My 2011 Edge: When I Thought Everything Was Falling Apart

Before burnout came 2011 – a moment when I thought everything was falling apart. But it became a turning point thanks to a surprising source: my father.

In 2011 I was desperate to find a job as an engineer. I had been released from a company a couple of months before and it was getting harder to keep my motivation high in the job hunting process. I was getting depressed. Ever since I moved to Germany, I’ve always shielded my parents from any bad news in my life. Only when it was essential for them to know would I inform them, but I always reported the bright side of things (you know, when you leave your parents’ house and emigrate the goal is to achieve a better life, not to fail). However, somehow my father spotted my lack of hope regarding finding a job and he told me on the phone “It is time for me to teach you a couple of exercises. I will book my flight as soon as possible.” My answer: “Yeah, whatever, dad. You are more than welcome in our home.” When I hung up the phone I thought, “What is he talking about? It’s probably one of his outside-the-box hypnoses-related therapy techniques…”

A little bit of background about my father. He is a psychologist with both a Master’s and Doctorate degree, who specializes in clinical hypnosis. Whenever someone asked about my father’s occupation, I would tell them that he is/does so much more than clinical work with his amazing knowledge of how our mind and conscience works.

My father arrived at our place and we set up two sessions for me to learn the exercises that would help me to overcome my emotional turmoil and get my life back on track. After all, 2 weeks later I would have my next job interview. Oh, my dears… My mindset in 2011 was such a mess that even with a great CV in hand, I failed in passing all of my job interviews. I like to call it “My 2011 Edge”.

Sometimes the tools are already in our lives — we just need to be willing to try them.

I now teach some of these same mind tools in my coaching practice. Want to know more? Let’s connect.