From Stuck to Flow — What 900 People in Career Transition Have Taught Me

There’s a moment I’ve seen hundreds of times.

Someone sits down and within five minutes says: “I know I need to change something. I just don’t know what.”

Not stuck because they’re lazy. Not stuck because the market is bad or their CV is weak. Stuck because they haven’t answered the question that comes before all the other questions: who am I right now, and what do I actually want?

That sounds almost too simple. It isn’t.

How I know this

I’ve been a Business & Career Coach in Berlin for over 11 years. Communication science background, systemic approach, bilingual. I work one-on-one with people navigating career transitions and I co-run a live community with Alexandra Czekalska, a psychologist and headhunter who’s sat on the other side of the interview table more times than either of us can count.

The community is called Career Support Group. Over 900 members. Regular live sessions where we actually do the work together — camera on, exercises in the room, real conversations. What I keep seeing, session after session: the people who move forward fastest aren’t the ones who send the most applications. They’re the ones who got clear on themselves first.

The 3 steps that actually move people forward

After over a decade of coaching and hundreds of conversations in the group, I keep coming back to the same three phases. They’re not a magic formula — but skip one, and the whole thing stalls.

Step 1: Discover your Youness

Not your CV. Not your job titles. You — your actual strengths, your values, where you are in life right now. What energizes you. What drains you. What matters to you that has nothing to do with your last job description.

I use a simple exercise in our sessions: what made you check the clock every 10 minutes last week? And when did time fly? That contrast tells you more about your direction than any personality test. Most people have never mapped this out properly. Once they do, everything else gets a little easier.

Step 2: Rebuild your narrative

Here’s what I hear constantly: “I’ve changed industries too much.” “I’m too old to start over.” “I’m not technical enough.”

I get it. These thoughts feel true when you’re in the middle of it. But they’re interpretations, not facts.

Changed industries three times? That’s a cross-functional perspective most specialists never develop. Took a non-linear path? That’s adaptability — and right now the market needs it. The goal isn’t to spin your story. It’s to see it accurately, and then communicate it in a way that actually lands.

Step 3: Activate your network

Not the network you think you don’t have. The one that’s already there.

Former colleagues you actually liked. People from old projects, courses, events. That one person who said “let me know if I can help” and you never followed up. The data from recruiting is pretty clear on this: the highest match rate doesn’t come from job boards. It comes from referrals and warm connections.

Most people in transition put 90% of their energy into applications and 10% into relationships. It should be the other way around.

Try this right now

Take 3 minutes. Think about last week. What task made time fly? When did you feel most like yourself? Write it down. Don’t filter it. Don’t immediately ask whether it’s realistic or marketable.

That’s the beginning of Step 1. And it matters more than your next application.

What comes next

If any of this resonates — if you’re in that place of knowing something needs to change but not yet knowing what — come to the next live session. It’s free. It’s real work. You’ll leave with something concrete.

→ Join the next From Stuck to Flow session

Already been in a session and want to go deeper? Let’s talk. Thirty minutes is enough to figure out where you are, what’s getting in the way, and whether working together makes sense.

Niv Nicolas Nowbakht is a Business & Career Coach based in Berlin with over 11 years of experience, an M.A. in Communication Science, and ICF credentials. He works bilingually in German and English with career changers and leaders across the DACH region.