Career and Chronic Map™
by Michelle Irving
What this framework is
The Career & Chronic Map™ is a navigation framework for understanding how chronic illness intersects with working life over time.
It provides a way to locate where someone is in relation to work, identity, and capacity, and to make decisions that are appropriate to that context.
Rather than focusing on productivity or ambition, the map supports clarity about timing, readiness, and fit.
It helps distinguish between moments that require protection, consolidation, experimentation, or leadership.
The Career & Chronic Map™ recognises that work with chronic illness is not static, and that different phases call for different kinds of decisions.
When this framework is used
The Career & Chronic Map™ is used when someone is experiencing:
- Uncertainty about whether they should be pushing forward or pulling back
- A sense of being “between” work identities or roles
- Questions about returning to work, changing roles, or renegotiating expectations
- Confusion about whether challenges are capacity-based or stage-based
- Pressure to make decisions without clarity on readiness
It is commonly introduced when someone feels confused about how to navigate work with chronic illness, and need a clear framework to identify how to do it.
It is also used as a foundational reference within structured programs delivered through Career & Chronic and Chronic Illness At Work.
Who this framework is for
This framework is designed for people living with chronic illness who are:
- Actively working
- Returning to work after illness or disruption
- Redesigning how they work
- Re-evaluating career direction or leadership identity
It is also used by employers, leaders, and organisations through Career & Chronic and Chronic Illness At Work programs as a shared language for understanding work stage and decision context.
Core elements of the framework
The Career & Chronic Map™ describes a series of recurring stages that reflect different relationships to work, identity, and capacity.
These stages may include:
- Periods away from work or off-ramped from previous roles
- Holding or stabilisation phases
- Re-entry or tentative re-engagement
- Reconfiguration of role, workload, or identity
- Contribution, leadership, or mentoring phases
The framework is non-linear.
People may move between stages, revisit earlier phases, or occupy multiple stages simultaneously.
The emphasis is on context. Career planning and Authentic Leadership are core elements of the map.
How this framework is applied
The Career & Chronic Map™ is applied by:
-
Identifying a person’s current stage in relation to work
-
Understanding which types of decisions are appropriate now, and which are not
-
Reducing pressure to perform decisions prematurely
-
Separating ambition from timing
-
Supporting decisions that align with both health reality and long-term sustainability
This is not a goal-setting or performance framework.
It is a decision-orientation framework.
Where this framework is used:
The Career & Chronic Map™ is used within:
-
Career & Chronic Map™ programs
-
Return to Work Programs
-
Leadership and advisory work
-
Corporate programs delivered through Chronic Illness At Work
It functions as a foundational reference across individual and organisational contexts.
