For as long as I can remember, my career was the focal point of my life. (You may or may not know that I started writing at 12 and since then it’s always been my dream to have my words published in print). So even as a working adult, I tied my sense of worth and identity to the work I did, how much I achieved, and the praise I received. And I loved it- until I didn’t.
I burnt out too badly at a job I loved and my quick-fix, band-aid solution was to leave and find another job. And this worked. For a while.
It wasn’t until I was staring down the possibility of retrenchment in my “dream job”, with all the uncertainty that brings, that I started questioning what I had built my life around. At the same time, I lost my cousin. The grief was a shock to my system and suddenly, I was reminded how fleeting everything is. My priorities began to shift.
Decentering my career wasn’t easy. It felt like losing a part of myself. But in that loss, I began to see how much I had placed my career at the center of my happiness and how unhealthy that really was. In this series, I’ll be sharing my experiences and insights on why decentering your career isn’t about stepping away from ambition- it’s about redefining what truly matters.