Direct answer
Yes, changing careers is a legitimate grief — the closing of a cycle that must be felt and worked through. But you don't leave behind everything you built: you carry your baggage with you and begin delivering it in a different way, aligned with your new values and priorities.
The grief of closing a cycle
Joyce recounts that, upon leaving an HR director role overseeing 16 countries after becoming a mother, she suffered greatly. Pausing was the most important thing: she realized she was going through grief.
- Changing careers touches identity and 25 years of building.
- Suffering doesn't mean error — the transition existed to bring her where she is today.
- The baggage isn't lost; it's delivered in another way.
The role of self-knowledge
In career mentoring, many arrive crying in the first session: they don't feel recognized, lost an expected promotion, or are living this grief.
- The starting point is self-knowledge: understanding values and talents.
- Fulfillment comes from using your talents in what you do best.
- A career designed by others' expectations tends to breed frustration and even lower performance.