Nicole Aleong

Earlier this week I stumbled on an Instagram post that read: “What if the real question isn’t ‘What do I want to do?‘ But: ‘Who do I want to become along the way?‘” –Freek van Litsenburg via Wethinkdeeply

It really stuck with me. I remember when the metaphor of thinking of careers not as a ladder but as a rock wall* was first introduced to me years ago. This felt like a similar small paradigm shift. (*Author’s note: There are several articles on this metaphor online, I picked one at random.)

The concept of ‘becoming’ isn’t particularly new. Michelle Obama’s memoir, Becoming, gave the term a well deserved revival in 2018. However, that was 7 years ago, so well worth a revisit now.

Here are some things I like about the prompt that’s stuck with me, as well as a few reflections on where else it could go.

What I like about it

As a Millennial, so much of our careers are centered on individualized journeys. What are you trying to achieve? What impact are you trying to have? Where do you want to go from here? These are definitely questions others have asked me or I’ve asked myself at certain points. I like that this new (new-ish to me) ‘becoming’ prompt encourages self-reflection on an area we can control — ourselves.

If we take the view that life is a journey, yes, our work and careers of course play a significant part in it. But discovering who you want to become is probably one of the most personally important research insights you can have.

And yet, is it possible that we rely on luck and fortuitous events to give us the opportunities to become the type of person we aspire to be?

For instance, because of the nature of my new role (which aims to work closely with First Nations and Indigenous communities across the province of BC) I’ve been revisiting Dori Tunstall’s “Decolonizing Design: A Cultural Justice Guidebook“. For the first time, I feel like there’s a tangible opportunity in front of me to lead impactful co-design work in a way that promotes decolonizing design, along with truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. The truth is I didn’t know how much the focus of my role would be on this area until I started. You read a job description, it lists some stuff, but do you ever really know if it’ll be 20%, 50% or 80% of your role? No, you don’t. I was surprised and gifted with an opportunity.

However, there’s so much out of my control in this position too. In those circumstances, knowledge has always prepared me well. And so, over the last 7 weeks, I’ve been crafting my own crash-course on building permitting, the construction industry, BC’s housing crisis, and all things Indigenous cultural practices and governance land laws. It’s been an immense opportunity to learn and in that matter the prompt on “Who am I becoming?” serves me well, given all this time and space to learn about topics I wouldn’t have the luxury to focus on before.

Where there’s room for more action

While I appreciate the thought-provocation to move us away from “doing” to more “becoming”, I yearn for more space to explore collective becoming.

For a few years now, I’ve been ruminating on how to promote more collective futuring. Where are there spaces that harness radical imaginations to lean into collective imagining and reimagining? How can we build on the power of community? Where are there others asking, ‘Who do we want to become together?‘

Part of that is finding communal spaces to hold us accountable to the attributes and actions we are developing too. One such space in the UX/research industry is the Reimagining Research by Pause + Effect cohort and the HmntyCntrd community. I have been lucky to do the self-guided HmntyCntrd course and I have been so inspired by the work of Pause + Effect. I am itching to activate my learnings from their body of work, LinkedIn posts and resources in more meaningful ways. I know I still need strong connections to hold me accountable to who I want to become, and who I am becoming, and join me in finding, amplifying, or creating more collective becoming spaces.

“Becoming” is the work

Coincidentally, last week, I joined a new professional development cohort through work called ‘Aspiring Leaders’. During a round of light introductions many people mentioned their motivation for joining said cohort came from direct experience working with some amazing leaders they’ve met in the BC Public Service, and a willingness to offer services that help real people in BC. The session’s topic focused on reflecting on and sharing our individual values. In the most generous light, I’m excited to be part of a cohort that so clearly labels what we are — aspiring leaders. It’s clear where the intention is on what and who we want to become.

Until next time, here’s what I’m currently reading: The Art of Co-Design by Jeremy Kerr, Jessica Cheers, Danielle Gallegos, Alethea Blackler, and Nick Kelly.

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