Before you weigh up any career move, you need an accurate picture of what you bring. Here's why your most useful strengths are often the hardest to see, and a simple exercise to help you start spotting them.

Some of the advice out there does not help. "Follow your passion" is not a strategy. A pros and cons list will not get you far either, because it lets you weigh surface factors against each other without ever asking what is actually driving the decision underneath. You end up with a tidy grid that confirms whatever you were already leaning towards.