Let's Be Honest: What's Actually New About Name, Frame, Extend (And What Isn't)

The ideas behind Name, Frame, Extend aren't new, but the simplicity is refreshing.

If you've been around the career block a few times—especially if you're mid-career or thinking about a pivot—you've probably encountered some version of these concepts before. Skills inventories, transferable skills analysis, personal branding exercises. The career development world is full of frameworks promising to help you "unlock your potential" and "discover your unique value."

So why did I create another one?

The Familiar Territory

Let me be clear about what NFE shares with existing approaches:

Skill identification has been a cornerstone of career counseling since forever. Every career center, every outplacement program, every "What Color Is Your Parachute?" workbook asks you to list what you're good at.

Reframing your abilities in business language? That's Resume Writing 101. Career coaches have been helping people translate "I managed the office holiday party" into "coordinated cross-functional team event for 200+ stakeholders" for decades.

Thinking about transferable skills is standard practice, especially for career changers. The idea that your abilities can apply beyond your current role isn't new—it's the foundation of every career pivot conversation.

Even the concept of regular self-reflection is well-established in professional development circles.

So What's Different?

Here's where I think NFE diverges from the pack, and why I built it despite all the existing options:

It's Ridiculously Simple

Most career frameworks are exhausting. Multi-step assessments, complex matrices. NFE is three words you can remember: Name, Frame, Extend. That's it.

It Starts Small and Specific

Instead of "assess all your skills," NFE asks: "What skill helped you solve a problem this week?" It's concrete, recent, and manageable. You're not staring at a blank page trying to remember everything you've ever been good at.

The "Extend" Step Goes Further

Most frameworks stop at identification and articulation. They help you figure out what you're good at and how to talk about it. The "Extend" step pushes you to actively imagine new applications—not just "where else could I use this skill?" but "how could this skill serve my community, not just my workplace?" It's less about job hunting, more about possibility thinking.

It's a Practice, Not a Project

Ten minutes a week. That's the commitment. Most career development feels like a big project you tackle when you're job searching or having a career crisis. NFE is designed to be ongoing—building career resilience as a regular habit, not a panic response.

It Connects to Real Output

The framework explicitly leads to concrete materials: resume bullets, interview stories, LinkedIn updates. It's not just self-awareness for self-awareness's sake.

Why I Built It Anyway

Here's the thing about career development tools: having good ideas isn't enough if people don't actually use them. And many people don't stick with complex systems, no matter how comprehensive they are.

I built NFE because I needed something I could actually maintain. As someone in a niche role, I needed to regularly think about my transferable skills, but I also needed it to be simple enough that I'd actually do it consistently.

The magic isn't in the novelty of the ideas—it's in the packaging that makes them sustainable.

What This Means for You

If you're mid-career or considering a pivot, you don't need to choose between NFE and other career development approaches. Think of this framework as a lightweight maintenance routine—like taking vitamins versus going to the doctor. It's not a replacement for comprehensive career counseling when you need it, but it's something you can do consistently to stay career-ready.

The best career tool is the one you'll actually use. If NFE's simplicity and specificity work for your brain and your schedule, use it. If you need something more comprehensive or structured differently, find what fits.

The goal isn't to reinvent career development—it's to make the good ideas more accessible and actionable for people who need them.

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