SEED Your Future: Empowerment through TeamPlay
Author: Margit Pichler
Increasingly complex career paths require guidance approaches that go beyond providing information. At the Euroguidance conference on 11 November 2025 in Vienna, the workshop “SEED Your Future” introduced an innovative concept combining a resource-oriented counselling framework with a structured reflection tool.
At its core is the SEED model, which integrates four dimensions of holistic career guidance: Strengths, Empowerment, Environment and Decision-Making. Strengths draws on positive psychology and focuses on activating existing resources. Empowerment promotes self-efficacy and agency. Environment considers systemic influences such as social and economic contexts. Decision-making emphasises clarity and concrete action steps. Together, these dimensions provide a comprehensive framework that enables individuals to actively shape their career paths.
The model was implemented through TeamPLAY, a card-based coaching tool inspired by the concept of the “inner team”. It visualises 21 personality traits, each representing specific needs and perspectives. By selecting and arranging cards, users create a visible representation of their inner dynamics. The analogue process is complemented by a digital platform offering evaluation, reflection prompts and long-term documentation.
TeamPLAY operationalises the SEED dimensions in practice. Strengths become visible through identifying personal traits and hidden resources. Empowerment is fostered as individuals learn to manage inner conflicts and experience themselves as active decision-makers. Environment is reflected by examining which personality aspects are activated or suppressed in certain contexts. Decision-making gains clarity when individuals understand the inner voices influencing their choices.
The interactive workshop allowed participants to experience the tool directly. A key exercise, the 11-6-3 method, guided them to narrow down 21 traits to three core strengths that characterise their optimal “flow dream team.” This process moved from intuitive selection to conscious prioritisation and generated deep insights into values and resources.
Applications discussed included analysing career decisions, preparing for job interviews, reflecting on conflicts and supporting professional reorientation. The visual and haptic approach proved both accessible and impactful, particularly for individuals who struggle with purely abstract methods.
The workshop highlighted how theoretical models can be translated into effective counselling practice. By combining analogue and digital elements, TeamPLAY represents a forward-looking approach. It emphasises self-reflection as the foundation for sustainable career decisions and reframes inner complexity as a resource rather than a problem.
Suitable for diverse settings—from youth guidance to mid-career transitions and retirement preparation—the SEED model and TeamPLAY contribute to a counselling culture that empowers individuals to take responsibility for shaping their professional lives.
About the author:
Margit Pichler works at a pre-vocational school in Lower Austria and is a trained career guidance counsellor. She previously worked in vocational training research at the University College of Teacher Education Lower Austria and is active as a lecturer, career guidance expert and certified TeamPlay® potential coach.
