Career Confused?
There was a time when career confusion and the infamous "mid-life crisis" was almost expected in your 40s.
You’d put in the years. You’d climbed a few rungs. You’d done what you were “supposed” to do.
Then, somewhere around midlife, the questions would start to surface: Is this it? Is this how I want to spend the next 20 years?
What’s changed is not the crisis itself, rather it’s the timing.
I’m seeing more people wrestle with these questions in their late 20s, early 30s, and mid-30s. Not quietly. Not hypothetically. But in very real, very disruptive ways.
They, like you, don't lack ambition or resilience. In fact, you work your butt off.
It’s because the world of work, life, resources, priorities, world events and so much more looks nothing like it did even a decade ago.
The Old Career Model Assumed a Simpler Life
The traditional career path was built for a time when:
Work stayed mostly at work
Careers progressed linearly
Life responsibilities stacked later, not sooner
Today, that model collapses under real life. I remember paying more than 1/2 of my sallary in a year for childcare...REAL LIFE.
Do any of these resonate with you? You're building careers while managing student debt, caregiving, parenting, health challenges, financial pressure, and constant digital noise. The expectations at work have grown, but the space to recover, reflect, and recalibrate has shrunk.
So when you say, “I don’t know if I want this anymore,” what you're often really saying is: “This no longer fits who I am or the life I’m actually living.”
Can I get a commitment from you?
One of the most damaging narratives I see is the idea that questioning your career early means you didn’t think things through or you’re giving up too soon.
In reality, many people did think things through based on who they were at the time.
But people evolve. Values shift. Priorities reorder themselves. What once felt energizing can become draining when your life context changes.
That tension is hard but necessary.
Okay...now here's the commitment.
When discomfort shows up, the instinct is to move fast.
New job. New title. New company. New path.
Action feels productive, but without clarity, it’s easy to recreate the same dissatisfaction in a different environment. The role changes, but the underlying misalignment doesn’t.
A career crisis isn’t always asking for a dramatic pivot. Sometimes it’s asking for a deeper understanding of what’s driving the unrest in the first place.
Here's your invitation.
Before asking, “What job should I get next?”, a more useful question is “What has changed about me?”
Noticing misalignment earlier gives you more options, not fewer. It allows for adjustment instead of burnout, intentional shifts instead of reactive ones.
Live Empowered,
Stephanie
