Aligned Ambition with Pooja V.

Pooja Venkatraman
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Careers
  • Updated Semiweekly

Hi! I’m Pooja – I’m a double Harvard grad, ex-BCG consultant, and now a writer, thought leader, and executive coach. I help high achievers tackle stress productivity, performance and purpose so they can fulfill their biggest ambitions and unleash their fullest potential… …without sacrificing their sanity, their relationships, their authenticity, or their paychecks. Let’s build the life and career you actually want – one that feels as good on the inside as it looks on the outside. Book a free consult call to discuss working together: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact

  1. 14h ago

    493. The 3 types of high achiever burnout

    When high achievers feel burnt out or dissatisfied with their careers, their first question is usually: What should I do NEXT? But I think it’s very important to first ask: What’s not working NOW? Because if you don’t correctly diagnose that… You run the risk of making a change and feeling exactly the way you feel right now, 6-12 months from now. But you don’t have to start from scratch in figuring out what’s not working. I’ve spent thousands of hours talking to high achievers at career inflection points…  And from those conversations, I’ve distilled the 3 types of high achiever burnout I see again and again. So here’s what I want you to do next: 1️⃣ Listen to this episode to understand the 3 types 2️⃣ Book a Free Career Audit with me, 2-3 days from now: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  3️⃣ Track your mental soundtrack over the next 2-3 days and see which of the 3 types it aligns with 4️⃣ Bring your mental soundtrack to me Don’t worry if it’s messy or unstructured. I’m the expert at cleaning up and making sense of brain dumps. Just book your call (do that first to give yourself a deadline!). Track your soundtrack. And bring it to me. I’ll tell you exactly what’s going on here – the true root cause of your burnout. And I’ll build you a plan to get clear on what’s next, make it a success, and build a career that doesn’t burn you out again. Talk soon :)  And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    29 min

  2. 6d ago

    492. 5 key career mistakes high achievers make (part 5)

    We’re at the final installment of our five-part series! In the last four episodes, we’ve covered… Mistake #1: Not being clear on what you want and not owning it. Mistake #2: Trying to “arrive” or “make it.” Mistake #3: Focusing on your weaknesses vs. investing your strengths. Mistake #4: Not finding the “handshake” between your superpowers and a high-value problem. And today, we’re talking about Mistake #5: Expecting this to be a one-and-done process. If you think you should have already figured out your career, you’ll feel embarrassed that you’re not sure what to do next.  That embarrassment will feel like crap, AND it will block your problem-solving. You can’t feel bad about yourself and think strategically about your career at the same time. This episode tells you why it’s totally normal that you THINK you should have figured this out already…  And why that belief is actually false.  You’re not behind. You’re not lost. You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. Once you know that, you can drop the shame and bring in an expert to help you figure it out as quickly and painlessly as possible. Book your Free Career Audit here, and let’s map out a plan for you to figure out what’s next: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    33 min

  3. May 25

    491. 5 key career mistakes high achievers make (part 4)

    If you’re a high achiever in a prestigious job that is making you feel burnt out, disillusioned, or disconnected… But you can’t walk away because you don’t know what you’d do next… You’re probably making one of these 5 career mistakes.  And it’s making you feel stuck where you are and confused about your next step. This week’s podcast episode is all about Mistake #4: Not finding the “handshake” between your superpowers and a high-value problem. Overcoming Mistakes #1-3 got you:  ✅ Clear about what you want ✅ In touch with your unique superpowers ✅ Able to find flow and fulfillment every day at work, not just at the big milestones These things make your career INTERNALLY fulfilling. Overcoming Mistake #4 makes sure your next step can:  ✅ Support your lifestyle ✅ Achieve your financial goals ✅ Give you economic stability This makes your career EXTERNALLY successful. Building the career you actually want is all about marrying your deepest, most wishful aspirations with the unrelenting rigors of practical reality – without trading off on either. This podcast series gives you a great start. But what gets you over the finish line is rigorous thought partnership.  You need to be meeting regularly with an expert who can: ✅ Deep dive into YOUR specific career ✅ Apply the exact tools and frameworks best suited to your situation ✅ Bring thousands of hours of pattern recognition to cut through the noise and tell you the answer If you’re ready to get clear and confident about your next career step, book a Free Career Audit, and let’s build the plan for making your next step a smashing success: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    30 min

  4. May 18

    490. 5 key career mistakes high achievers make (part 3)

    High achievers are AMAZING at focusing on their weaknesses and TERRIBLE at focusing on their strengths.  That sounds like a good thing – until you realize that it leads you to build a weakness-based strategy for your career, instead of a strengths-based strategy. And a weakness-based strategy never wins. This week’s episode is all about High Achiever Career Mistake #3: Focusing on your weaknesses instead of investing in your strengths. I break down the 3 misconceptions that cause high achievers to make this mistake. And I tell you exactly what to do about them so you can use your strengths to get clear on what’s next and make it a success. If you want to build a strengths-based strategy for your career – and feel clear and confident about your next career step – you need an objective thought partner. It’s impossible to have an outside perspective on yourself.  And chances are, you haven’t spent thousands of hours helping people nail their career transitions. What you’re experiencing for the first or second time, I’ve seen dozens of times. So stop spinning alone in your head and bring in an expert who can give you the structure and objectivity you need to get your next step right. Book your Free Career Audit with me here: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact    And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    28 min

  5. May 11

    489. 5 key career mistakes high achievers make (part 2)

    If you’re a high achiever who knows SOMETHING has to change in your career…  But you’re stuck in figuring out exactly WHAT that change is, and what you want to do next… You’re probably making one of these 5 career mistakes. And it’s keeping you spinning in circles, instead of moving forward with clarity and confidence. This week’s podcast episode is all about Mistake #2: Trying to “arrive” or “make it.” Counter-intuitive, right? Don’t we all want to “arrive” and “make it”? Isn’t that the whole point? In this episode, I’ll tell you why the desire to “make it” is actually keeping you stuck and confused about what you want to do next. And I’ll give you 3 steps to take to get you un-stuck. So listen in, and then book your Free Career Audit with me: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  I’ll help you implement and operationalize exactly what I tell you to do in this episode – faster and more effectively than you can do it yourself.  Subscribe to my email newsletter to make sure you don’t miss a single installment of this series: https://poojav.substack.com/  And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    28 min

  6. May 4

    488. 5 key career mistakes high achievers make (part 1)

    If you’re a high achiever who worked really hard to build your career, and you thought you’d feel successful, happy, and fulfilled by now… But instead, you’re feeling stressed, dissatisfied, and like something’s not quite right… You’re probably making one of these 5 key career mistakes. You haven’t screwed things up. There’s nothing wrong with you. And you’re not being privileged or ungrateful. This 5 part series is going to give you clarity about WHY you’re feeling this way and a clear path forward for exactly what to do about it. These 5 mistakes are 100% understandable and 100% fixable. Listen to this week’s podcast episode for a deep dive on Mistake #1. And then book your Free Career Audit for a chance to take a big-picture look at your career, get clear on what you want, identify the gaps, and make a doable plan to close them: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  Subscribe to my email newsletter to make sure you don’t miss a single installment of this series: https://poojav.substack.com/  And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    41 min

  7. Apr 27

    487. The top 5 challenges high achievers face when they get promoted

    When you get promoted, there are 5 key skills you need to succeed at your new level.  NONE of them are “be good at the core job.” Being good at the core job is table stakes.  What you need to succeed are 5 NEW skills (or 5 skills that you’ll be spending significantly more time on than before). For a breakdown of all 5 skills and how to build them, listen to this week’s podcast episode. And then book a free call with me and let’s do a Skill Audit together: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  We’ll examine exactly how you’re doing along these 5 dimensions right now. And then build a clear game plan to close the gaps.  Book your free call now: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  Email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠ And if you’d like to chat with Megan Porter, executive coach for first-time C-suite leaders, email her at megan@mppadvisory.com

    43 min

  8. Apr 20

    486. The real reason why high achievers burn out

    The most important thing, when you’re trying to cure or avoid burnout, is to understand what CAUSES burnout. Because the last thing you want to do is change your job and overhaul your life…only to find yourself burnt out again 6-12 months later. High achievers think burnout is caused by long hours, demanding bosses, and high-pressure targets. And while those things are correlated, they’re not the true root cause. Which is why I’ve seen too many high achievers switch to the “more chill” job…and still end up unhappy. To understand the REAL root cause of burnout – and what you can do to cure or avoid it – listen to this week’s episode. And if burnout feels close (or has already arrived) for you, book a call with me and let’s do a Burnout Audit together. We’ll assess exactly what’s causing your burnout now.  And we’ll map out a simple, doable plan for you to stop feeling depleted and get back to feeling like yourself again. Book your free call now: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact  For a summary of the key concepts in this episode, check out this guide: https://poojav.substack.com/p/free-guide-the-real-reason-high-achievers And email me anytime with thoughts, feedback, and topics you’d like to see covered on the podcast! ⁠⁠pooja@poojavcoaching.com⁠⁠

    44 min
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About

Hi! I’m Pooja – I’m a double Harvard grad, ex-BCG consultant, and now a writer, thought leader, and executive coach. I help high achievers tackle stress productivity, performance and purpose so they can fulfill their biggest ambitions and unleash their fullest potential… …without sacrificing their sanity, their relationships, their authenticity, or their paychecks. Let’s build the life and career you actually want – one that feels as good on the inside as it looks on the outside. Book a free consult call to discuss working together: https://poojavcoaching.com/contact

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