the individual. The book's most challenging and empowering idea is its call for radical ownership. It asks us to stop waiting for a manager, a mentor, or a company to chart our course and instead turn inward. It challenges us to stop asking "Why isn't this happening for me?" and start asking ourselves, "What is one small step I can take right now to move forward?" By equipping us with the tools to become our own coach, the book offers a practical path to not just survive the squiggly career, but to thrive in it.