Mapping Your Future

Welcome to the exercises. This isn't just a workbook; it's your personal blueprint for a career transition built on intention, not a generic job board search. The exercises below will push you to go beyond what you think you should do and help you uncover what you need to do to sustain yourself on this journey. Be honest, be specific, and remember: this is a project for your life, not just for your career.

This module continues the journey from Module 1. You'll use the same document you created for your Time & Energy logs. If you've been tracking small wins on your Freedom Wall, now is the time to look back at that data. Keep all your insights in one place to see your evolution over time.

Exercise 1: The Happiness Audit

We begin by looking back. The goal of this exercise is to identify patterns of engagement and dissatisfaction in your past experiences.

• Reflect on Your Past: Think about a time in your professional or personal life when you felt most energized and engaged. Conversely, think about a time when you felt most drained or unmotivated.

• Analyze the Data: In your digital template or notebook, create a new section or a new tab labeled "Happiness Audit." Write down specific tasks you were doing, the problems you were solving, the people you were with, and the environment you were in for both scenarios.

AI Integration: Use the AI as your pattern recognition partner.

• Prompt 2.1 (Pattern Identification): "Here is a list of tasks I found most energizing: [list of tasks]. Here is a list of tasks that drained me: [list of tasks]. Analyze these two lists and identify the core motivations (e.g., impact, creativity, autonomy) that seem to be at play. Then, tell me what this suggests about the type of work environment I thrive in."

From My Desk: For years, my focus was on big project wins—the published paper, the successful grant, the promotion. But my Happiness Audit revealed something different. The times I felt most alive weren't the big wins, but the small acts: mentoring a junior scientist, creating a clear data visualization, or writing a project summary. I realized that my energy came from clarity and communication, not just discovery. This gave me the first clue that my true career compass wasn't pointing towards a lab.

Exercise 2: Strengths & Values as a Compass

This exercise turns your reflections into a tangible compass for your career search.

• Self-Assessment: Create a new section in your digital document and label it "Strengths & Values." Then, answer the following questions. Be specific.

• What skills or talents do you possess that others often compliment you on?

• What problems do you naturally gravitate toward solving?

• What are your core values? (e.g., autonomy, impact, security, growth, collaboration).

• What does success mean to you, personally?

• Are you an extrovert or an introvert? What kind of work environment brings out your best?

AI Integration: Use AI to turn your reflections into a set of career-focused insights.

• Prompt 2.2 (Strength & Value Synthesis): "Based on my self-assessment notes below, what does this say about my top transferable strengths and core values? [Paste your answers from the self-assessment here]. Suggest roles in the life sciences that align with these."

From My Desk: For a long time, I thought my communication skills were just a soft skill—a nice-to-have, but not a core strength. The self-assessment made me realize the opposite. My ability to translate complex scientific concepts into simple language was a fundamental, unique skill. It was a strength that energized me. That's when I stopped thinking of myself as just a scientist and started thinking of myself as a translator, which opened up a whole new set of career possibilities.

Exercise 3: Career Hypothesis & Exploration

Now that you have the data, you will narrow your search to a few high-potential career hypotheses.

• Draft Your Hypotheses: In the same document, create a new section labeled "Career Hypotheses." Based on the insights from your previous exercises, draft 2-3 career hypotheses. A hypothesis should be a specific role or function you want to explore.

  • Example: "I believe a role as a [Medical Science Liaison] will allow me to use my communication skills and deep scientific knowledge while providing the autonomy I desire."

• The Next Step: For each hypothesis, what is the single, tangible action you can take this week to "test" it? (e.g., find and follow one person in that role on LinkedIn, schedule an informational interview, or search for a day-in-the-life video).

AI Integration: Use the AI to expand on your ideas and test your hypotheses.

• Prompt 2.3 (Career Path Generation): "Based on my strengths in [communication, problem-solving, data analysis] and my desire to [work with autonomy], list five career paths I might explore in the life sciences. Rank them by their potential for my satisfaction."

• Prompt 2.4 (Career Fit Simulation): "Simulate a day in the life of a [regulatory affairs specialist / medical writer / biotech consultant]. Include a morning, afternoon, and evening routine. Describe the types of tasks, common challenges, and primary interactions to help me test fit."

From My Desk: When I was exploring my career hypothesis around sales and marketing, I didn't wait to hear back from job applications. Instead, I did my research and scheduled informational interviews with people in the field. I learned more in those conversations than I did in months of passive searching. The most valuable takeaway wasn't just information about the role; it was learning to speak the language of sales and marketing. This small, testable action validated my hypothesis and gave me the confidence to take the next step. It’s about showing, not just guessing.