EP23: Crafting a Resilient Ecosystem for Meaningful Work (Regenerative Sticking Point with Sara)
Are you ready to reimagine your career as part of a thriving, resilient ecosystem? In this coaching session, I work with Sara, a passionate sustainability professional who left her corporate job to pursue work more aligned with her values. Together, we explore how to balance multiple income streams, integrate creative passions, and build a meaningful career that’s both impactful and financially sustainable.
We explore:
The Power of Diversified Income
Why relying on a single paycheck might not be the most sustainable option.
How to view your career as an interconnected ecosystem with multiple pillars of support.
Weaving Creativity into Your Career
How rediscovering childhood passions like art and music can energize and balance your professional life.
Ideas for integrating creativity into impactful work.
Building Financial Sustainability with Flexibility
Strategies for creating a mix of short-term income and long-term impact projects.
How to shift your mindset around monetizing your skills without losing joy or ease.
Practical Steps to Map Your Ecosystem
Sara’s homework: visually mapping her economic ecosystem to better understand its components and connections.
Why embracing a creative approach—like doodling or sketching—can spark clarity and inspiration.
Listen to the end to hear about a unique, creative exercise Sara sets herself as homework—something you can try yourself to bring clarity and inspiration to your own career journey!
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Full Transcript
Alisa: Hi, and welcome, Sara, to the podcast. I’m really happy you’re here to do some coaching with me today.
Sara: Thank you, Alisa, for inviting me and welcoming me.
Alisa: Why don’t you start by telling me a short summary of where you are in your career and what would feel helpful for us to work on together today?
Sara: Okay. For the past five years, I worked in a corporate job focusing on sustainability—helping companies with their sustainability strategies and communicating with different stakeholders. Over the past three years, I also completed my PhD. At the end of last year, I decided to quit my corporate job.
It was actually at the end of October because I felt my job didn’t have enough positive impact. I started a podcast because I wanted to create that positive impact. I believe education is key for people to understand the urgency and need to change their attitudes and behaviors to move toward a more sustainable future.
That’s why I started the podcast about a year ago, but it wasn’t aligned with my company’s mission. So I decided to pursue something more aligned with my purpose.
Alisa: I hear that part of your decision to leave was a desire to explore the concept of education as a solution to climate change, which you started with your podcast. Is that right?
Sara: Yes, absolutely. I think education plays a huge role, and we’re not investing enough in it. That’s why I started the podcast. I also launched a program for children in Colombia last November to raise their awareness and educate them on environmental challenges.
The program reconnects them with nature and helps them explore solutions. It’s something they learn in school but also involves their parents and community. I believe I need to continue this work. Right now, I’m exploring options to do it in a way that is both impactful and economically sustainable for me.
Alisa: Beautiful. It seems like you’re very clear on your “why” and your motivation—it feels powerful when you talk about it. I’m curious about the project you mentioned in Colombia. If it were possible for you to immerse yourself fully in that work and make it economically sustainable, how would that feel?
Sara: It would feel fulfilling. It’s incredible to see how happy the children are when they learn small things, like regenerative agriculture, soil health, or composting. These are things they don’t usually learn at school. Seeing their joy gives me hope that we can make progress, one step at a time.
Even if the audience is small—like with a podcast—it’s still impactful. Even reaching just 10 people can spark change.
Alisa: Absolutely. For me, it’s about the depth of connection. You can reach thousands of people with surface-level impressions, or you can deeply connect with a smaller audience and inspire real change. That kind of connection can ripple outward to others.
Sara: That’s true—and it’s what keeps me going because this work is hard.
Alisa: It is. It requires a lot of faith to keep going. But from what I’m hearing, you’re not unsure about your direction. You believe in your podcast, your work in Colombia, and the power of education. For listeners, I’ll link to Sara’s podcast in the show notes.
It sounds like the question isn’t what to do but how to make it financially sustainable. Is that right?
Sara: Yes, exactly. Although I’d say I’m a complex person. Over the past few months, I’ve been exploring my creative side—singing, composing, painting, and photography. I believe that reconnecting with what I loved as a child helps balance my energy and find purpose.
Alisa: You’ve been re-exploring creativity, and I hear you want to weave that into your work life too.
Sara: Yes. To me, sustainability is about balance—finding creative solutions, reconnecting with nature, and rediscovering joy. It’s about being part of a whole, not mastering it. Creativity, like painting or dancing, is such an integral part of being human.
Alisa: Absolutely. You describe an inherently sustainable vision—an economic ecosystem with multiple sources of income. It’s a more adaptable and resilient model than relying on a single paycheck. What would your ideal economic ecosystem look like?
Sara: As a mother, stability is important. Having a single steady income feels secure, but it’s risky because you can lose it. Building a diversified ecosystem takes more effort, but it’s more stable long-term.
Alisa: Exactly. It also gives you more freedom to make choices aligned with your values. A single income source often means giving up power to that provider, whereas a diversified ecosystem empowers you.
Sara: That’s true, but starting feels overwhelming.
Alisa: It can be, but clarity helps. Visualizing the components—like your podcast, the project in Colombia, consultancy work, and creativity—can make it manageable. Think about what role each pillar plays and how they connect.
Sara: That makes sense. I’d need to map out how the areas intersect to ensure they support one another instead of pulling me in different directions.
Alisa: Exactly. As a creative person, I’d encourage you to map it visually—maybe through sketching or painting. Seeing it as a whole can reveal connections and reduce overwhelm.
Sara: I could doodle it like a city with buildings and roads connecting them. That sounds fun.
Alisa: Perfect! If you’d like to share your doodles, I’d love to see them.
Sara: I will.
Alisa: Great. Before we wrap up, what’s one thing you want to hold on to from today’s session?
Sara: The emotion I feel when I work on things like the podcast or the project in Colombia. I already have the skills and the passion—I just need to bring that energy into other areas, like consultancy.
Alisa: Yes, you get to choose how you feel about all of it.
Sara: Thank you for reminding me of that.
Alisa: Thank you for coming on the podcast and sharing your journey. I know listeners will connect with your story and find inspiration.
Sara: Thank you for giving me the space to talk through my challenges and build more confidence.
Alisa: For anyone listening, if you’d like to be coached on the podcast, visit regenerativeworklife.com/stickingpoint to book a session.
Sara: Thank you.
