115 min
Find the throughline, today. Put your inventory and your target side by side. What's the thread between them? Write one sentence with script 1: "I've always been the person who [X], which is exactly why I'm moving toward [target]."
Week 3 of 13Phase 1: Get clear
Connect it into a story that makes sense
The read (3 minutes)
You have your value from week 1 and your sharp target from week 2. On their own they're two lists. The story is the line that connects them, the reason your past points at this target instead of looking like a series of unrelated jobs. It turns "here's everything I've done" into "here's where I'm going, and here's why it makes sense."
This matters for a plain reason: people remember stories, not bullet points. The next time someone asks "tell me about yourself" or "why this role," you want a short, clear answer that isn't your whole résumé read aloud. A career story isn't spin and it isn't a personal-brand exercise. It's the true throughline, said on purpose.
There's a second payoff that pays all the way to day 90. Your story is how your value travels when you're not in the room. The colleague who mentions you, the manager who puts you forward, the senior leader who remembers you, they can only repeat a version of your story they actually understood. This week you give them one worth repeating.
This week's moves
220 min
Write the short version. Four sentences with script 2: where you've been, what you're best at, where you're going, and why it connects. This is your "tell me about yourself" without the life history.
310 min
Say it once, out loud. Use the short version in one real moment this week: a 1:1, a coffee, an introduction. No moment came up? Rehearse it once with script 3. Saying it to the mirror counts.
Script bank
Word for word, ready to use. Edit any script to make it yours, then copy it.
1.The connecting line
"I've always [pattern or strength], and now I'm moving toward [target], because [the connection between them]."
2.The short story
Four sentences, in order. Past: "I've spent the last few years [X]." Strength: "What I'm best at is [strength]." Direction: "Where I'm headed is [target]." Connection: "It fits because [throughline]."
3.The spoken "tell me about yourself."
"The short version: I [strength and what you do]. Lately I've been focused on [target]. What I'm looking for next is [next step]." Then stop talking.
4.Stop apologizing
Cut "this might sound weird," "I sort of fell into this," "I'm not sure if this makes sense." Your path is allowed to make sense. Say it like it does.
Friday debrief prompts
Your Friday email carries the reply template. These are the prompts inside it.
- The throughline you found: write it here.
- Did the short version feel true, or like a pitch? What would make it truer?
- What's clearer now than it was in week 1?
Re-entry note
Behind? This week needs week 1 and 2 to work. If you only have one session, write the throughline (move 1) with whatever you've got. The full story can wait a week.