As someone in the middle of a career change and about to try a different kind of job for significantly less money…this was such a reassurance. It felt like I’m not alone for wanting to try something new that doesn’t require me to clock in at a desk every day. Thanks. 🫶🏼
Agreed, you’re not alone. I left a 15-year career track back in 2017, and while I’m glad I did (the job was soul crushing), I still have my doubts now and then. I’ve pivoted a few times since that big leap and sometimes get stuck in the “where’s my ONE path?” mentality while I watch others climb to higher titles. But then I remind myself I’m someone who can “sample” different roles and bring those skills to the next one. Queen of Transferrable Skills. And now I’m trying something new: letting my paying job be the way I find my passion job (art, writing etc). That has been its own mental gymnastics. 😀
This perspective shift is so freeing, and so important! Years ago, when I decided to leave academia, I struggled with "losing" the decade of work I had put in. People would ask me things like, "don't you want to be a scientist?" and it made me feel terrible. But then I realized - I had already been a scientist. I had earned a terminal scientific degree; I had conducted and published and presented scientific research. Changing paths wasn't "giving up", it was just trying a new thing. (In my case, several new things, including health insurance and a savings account.)
Yesss, exactly!! I hear this from people in academia so much bc it really is such a long haul and can feel so hard to jump off but yes yes yes - congrats on leaving! Not giving up at all, just moving on. Thank you for reading!! x
I can relate to this! I’d love to share my experience of how I found what I truly wanted to do. I was working in fashion production, and even though my skills were highly appreciated, something felt off—it wasn’t what I wanted, even though I was very good at it. It felt like a golden cuff. When I quit without another job lined up, some people thought I was crazy. But I knew it was a sinking ship, and I kept reminding myself not to fall into the sunk cost fallacy. I needed a fresh start and time to think about my next move, and the job was so intense, it left no space for reflection. I knew I wanted to move into the Film/TV world, even if I didn’t yet know exactly how. Sometimes, not having it all figured out is okay. What truly matters to us doesn’t have to align with society’s definition of success.
And I fully agree—you never really lose your experience. You were the one who did it all, and if you’ve done it once, you can do it again.
It was a pleasure to read this today. I really enjoyed the flow of your thoughts and how you expressed them. I’ll be checking out your other posts too!
As a former tech recruiter I can confirm that a gap in a resume is no longer a big deal. Ever since Covid it’s been the norm. Even better if you have something fun like a creative project to talk about!
Love to hear that, thanks for chiming in! I've found the same thing as an applicant (more or less), awesome to hear it validated and thanks for reading!
This is a great read and so important! I left corporate and took a sabbatical for a while, and it was such an important time for self-development. I discovered so many new parts of my “personhood” that I’d been neglecting to explore for years. Also a great reminder that we don’t have to pick just one thing and stick to it! We CAN try different things out, even in our careers! Thank you for sharing 🙏
Love this! I'm six weeks into my sabbatical and needed to read these words. Thank you for expressing what I have struggled to. For acknowledging the fear of what others will think. I have received nothing but positive responses, and a lot of envy, but I still worry that my peers will 'progress' without me. I have shared this with so many people as I know they will benefit from your words to. Thank you!
Aw thank you so much for reading and sharing! Congrats on your sabbatical! There's so much time to 'progress' - I hope you're enjoying your time away from that typical track, a whole different type of progress! :)
This was so nice to hear. I’m in the middle of “rebranding” myself within the same career. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while but always had some resistance to it. I still feel the voice in my head telling me “well what about all of this other great work you created in other niches/industries? Are you just not going to showcase it?” And I need to remind myself that that work is not wasted at all - it all taught me something.
Doing the wrong thing for longer will never make it the right thing. This is heartening to read - I’d trained to be a performer since I was 6, but made the scary leap to switch career paths a few years ago… in my 30s now and still feeling like the newbiest newbie in every space I’m in 😅
It can get frustrating, but more than anything, it’s been liberating becoming things other than the one thing I thought I’d always be. Don’t think I’d ever trade this feeling for what I once believed was ‘success’.
Thank you for this, it felt good to read it. I've been trying to shift my career, similar to Kiersten below, although I'm in my fourth year now and not feeling like I'm making progress, but not ready to give up yet. Btw I love your workshop offering and hope to come back to it later when I have some focus time.
Thank you for reading! I totally understand that feeling, it took me a while to feel ready to shift from my more traditional career track, and I still go back occasionally to working in tech. Thank you, also, re workshop, I would love to work with you!
This is such great, tangible, and practical advice from time spent in the trenches. I’ve been in this spot and was afraid to jump, made it and built myself up to another spot where I’m afraid to jump and go all-in on writing. This was really helpful.
Oh I'm so glad! I know, it can be scary - I completely get it. And I don't think anyone has to go all-in if it's not feasible / comfortable, there's an in-between!
Oh for sure, I’m actually in the in between phase right now (I write for my job and also freelance), but I have the opportunity and connections to go all in on myself, but I would be pausing what I built the past 7 years. Decision time!
I remember when I went to my first writing class I was so nervous. It seemed like everyone had their lives together and were way better writers than me. Years later we revealed that we all had been so nervous (and maybe also nervous to see where writing might lead us). I'm in the middle of a career pivot and while it's kind of scary, I'm pretty excited! I think if I hadn't been brave enough to take that class, I might not have been brave enough to change things now.
This resonates deeply... really appreciate the description here of the slow shift in perspective. Sometimes it feels like we have to make these grand 'black and white' decisions all at once for our careers or our lives, when really they can be subtle shifts over time.
This passage stuck with me: "And opening ourselves up to different forms of value can be life-changing if we allow ourselves to silence the ingrained comparisons that capitalism so brutally instills."
I needed to read this today! I'm debating how to take the next step in balancing "professional" and writing careers, and this essay made me take a breath for the first time in days. thank you for sharing!
Oh I’m so glad! Yeah it’s a hard balance to navigate but very excited for you! Please check out my workshop if it’s of interest, and thank you so much for reading!
As someone in the middle of a career change and about to try a different kind of job for significantly less money…this was such a reassurance. It felt like I’m not alone for wanting to try something new that doesn’t require me to clock in at a desk every day. Thanks. 🫶🏼
Definitely not alone!! I’m excited for you and thank you for reading!
Agreed, you’re not alone. I left a 15-year career track back in 2017, and while I’m glad I did (the job was soul crushing), I still have my doubts now and then. I’ve pivoted a few times since that big leap and sometimes get stuck in the “where’s my ONE path?” mentality while I watch others climb to higher titles. But then I remind myself I’m someone who can “sample” different roles and bring those skills to the next one. Queen of Transferrable Skills. And now I’m trying something new: letting my paying job be the way I find my passion job (art, writing etc). That has been its own mental gymnastics. 😀
This perspective shift is so freeing, and so important! Years ago, when I decided to leave academia, I struggled with "losing" the decade of work I had put in. People would ask me things like, "don't you want to be a scientist?" and it made me feel terrible. But then I realized - I had already been a scientist. I had earned a terminal scientific degree; I had conducted and published and presented scientific research. Changing paths wasn't "giving up", it was just trying a new thing. (In my case, several new things, including health insurance and a savings account.)
Yesss, exactly!! I hear this from people in academia so much bc it really is such a long haul and can feel so hard to jump off but yes yes yes - congrats on leaving! Not giving up at all, just moving on. Thank you for reading!! x
I can relate to this! I’d love to share my experience of how I found what I truly wanted to do. I was working in fashion production, and even though my skills were highly appreciated, something felt off—it wasn’t what I wanted, even though I was very good at it. It felt like a golden cuff. When I quit without another job lined up, some people thought I was crazy. But I knew it was a sinking ship, and I kept reminding myself not to fall into the sunk cost fallacy. I needed a fresh start and time to think about my next move, and the job was so intense, it left no space for reflection. I knew I wanted to move into the Film/TV world, even if I didn’t yet know exactly how. Sometimes, not having it all figured out is okay. What truly matters to us doesn’t have to align with society’s definition of success.
And I fully agree—you never really lose your experience. You were the one who did it all, and if you’ve done it once, you can do it again.
It was a pleasure to read this today. I really enjoyed the flow of your thoughts and how you expressed them. I’ll be checking out your other posts too!
Thank you so much and thank you for sharing your story! Huge congrats on leaving and starting in Film / TV, so brave and exciting!
As a former tech recruiter I can confirm that a gap in a resume is no longer a big deal. Ever since Covid it’s been the norm. Even better if you have something fun like a creative project to talk about!
Love to hear that, thanks for chiming in! I've found the same thing as an applicant (more or less), awesome to hear it validated and thanks for reading!
This is a great read and so important! I left corporate and took a sabbatical for a while, and it was such an important time for self-development. I discovered so many new parts of my “personhood” that I’d been neglecting to explore for years. Also a great reminder that we don’t have to pick just one thing and stick to it! We CAN try different things out, even in our careers! Thank you for sharing 🙏
Yes exactly!! I'm so glad you got to do that, sounds like such a valuable experience. Thank you for reading!
Love this! I'm six weeks into my sabbatical and needed to read these words. Thank you for expressing what I have struggled to. For acknowledging the fear of what others will think. I have received nothing but positive responses, and a lot of envy, but I still worry that my peers will 'progress' without me. I have shared this with so many people as I know they will benefit from your words to. Thank you!
Aw thank you so much for reading and sharing! Congrats on your sabbatical! There's so much time to 'progress' - I hope you're enjoying your time away from that typical track, a whole different type of progress! :)
This was so nice to hear. I’m in the middle of “rebranding” myself within the same career. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while but always had some resistance to it. I still feel the voice in my head telling me “well what about all of this other great work you created in other niches/industries? Are you just not going to showcase it?” And I need to remind myself that that work is not wasted at all - it all taught me something.
Yes 100%, exactly and thank you so much for reading!
Very interesting perspective on the sunk cost fallacy! Never thought about it in the context of career.
Doing the wrong thing for longer will never make it the right thing. This is heartening to read - I’d trained to be a performer since I was 6, but made the scary leap to switch career paths a few years ago… in my 30s now and still feeling like the newbiest newbie in every space I’m in 😅
It can get frustrating, but more than anything, it’s been liberating becoming things other than the one thing I thought I’d always be. Don’t think I’d ever trade this feeling for what I once believed was ‘success’.
Yes, I love hearing this and congrats on the shift! That's amazing!
"We are IN our lives!" yes!
Thank you!
Thank you for this, it felt good to read it. I've been trying to shift my career, similar to Kiersten below, although I'm in my fourth year now and not feeling like I'm making progress, but not ready to give up yet. Btw I love your workshop offering and hope to come back to it later when I have some focus time.
Thank you for reading! I totally understand that feeling, it took me a while to feel ready to shift from my more traditional career track, and I still go back occasionally to working in tech. Thank you, also, re workshop, I would love to work with you!
This is such great, tangible, and practical advice from time spent in the trenches. I’ve been in this spot and was afraid to jump, made it and built myself up to another spot where I’m afraid to jump and go all-in on writing. This was really helpful.
Oh I'm so glad! I know, it can be scary - I completely get it. And I don't think anyone has to go all-in if it's not feasible / comfortable, there's an in-between!
Oh for sure, I’m actually in the in between phase right now (I write for my job and also freelance), but I have the opportunity and connections to go all in on myself, but I would be pausing what I built the past 7 years. Decision time!
I remember when I went to my first writing class I was so nervous. It seemed like everyone had their lives together and were way better writers than me. Years later we revealed that we all had been so nervous (and maybe also nervous to see where writing might lead us). I'm in the middle of a career pivot and while it's kind of scary, I'm pretty excited! I think if I hadn't been brave enough to take that class, I might not have been brave enough to change things now.
Yes, I love this! I was SO nervous in my first class. And congrats on the pivot!!
This resonates deeply... really appreciate the description here of the slow shift in perspective. Sometimes it feels like we have to make these grand 'black and white' decisions all at once for our careers or our lives, when really they can be subtle shifts over time.
Exactly!! Thank you so much for reading!
This passage stuck with me: "And opening ourselves up to different forms of value can be life-changing if we allow ourselves to silence the ingrained comparisons that capitalism so brutally instills."
I needed to read this today! I'm debating how to take the next step in balancing "professional" and writing careers, and this essay made me take a breath for the first time in days. thank you for sharing!
Oh I’m so glad! Yeah it’s a hard balance to navigate but very excited for you! Please check out my workshop if it’s of interest, and thank you so much for reading!
Love this. What a great shift in perspective.
Aw thanks Maria!