When Your Title Fades: How to Redefine Who You Are Without Starting Over
For a long time, my title was everything.
CEO. Founder. Doer of All the Things. It gave me purpose, clarity, validation—even identity.
Until it didn’t.
After I sold my company, I found myself in that in-between place so many of us land in—successful on paper, but uncertain underneath. I wasn’t sure who I was without the job, without the calendar full of decisions and deadlines, and without the identity I’d spent years building.
And I know I’m not alone.
Over the past few years, I’ve coached hundreds of people at that same intersection. Some are approaching retirement. Some are burned out from years of entrepreneurship. Some have simply outgrown a career that used to fit but now feels tight and unfamiliar.
And almost all of them are asking the same question:
“If I’m not this title anymore…who am I?”
When Doing Becomes Your Identity
It makes sense, right? We spend decades refining what we do. We get good at it. Heck, we master it! We build businesses, lead teams, and create results. We fill out forms (at the doctor’s office, no less!) that ask for our occupation. We introduce ourselves to friends with our job title.
And somewhere along the way, what we do becomes who we are.
Until something changes: you sell your business, your role changes, or maybe, it just stops feeling good.
That’s when things get real. Because without that title, that schedule, that sense of productivity—we start to wonder “who am I…now?”
Then we get stuck, assuming we have to answer all of the questions before we can move forward.
But in truth, you don’t need to know all the answers at once.. You need space to listen to the questions and determine what actually matters to you now.
You’re Not Starting Over—You’re Starting from Experience
I always tell my Nxt Coaching and Immersion clients this: change isn’t about burning your life down and starting from scratch or walking away from everything you’ve already built up in your life. In fact, it’s the opposite.
It’s about recognizing what’s no longer serving you…and what still is.
I encourage folks to see their life and work as a big mash-up of ingredients they’ve collected over the years. Skills, knowledge, experience, insights, tricks, practice wisdom, and just plain ole wisdom from doing so many different things over a life span..
So when people come to The Immersion, that’s where we begin. We don’t start with a new plan or a job search. Instead, we sit down for spacious reflection and honest conversation. I ask my clients questions like:
What makes you thrive while working?
What are the things blocking you from moving forward?
How do your career, relationships, and lifestyle support (or drain) each other?
What would your life look like if you were to intentionally design it?
These are not easy questions—but they’re the ones that lead to alignment, clarity, and direction.
From “What’s Nxt?” to “What Matters?”
One of the exercises I use with clients is building what I call their sacred criteria—a set of non-negotiables rooted in how they want to live and work moving forward. These become the filter for every decision.
When you’re crystal clear on what matters, you become more discerning about what you say yes to, and saying no becomes easier. You stop chasing what doesn’t fit, and you grab onto those things that make you thrive!.
Then, the “right next step” stops feeling like a mystery—it becomes a natural extension of who you are.
This is especially powerful for when you feel stuck choosing between multiple paths, or feel paralyzed by too many options. Often, you can’t move forward because you don’t have enough information, or feel confused about what criteria you should be using to make a decision. And that’s understandable…but not insurmountable.
What’s necessary is gaining a clear understanding about what’s most important to you, giving you an organized and personal list of sacred criteria that you can use for making decisions (both large and small)..
Who Are You Without the Title?
You’re still you. But maybe it’s time to meet a new version of yourself—one that isn’t defined by productivity, but by purpose.
One that values impact over busyness.
One that is brave enough to say, “I’ve outgrown this, and I’m ready for something new.”
And you don’t have to figure that out alone.
The Immersion Is for This Exact Season
If any of this resonates with you—if you’re standing at the edge of something new and asking “What now?”—this is exactly what The Immersion was designed for.
It’s a private, one-on-one retreat at CC Blue Ranch in Ridgway, Colorado. Just you and me (and horses, chickens, and goats).
The Immersion is full of real conversations, wide open space, and the structure to help you move forward with clarity and intention. Whether you’re navigating a major transition or simply craving a reset, this is your space to pause, reflect, and realign.
Because who you are is not your title. And what’s next doesn’t have to look like what came before.
Ready to reconnect with what’s true for you? Book a consultation for The Immersion.
