#577 How to solve tame, critical and wicked work problems

More from Squiggly Careers

1. 

   30 Jul 2026 · 10 min

   #580 Small actions to increase your assertiveness

   Do you struggle to speak up in meetings or find yourself watering down your ideas? Assertiveness isn't about being the loudest person in the room; it is built through small, daily actions. In this episode, Helen shares simple actions to increase your assertiveness. 🎯 What You'll Learn – How to quash qualifiers like "maybe" and "just" – The power of being the person who creates clarity – How to offer alternative perspectives to stop groupthink – Making a habit of offering a question and a suggestion – How to identify and fix your default assertiveness mistakes For questions about Squiggly…

2. 

   28 Jul 2026 · 32 min

   #579 How to build an M-shaped career

   Do you feel like you were never meant to master just one thing? It is time to move beyond the traditional career path and embrace the potential of an M-shaped career. In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore what it means to develop mastery across multiple areas. 🎯 What You'll Learn – Define the M-shaped career model and why it is a competitive advantage – Identify your existing areas of deep expertise – Learn how to connect the dots between seemingly unrelated skills – Use reflective questions to map your own M-shaped development This episode is brought to you in partnership with the…

3. 

   23 Jul 2026 · 9 min

   #578 How to overcome your distraction downfall

   Do you find yourself constantly checking your phone or email instead of focusing on your most important work? In this squiggly shortcut, Helen shares practical ways to beat distraction and reclaim your attention. Drawing on Nir Eyal's research on becoming indistractable, they explore what it really means to develop this skill, and what your default response to it reveals about you. 🎯 What You'll Learn – Identify your personal distraction downfall – Understand why you are attracted to distractions – Learn why avoidance triggers procrastination – Audit your environment for high-attention work…

4. 

   16 Jul 2026 · 5 min

   #576 Set yourself up to fail, so you're more likely to succeed

   Want to achieve your biggest career goals this year? The answer might lie in planning exactly how you could fail first. Drawing on research from New York University on mental contrasting, Helens explore how balancing your biggest career opportunities with your realistic obstacles can significantly increase your chance of success. 🎯 What You'll Learn – What is mental contrasting and why does it build resilience? – How to identify what you want to be true in 12 months – Why optimism blindness might be holding your career back – How to honestly audit the obstacles in your way – What practical…

5. 

   14 Jul 2026 · 34 min

   #575 Oracy: How to improve your speaking and listening skills

   Do you often feel like you are just waiting for your turn to speak, rather than truly listening and learning? In this episode, we explore the power of oracy and how it can change the way you think and work. Drawing on the work of Voice 21, Barbara Oakley, and research from More in Common, they explore what it means to develop this skill. 🎯 What You'll Learn – Define oracy as the essential skill of speaking and listening well to build better conclusions. – Discover why talking out loud helps you spot gaps in your reasoning and critical thinking. – Identify the difference between a standard…

6. 

   9 Jul 2026 · 6 min

   #574 How to Adapt Your Skills for Career Growth

   Is your current way of working holding you back from your next career milestone? Sometimes, the very habits that helped you succeed in the past can become obstacles to your future progress. Drawing on Marshall Goldsmith’s concept of 'What Got You Here Won't Get You There', Helen explores what it means to develop this skill, and what your default response to it reveals about you. 🎯 What You'll Learn – Shift from giving all the answers to asking powerful questions – Implement the 'Now vs. Not For Now' list to prioritize effectively – Replace automatic 'niceness' with a strategic 'if-then'…

7. 

   8 Oct 2026 · 8 min

   #600 Everyday actions for everyday resilience

   When your week gets busy, do you find yourself dropping the things that help you feel good? It can be easy to put rest, support and time outside work on hold just when you need them most. In this Squiggly Career Shortcut, Helen shares six small actions you can build into your week to support your resilience. Pick one or two that feel useful to you and try doing them regularly, before things start to feel difficult. 🎯 In this episode, you’ll learn how to: – Find something to look forward to, even in a hard week – Work out what help you need and ask for it – Notice and celebrate your wins –…

8. 

   6 Oct 2026 · 43 min

   #599 Friction: Why making things harder can make you better

   Is something at work feeling harder than it needs to be? It could be a meeting that takes too long, a decision that goes back and forth, or a process with more steps than it needs. This week, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from The Friction Project by Robert Sutton and Huggy Rao. They explore how to spot the friction that slows you down, what you could subtract to make work easier, and why some friction is worth keeping. 🎯 In this episode, you’ll learn how to: – Spot where friction is showing up in your work – Ask your team what’s making their work harder – Subtract steps, meetings or…

9. 

   1 Oct 2026 · 8 min

   #598 How to understand and take action with your ambition

   In this shortcut, Helen, talks about a matrix that can help you to understand where your ambition is right now and what is the most effective action to take to support your development. 🎯 What You'll Learn - that ambition is individual - where your ambition in today - what action to take to activate your ambition For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: helenandsarah@squigglycareers.com Need some more squiggly career support? 1. Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/ 2. Sign up for our Skills Sprints:…

10. 

    29 Sep 2026 · 43 min

    #597 How thinking inside the box will lead to more opportunities for your squiggly career.

    Could putting more constraints on your career actually create more possibilities? In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from David Epstein's book (Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better) to explore how choosing your own constraints can help you think differently and more creatively about your career. They experiment with constraints across six areas of career development, from learning and strengths to confidence and future possibilities. 🎯 What You'll Learn – Why constraints can help you think more creatively – How to experiment with constraints in your career – How to…

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