Here’s the truth bomb.
Career plans are good. But agility is better.
A client of mine worked in crisis communications, where the only predictable thing was that weeks gave way to unforeseen emergencies. Let’s call her Lucy.
And in her career-building chapter? Lucy thrived on it.
The adrenaline.
The credibility that comes from being “the one who could handle anything.”
The promotions that came with being unflappable.
She didn’t just react.
She spotted patterns in the stream of problem-narratives.
Systemised responses.
Built a team who knew exactly how to mitigate reputational risk.
It’s how her own reputation as a leader-in-waiting was sealed.
But by the time her company brought me in?
She was so done.
Running on empty.
Burned out by the same strengths that had made her indispensable.
The Danger of Success
Success becomes an identity.
One that others depend on – and you get stuck performing.
And even when you know you’ve outgrown it, you don’t know who you’ll be without it.
Psychologists call this identity threat.
I call it a choice-point.
Stay circling in the career story that no longer fits…
Or shape-shift into who you’re becoming in your next chapter.
Not by torching the whole book.
But by writing your own professional plot-twist.
In Unstuck, I Talk About Career Agility
It’s the stage of redesign where you stop clinging to the old plotline… and start testing your next draft.
Not in fixed plans.
In a series of real world experiments.
Career agility means:
→ Consciously running low-stakes pilot tests of what’s next
→ Tuning into what energises you (and what drains you)
→ Making shifts before burnout forces your hand
You don’t need a 10-year plan.
You need curiosity – and the courage to follow it.
Because shape-shifting isn’t a one-time leap.
It’s a habit.
A way of moving through your career with more curiosity, more creativity – and less clinging.
Your Professional Plot-Twist
👉 What part of your career identity have you outgrown – and what plot-twist are you a bit afraid of stepping into?
This is the work I often do with seasoned professionals as they reach (or edge towards) their next choice-point.
Want to write your own professional plot twist? Let’s talk.
