From Social Work to Management Consulting

A brief look back at winter 2021: After many years in adult education and social work, it had been clear to me for some time that my professional path needed another change in direction and a "fresh breeze." In working with young adults, I had learned what it means to accompany the development of a personality and sometimes to provide important impulses at the right moments (and to receive them myself!). Working with groups had taught me to develop a sense for processes and dynamics, and above all, to observe and listen well. I loved my work, yet I knew that my journey was not over at this point, but had to continue. I could write now that everything just fell into place (which it eventually did - see below), but initially, there were mainly: wintry cold, a lot of empty space, and even more questions. What was the right next step? Which direction should I take? What if I failed?

The Outside Perspective

At that time, a wonderful conversation with Dr. med. Eva Müller-Dannecker helped me, who offered me a practice session as part of her own coaching training - a win-win situation. Even though a single coaching session usually does not promise quick miracle solutions, it mainly helped me reflect on my previous career and my personal (life) experiences and gain a bit more of what I had mostly lacked before: clarity. I am not exaggerating when I say that the knot burst open suddenly: After a brief job and location search (I was still living near Bremen), I hit the jackpot: a place in my home southern region near the mountains and a company that not only offers systemic consulting, coaching, and organizational development but also represents a potential harbor for my own values, goals, motivations, and ideas of collaboration. And even more importantly: A place where I could continue to learn and simultaneously contribute directly with my experience. Already after the first virtual meeting with Tine Gasser, Martina Goldhorn, and Clara-Luise Gördes, my gut feeling told me, "This is the place!" - and just a few weeks later, I signed the contract. Coaching training: check, trainee position - check, consulting company - check!

Two Years of Learning

It is difficult to condense the experiences of two intense years into a short text without becoming superficial or verbose. Of course, through numerous projects that I was able to accompany and carry out, I sharpened and further developed my own consulting and training approach. I am certainly grateful to all my colleagues at Janus for every new perspective, every impulse, and the valuable feedback - I learned and took away an incredible amount from this. And of course, it was not only the successes but also, and above all, my mistakes that showed me, sometimes in challenging ways, where my learning fields and blind spots were and are. I am grateful in any case to my team for much feedback and trust, and also to my training manager (and now colleague) Jasmine Harde, who once again showed me how valuable and simultaneously challenging true process facilitation can be during the coaching training at Janus.

That shared learning and growth are somewhat written into the DNA of Janus was not empty words in the mission statement, which had attracted me from the first contact with a specific statement: "Having personality means for us to know oneself and one's limits quite well. It is as sincere as possible with oneself and others and remains touchable and impressive." This place, where I not only experience the described perspective on people and personality in collaboration with my own team but can also pass it on in my work, seemed to be just the right one. My experiences over the past two years confirm this again and again: Many insights often emerged in dialogue, and I often learned the most when I allowed my own perspective from the outside: when listening, giving space, and observing. And in the end, always also when I was sincere with myself.

Outlook

Is this time of learning with my new role as a Young Professional at Janus now over? Of course not. Change and development will continue to be central themes of my work. My goals are therefore the same as before: I want to enable change, accompany processes, and at the end of the day contribute my part to help people understand themselves better. I look forward to many more internal and external projects, dear colleagues.