The research season is a period when you’re researching. You don’t have any goals yet, or you might have already achieved a big goal, and you’re thinking, “What is next?”
You might also find yourself in a space where everything is technically fine, but you’re just not quite feeling it. There’s something missing. Something you can’t quite name.
That feeling of “there’s just something else there” is often the start of a research season.
Feeling lost vs recognising the research season
Before you recognise it as a research season, it can just feel like being lost.
Like:
- I feel lost
- I don’t know what I’m doing
- I don’t know what direction I’m going in
And when you’re in that space, it can feel heavy and unclear.
But when you switch your thinking and recognise it as a research season, it shifts slightly.
It becomes:
I’m not lost. I’m researching.
It sounds more productive. It gives it structure. It gives it meaning.
It’s really just the step after being lost, after recognising that you feel lost.
My own experience with the research season
Before I started my coaching business working with tradeswomen and tradies, I went through a research season.
I gave myself about six months in the back half of 2020 to really figure things out.
At that time, I knew I wanted to do something for tradeswomen, but I didn’t know what that looked like.
So, I researched everything:
- What options I had
- How much money I would need
- How I could make that money
- Whether I should stay where I was or move on
It was a lot of:
“That could be cool… but how do I actually do that?”
“Is this what I really want?”
That entire phase was research.
Another time I was in a research season
After finishing my apprenticeship, I also went into a research season without realising it.
I had worked four years towards one goal, and then suddenly it was:
What now?
- Do I start my own business?
- Do I become an expert in my field?
- Do I study more?
- Do I stay in the same workplace?
So, I started researching all those options before I could decide what came next.
Why we feel stuck in this phase
Sometimes we try to skip this season completely.
Other times we don’t realise we’re in it, so we just label it as being lost.
But if you’re feeling lost, it can help to reframe it and ask:
Am I in a research season?
Because nothing has gone wrong. You’re just gathering information about your next step.
The Wheel of Life
A useful tool during this time is something called the Wheel of Life.
It looks at eight areas:
- Business and career
- Finances
- Health
- Relationships
- Romance
- Personal growth
- Fun and recreation
- Physical environment
You rate each area out of 10 and then look at the shape of your wheel.
Ideally, it’s balanced. But often, when you feel “off,” there is usually one area that is significantly lower than the rest.
That gap is often where your attention needs to go.
Example of how it shows up
For example, I worked with someone recently where:
- Most areas were around an 8
- Fun and recreation was a 10
- But finances were a 0
So while things looked “fine” on the surface, there was a lot of hidden stress underneath because one area was completely out of balance.
Where research seasons usually show up
For a lot of people, research seasons show up in areas like:
Career
- Do I stay? Do I move? Do I change direction?
Relationships
- Are we growing together or growing apart?
Fun and recreation
- Do I need hobbies? Do I need more balance?
Health
- What works for my body? What supports me long term?
It’s not just one area; it can be any part of life that starts to feel unclear or outgrown.
What comes after the research season
The purpose of the research season is not to stay in it forever.
It’s to:
- Explore
- Gather information
- Understand your options
And then slowly start to narrow things down.
You start to notice:
- This feels right
- This doesn’t
- This is worth pursuing
And that’s when direction starts to come back.
Final Thought
If you’re feeling lost right now, nothing is necessarily wrong.
You might just be in a research season.
And that means:
- You’re not behind
- You’re not stuck
- You’re not failing
You’re just in the part where you’re figuring out what comes next.
