Graduate Career Coach Harrogate | Why Clarity Comes Before Applications

By Chris, Founder of Northern Trail

If you’re watching your son or daughter apply for dozens of jobs with very little response, you may be seeing them start to lose faith. Another application. Another rejection. Another evening scrolling through jobs online.

We live in a fast-paced world and it’s easy to assume we’re constantly running out of time. Endless social media and news feeds highlighting somebody else’s apparent success create the impression that everyone else has their life neatly mapped out. Competition feels constant and expectations feel high. It’s not surprising that many young adults quietly conclude they should have everything figured out by now.

In reality, that’s rarely how working life unfolds.

Take A Breath

If you’re in your early 20s, you are still at the very beginning of your working life. In the UK, many people will work for 40 years or more. Over that time, careers change direction several times as interests develop and people discover strengths they didn’t know they had.

Before rushing into hundreds of applications, it can help to slow the process down and take a step back. Not to do less—but to think more clearly. Because clear thinking usually leads to better decisions than rushed action.

Why “Applying for Everything” Often Backfires

When someone feels stuck, the natural instinct is to apply for as many roles as possible. It feels proactive and productive, but without direction, it often becomes exhausting.

Generic CVs and unfocused applications rarely stand out, and repeated rejection chips away at confidence. This is where graduate coaching can make a real difference—not by adding pressure, but by creating structure.

Simple Plans Work Best: A Military Principle

Early in my career in the military, I learned a principle that has stayed with me: In uncertain or stressful situations, complicated plans tend to fall apart. Simple, focused plans tend to work.

When things feel chaotic, you don’t try to solve everything at once. Clarify the objective, assess what you have, and decide on the next sensible step. Early career planning benefits from exactly the same approach. You don’t need a detailed 10-year masterplan; you need a clear sense of direction and a few practical next steps.

A Framework for Clear Thinking: T-GROW

In my coaching sessions at Northern Trail, I often use a structured conversation model called T-GROW. It’s an evolution of the well-established GROW coaching framework developed by Sir John Whitmore.

T-GROW stands for:

• Topic – What are we focusing on right now?
• Goal – What would a good outcome look like in the short term?
• Reality – What’s the current reality?
• Options – What realistic options are available?
• Way Forward – What specific actions will you take next?

I don’t like rigid formulas and this isn’t one. It’s simply a useful handrail to help organise thoughts. For many graduates, just having this structure reduces a lot of anxiety, because uncertainty starts to feel more manageable once there’s a plan.

Starting With the Person, Not the Job Market

I’m not a careers adviser or a specialist in the UK graduate jobs market itself. What I specialise in is the individual. My background has been centred on developing and understanding people—particularly those who are capable but may lack a bit of self-belief or confidence under pressure.

Rather than beginning with “Which jobs should you apply for?”, we start with talking about you as a person. Through structured exercises and reflection, we look at:

• What matters to you
• Where you tend to perform well
• Situations where you’ve felt energised and capable
• Patterns in your past successes

This foundation makes later decisions far easier, because applications become targeted and intentional rather than hopeful guesses.

Practical Coaching & Mentoring in Yorkshire

My approach is straightforward and human. I won’t just sit back and ask endless open questions while you go round in circles. We will use professional coaching properly—but when it’s helpful, I’ll also share experience and provide practical guidance from situations I’ve faced myself. It’s a blend of coaching and mentoring.

Clarity leads to confidence. Confidence leads to better action. And better action tends to produce better results.

How It Works

• Book: Schedule your free 20-minute discovery chat via email.
• Chat: We discuss the current situation and where things feel “stuck.”
• Plan: We identify the very next sensible step to move forward with purpose.

I offer one-to-one graduate coaching in Harrogate and across Yorkshire—relaxed, practical sessions designed to help young adults move forward with purpose rather than pressure.

Sometimes the most productive step isn’t doing more. It’s pausing long enough to work out what actually matters next.