The Messy Middle Of Changing Careers

In this session, we explore why career plot twists and identity shifts feel so unsettling (and why you aren't broken for feeling this way).

​When you’ve spent years building a professional reputation, a job title isn't just a line you use. It easily becomes your social armour. But what happens when you strip that armor away, or find yourself navigating an uncomfortable "messy middle" between career chapters?

This video is to help you understand that experiencing a shift in career identify is a valid experience which needs your attention, not harsh judgement.

Transcript

If you stripped away your job title tomorrow, Who do you think will actually end up staring back at you in the mirror? You see, When you've spent 5, 10 or 20 years building a professional reputation, Your title isn't just a line you use on LinkedIn. It can actually end up becoming your entire social armor. By that I mean it's what you end up telling people you do at dinner parties, Just so that you don't have to explain too much about yourself, Especially if you are feeling confused about where you want to go with your career and how you want to use your expertise. I often find when people decide to pivot their career or when life forces them to pivot, There's this deeply uncomfortable and also incredibly unglamorous phase that no one really gives us an explanation for. It's what I like to call the messy middle. The messy middle is that weird twilight zone where you've outgrown your old suit, But the new one hasn't been tailored for you yet. You often end up sitting there looking at your professional biography and thinking to yourself, Am I an imposter, A visionary, Or am I just completely losing my mind? What is wrong with me and why do I feel the need to change? This is what I want you to remember. Experiencing a plot twist in your professional life doesn't necessarily mean you are doing anything wrong. When you strip away the corporate label or the comfortable niche you have built for yourself, You are not losing your expertise. In fact, I'm going to go so far as to say you are liberating it. Your title was just a container, But you, My friend, Were always the secret sauce. So if you are standing in that messy middle space right now, Feeling completely confused and scared about where to go to from here, I want to encourage you to try this technique. Stop asking yourself, What is my job title? And instead ask yourself, What is the core problem I am uniquely built to solve? You see, Titles are given to you by companies, But your authority and what you bring to the table, That's entirely yours, Which nobody can take away from you. When the time is right, You will figure out what the next step is you need to take. And for now, The first step is purely acknowledgement.

Reviews

This is me right now / thank you I feel so much better

Just what I needed this morning, in a bite-sized pep talk!

This solves it….im quitting my job today, and im going to start a charity for AI robots who struggle with diode depression and artificial anxiety. Thank you!!

I’m not in this situation, passing it on to a love one who is looking for a new path.

Very helpful in a messy time and a good reminder of the big picture and longer goal.