Last week, I shared my three reinventions; lab scientist to sales leader to researcher to entrepreneur.
Today, I want to go deeper.
Because most career change advice focuses on the practical: update your resume, network differently, practice your story.
That matters. But it’s not the hardest part.
The hardest part is the identity work.
“Change always takes much longer than we expect because to make room for the new, we have to get rid of some of the old selves we are still dragging around and, unconsciously, still invested in becoming.”
— Herminia Ibarra, Working Identity
You might be ready to become someone new. But are you ready to let go of who you’ve been?
That’s the real work of reinvention.
5 IDENTITY PRINCIPLES FOR REINVENTION
1. EXPERIMENT BEFORE YOU COMMIT
The biggest mistake people make is thinking reinvention happens in one dramatic moment. “I’m going to quit my job and become a consultant.” “I’m leaving corporate to start a business.”
That’s not how it works.
Successful reinvention happens through experimentation. You don’t announce the new identity, you test it. Try on different versions. See what fits.
When I was a lab scientist considering business, I didn’t quit and hope. I enrolled in an MBA, I tested whether I could think strategically. Whether I enjoyed it. Whether it was actually what I wanted.
The MBA was my experiment. The PhD was my experiment. Each one let me try on a new identity before fully committing.
2. CRAFT YOUR TRANSITION NARRATIVE
How you tell the story of your reinvention matters enormously.
Your narrative needs four components:
→ Your foundation: What you’ve built. The skills and achievements that form your base.
→ The strategic move: Why this transition makes sense, not “I was unhappy,” but “I saw an opportunity.”
→ The value add: What you bring that others don’t. Your unique combination.
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Practice this narrative until it’s natural. Test it. Refine based on feedback.
3. EXPAND YOUR REFERENCE GROUP
Here’s something counterintuitive.
During reinvention, the people closest to you, family, old friends, and longtime colleagues, may not be your best source of support.
They know the old you. They’re invested in the old you. Even with good intentions, they may reinforce the identity you’re trying to shed.
When I told people in the lab I was pursuing an MBA, some tried to talk me out of it. “You’re so good at science. Why would you leave?”
They meant well. But they were invested in “Betty the scientist.” They couldn’t easily imagine “Betty the business leader.”
So I expanded my circle. I connected with others making career transitions. People in the business world who could see my potential, not my history.
4. EMBRACE THE CROOKED PATH
My path: Lab scientist → MBA student → sales manager → regional director → PhD student → researcher → entrepreneur.
If you drew it on paper, it would look chaotic. But each step built on the last.
Reinvention is not linear. You’ll have false starts. You’ll change direction. You’ll discover things that send you back to the drawing board.
That’s not failure. That’s the process.
5. GRIEVE THE OLD BEFORE CELEBRATING THE NEW
This is the part nobody wants to talk about.
Reinvention involves loss. Loss of competence. Loss of status. Loss of community. Loss of a self you’ve spent years building.
When I left the lab, I grieved. I’d spent years building expertise. Earning respect. Building relationships with colleagues who understood my work.
When I left sales, I grieved again. I’d built teams. Developed people. Created results I was proud of.
Research shows that career transitions can trigger grief-like responses. And grief that isn’t processed becomes weight you carry into your new identity.
So give yourself permission to mourn. The relationships that won’t translate. The expertise that won’t matter. The version of yourself that’s ending.
THE TRUTH
You’re not losing an identity.
You’re expanding into a more complex one, one that integrates multiple domains of expertise.
That’s not loss. That’s growth.
“Each time I reinvented myself, I was terrified. Each time, I did it anyway. Each time, I became more fully myself.”
If you’re in the middle of reinvention, or considering it, I want to hear from you.
What’s the hardest part? Reply and tell me.
🎬 WATCH THE FULL VIDEO: How to Reinvent Yourself → [LINK]
You’re not just changing careers. You’re becoming someone new.
That takes courage.
And you have it.
Let’s rise,
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Architecture — the habits, learning, and routines that hold the change up.
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Execution — turn the plan into visible, weekly progress instead of good intentions.
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Where is your career transition stalling?
Are you struggling to map your next career move, or are you having trouble identifying the right executive advocates to back your transition?
Click here to email me directly and share your context; I read and respond to every message personally.
