Catherine Altman Morgan - This Isnt Working

PRAISE FOR THIS ISNT WORKING!

Catherine Morgan has stepped up and out to be a voice of raw honesty, transparency, and courage. She has cut through the barrier of silence and shame of those collective human experiences that are shared by so many during these uncomfortable times. This Isnt Working! is a gift to the many who were brave enough to stay, leave, dissolve, scramble, recover, and enter the unknown, finding new ground and meaning. Catherine has nailed it, hit it out of the ball park, and brought wisdom to the surface.

LIZBETH HAMLIN, MA, LMFT, Licensed Psychotherapist

Catherine Morgan has taken a refreshing and eye-opening look at work in her aptly titled new book, This Isnt Working! She takes the reader through a journey all too familiarstress, anxiety, and depression and the ongoing problems of work. After seeing how things have turned upside down since the pandemic, Catherine has brought her expertise and wit, sharing new language to use with yourself, and at the end of each chapter bringing us back to the possibility underlying the challenges. Celebration for Catherines truly needed work that gets to the heart of whats not working at work!

DAWN ELLERY , CEBS, Human Resources Total Rewards Leader

Like any important work, Catherine Morgans book reads somewhere between the transcripts of a very vital conversation and an instruction manual for a new business world thats still in the cooling lava stages of forming. I need this book. You might, too! If youve felt a bit dented, heres the fix.

CHRIS BROGAN , Chief of Staff, Appfire.com

No one sets out to work themselves into a downward spiral, but thats what our professional lives often become: a soul-consuming trap. Catherine Morgan takes the lid off the difficult career questions we all face, and provides pointed advice for finding healthy, empowering work. Catherine has been my go-to resource over many years for professional friends in career transition, and I am grateful that she has written this book for the benefit of many others.

STEVE WOODRUFF , Author, C larity Wins

Todays world of work is starkly different from past decades. To get and keep great jobs, This Isnt Working! is the perfect contemporary career guide, written by Catherine Morgan, an expert who gets real results every day for her clients.

PAMELA SLIM , Author, Body of Work and The Widest Net

As I read through This Isnt Working! I found myself jotting down names of people who absolutely needed to read this book right now. So many professionals are in desperate need of Catherine Morgans expertise. If you are at a crossroads in your profession and your life, and know theres just got to be MORE out there, this book will give you the direction, the tools, and the wise counsel youre seeking.

SARAH ROBINSON , Executive Strategist and Keynote Speaker

Catherine Morgan challenges our deeply-held beliefs and ideas on what work is supposed to look like. In doing so, she opens up the possibility to craft a professional life on our own terms. She smacks you on the side of the head with some straight-talk and follows it up with some compassionate support in a way only a rockstar coach can. When you read this book, youll see your career differently, both the one you have now and the one youre building towards.

DAVID J.P. FISHER , Author, Hyper-Connected Selling and

Networking in the 21st Century

These pages are like having a heart-to-heart talk with a close colleague, where you finally hear just what you needed to hear to get unstuck. Catherine Morgans words will help you clearly see the truth of your current work situation. And you just might find that spark that guides you out of a dark space and onto whats next.

ANDY CRESTODINA , Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer,

Orbit Media Studios, Inc.

In This Isnt Working! , Catherine Morgan writes a permission slip for you to take care of yourself in a way that works for you. She shines a light on the many things we try to ignoreoverwork, dissatisfaction, and mental, emotional, and physical health problemsso we can keep up the facade that everything is just fine. She firmly puts this right in front of you so you can no longer ignore it. And with fierce love, Catherine provides tactics to shift you back into the drivers seat of your life and create the work and life you want. If youve been thinking something is off, but havent put your finger on it yet, read this book. By the time you are done, you will trust your intuition and begin to see possibilities for a better way of working and living.

KRISTEEN BARTH , Organizational Development Leader and Executive Coach

This Isnt Working! is chock full of information on topics key to work-life well-being. Catherine Morgan does an exemplary job of identifying issues, providing real-life examples, and offering substantiated solutions. You dont have to go it alone. Catherine is a forthright and devoted guide in assisting you to decrease stress, anxiety, and depression.

CAROLYN DRAGON , Founder & Chief Enjoyment Officer,

TENWOMENSTRONG

This Isnt Working! is filled with hard-hitting truths that we need to hearand better ways we can do things now to find the hope inside each of us. Instead of longing for what will never be again, grab hold of this book and devour it, and you too can learn to embrace what will come next.

PHIL GERBYSHAK , Sales Enablement Consultant, Author,

and Boomerang Employee

This book is dedicated to Carol Roth, who strongly encouraged me to share my story and has supported me throughout this journey.

INTRODUCTION

W HAT IF YOU could hit a pause button, pull up, and take an objective look at your life? Thats what many of us did in 2020whether we wanted to or not.

If you werent a healthcare worker or on the front lines in some way, you were essentially sent to your room with stay-at-home guidelines to think about what youd done.

Thats when many people realized what they were doing wasnt working for them.

The pandemic put a spotlight on busyness, overworking, overconsumption, avoidance, and numbing. From a place of stillness, and maybe even peace, the way we were working was exposed for what it was: batshit crazy.

It would take a long time to list all the famous people Ive heard say they will not recreate their insane travel and speaking schedules going forward.

Connection to self, family, community, hobbiesall of these became increasingly important ways to stay sane during the insanity of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is good news.

The not-so-good news is people are really struggling now with mental and physical health issues and working, and I believe if we dont confront this and the trauma weve all experienced, we will have BIG problems. Thats why Im writing this book.

We shouldnt be striving to go back to normal because if were honest, it wasnt that great, and it wasnt working for many of us.

We need to EVOLVE.

Are you ready to join the evolution?

As a career transition expert and business consultant for more than 20 years, I cant tell you how many clients I have had to remind that they get to choose what they do, how they work, where they live, and so on. We are lucky to have freedom of choice here in the United States.

We can make decisions that are right at the time, but at some point, they are no longer right for us. In the middle of it, we can forget we can make a different choicewe can leave that relationship, we can quit that job, we can exit that business, we can sell the too-big house, we can reduce our overheadwe have choices! We have possibilities!

This is what I actually sell through Point A to Point B Transitions Inc.possibility. And permission slips. Like any good coach, I give out permission slips for people to want what they want. And then I support them in mapping a path to get what they want.