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6-effective-strategies-to-save-you-time-in-your-career-transitionAlexandra Humbel

How to Navigate a Career Transition: 6 Smart Strategies Backed by Experience

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There are moments in a career when something shifts. Sometimes it’s external — restructuring, market evolution, unexpected redundancy.
Sometimes it’s internal — a growing restlessness, a loss of meaning, the quiet awareness that you’ve outgrown your role. In both cases, uncertainty can take over. The temptation is either to rush toward the first available solution or to freeze and wait for clarity to magically appear.

Over the years, working with executives and entrepreneurs in transition, I’ve noticed that the most successful moves are rarely reactive. They are intentional. Here are six anchors to hold onto when the ground feels unstable.

1. Slow Down to Think Clearly

When change hits, emotions rise fast: fear, anger, excitement, frustration, hope. All normal. All human.

But decisions taken in emotional turbulence tend to prioritize relief over alignment.

Unless you’re facing a genuine emergency, create space before making irreversible moves. Slowing down is not procrastinating. It’s strategic. Clarity rarely emerges from panic — it emerges from reflection.

2. Activate Your Network — It’s Larger Than You Think

When people enter transition, they often retreat. I suggest the opposite.

Reconnect intentionally. Call former colleagues. Meet peers. Reengage with your ecosystem — not only to ask for opportunities, but to exchange, contribute, and stay visible.

There is a structural reason for this: the majority of job opportunities are never publicly advertised. Various studies estimate that up to 70% of roles are filled through networking and informal channels rather than traditional job boards.

If you are not in conversations, you are invisible to that market. And here is something reassuring: people often remember your value more clearly than you do during moments of doubt.

3. Take a Holistic View of Your Life

A career transition is rarely just about work.

When we dig deeper with clients, the real questions often sound like this: I want more autonomy. I want to take better care of my health. I want less commuting. I want to use my full potential. I want time for family. I want intellectual challenge.

Your professional decision must integrate your health, financial needs, relationships, energy level, and appetite for learning. You are not redesigning a job. You are redesigning a life structure.

4. Build Your Invisible Support Team

Transitions can feel lonely. Confidence fluctuates.

I often think of Maya Angelou, who described imagining her support circle — family, mentors, ancestors — present with her during stressful moments. Even when physically alone, she drew strength from that inner board of advisors. You can do the same. Share your journey with people you trust. Borrow confidence when yours dips. Let others remind you of your track record when you momentarily forget it.

Support is not emotional comfort alone. It is psychological reinforcement.

5. Think Long-Term — Especially When You’re Tired

The stop-and-go rhythm of career transitions can be exhausting. Interviews that lead nowhere. Delays. Silence. False starts. This is often when people accept a role just to end the discomfort.

But short-term relief can create long-term misalignment.

Transitions test resilience because you cannot control timing. What you can control is your criteria. Stay anchored to the bigger picture of where you want to land — not just how quickly you want uncertainty to disappear.

6. Don’t Fixate on One Door

There is a subtle trap in career transitions: as soon as a promising opportunity appears — a specific role, a prestigious company, a well-known brand — it can quickly become the opportunity in your mind. And when it doesn’t work out, the disappointment can feel disproportionate, because you had attached your hope, identity, and future to it.

I see this often. Candidates become so focused on one process that they unconsciously narrow their field of vision. While waiting for that one answer, they overlook other conversations, delay follow-ups, or dismiss alternative paths that might actually align better with their long-term goals.

Direction matters. But attachment is risky. A career transition is an exploration phase. Every interview is data. Every conversation expands your understanding of what fits — and what doesn’t. The opportunity that transforms your trajectory may not be the one with the most recognizable name. It may be the one that better matches your values, your lifestyle aspirations, or your growth curve.

Stay committed to your criteria. Stay open about the vehicle. When one door closes, it’s not rejection. It’s redirection.

 

Career transitions are not interruptions. They are inflection points.

They ask you to combine emotional maturity, strategic thinking, and courage. When handled with intention — supported by networks, reflection, and long-term perspective — they often lead not just to a new role, but to a more aligned professional identity.

And sometimes, to a version of yourself that feels more solid than ever before.

from-hobby-to-career-a-sailing-passion-that-sets-sail-on-new-horizons

Career Reinvention After 40: When Passion Becomes Your Profession

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There comes a moment in life when we pause and ask ourselves a daring question: Could my passion become my profession?

In this testimonial, Benoit shares his journey from seasoned media executive to professional skipper — a bold career transition driven not by dissatisfaction, but by desire. His story is not about escaping a career. It is about answering a calling.

Chapter 1: A Lifetime on the Waves

Sailing had always been part of Benoit’s life. From childhood adventures at sea to becoming an instructor and competing in regattas, the ocean was more than a hobby — it was a constant source of energy and clarity.

Over the years, a quiet thought began to surface: What if this wasn’t just leisure? What if this was the real thing?

Chapter 2: The Awakening

Then came the pivotal realization:
“The clock is ticking. Today, I can do this — physically and mentally. I can turn my passion into my work. I can earn my autonomy doing something that truly excites me.”

This was not an impulsive decision. It was a lucid moment of alignment. He understood that energy, health, and drive are precious resources. If not now, when?

Chapter 3: Testing the Waters

Rather than jumping blindly, Benoit chose a strategic approach. For a full year, he researched the market, studied demand, and confronted the real questions:

  • Is this genuinely what I want long-term?
  • Will I still love it when it becomes my responsibility, not my escape?
  • Am I ready to let go of status, income stability, and familiarity?
  • Do I accept the financial, emotional, and lifestyle implications?

Career reinvention is not romantic. It is rigorous. Passion must meet reality.

Chapter 4: Setting Sail

Once the decision crystallized, action followed. Training. Certification. Positioning. Network activation.

The transition from media executive to professional skipper was not symbolic — it was operational. Skills had to be upgraded. Credibility had to be earned. A new professional identity had to be built.

Chapter 5: Living the Choice

Challenges came, of course. Entrepreneurship always brings uncertainty. But something fundamental had shifted: his work now generated energy instead of draining it.

When passion becomes responsibility, the stakes are higher — but so is the meaning.

Benoit’s journey is a powerful reminder: turning a hobby into a career is possible. But it requires clarity, courage, preparation, and a willingness to pay the price of transformation.

The real question is not “Can I?”
It is “Am I ready?”

Designing Your Second Act: 5 Long-Term Priorities for a Fulfilling Life and Career After 50

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In a previous blog post, I interviewed Ed Kushins, a serial entrepreneur, founder of the number one home swap company, and someone I consider both a mentor and a friend. As he shared his journey—rich with bold moves, failures, reinventions, and long-term thinking—I became especially curious about the philosophy behind his decisions.

What struck me most was not the scale of his achievements, but the clarity of his long-term priorities. What follows are five guiding principles he lives by. They offer a powerful framework for anyone reflecting on their second act.

1. Make Happiness a Deliberate Priority

One of life’s greatest privileges is the ability to nurture meaningful relationships. Making your partner, family, and close circle a priority is not sentimental—it is strategic. A fulfilling second act rests on emotional stability and shared joy. Taking the time to show appreciation, support, and gratitude builds the foundation for everything else.

2. Invest in Your Health

Health is not a side project; it is the platform on which every ambition stands. Without energy, clarity, and resilience, even the most exciting plans collapse. Prioritizing sleep, movement, nutrition, and medical checkups is not indulgent—it is disciplined. Your vitality is your competitive advantage in your next chapter.

3. Pursue New Ventures

The second act is not about slowing down; it is about redirecting your energy. Ed launched new ventures long after many would have settled into comfort. Reinvention can mean entrepreneurship, a creative pursuit, advisory work, or launching a passion project. What matters is momentum. Starting something new signals to yourself that growth did not end with your first career.

4. Share Your Story

Every experienced professional carries hard-earned lessons. Writing a memoir, mentoring, teaching, or documenting your journey creates meaning beyond performance metrics. Sharing your story is not about ego; it is about legacy. It transforms experience into transmission.

5. Master Your Decision-Making

Perhaps the most underestimated skill of all: understanding how you make decisions. Ed is deeply intentional. He reflects, filters options through long-term priorities, and moves forward with clarity. Decision-making is a muscle. The more self-aware you are about your patterns—fear-driven, status-driven, value-driven—the more aligned your choices become.

A Simple Decision Framework for Your Own Second Act

Inspired by Ed’s disciplined thinking, here is a practical roadmap:

Reflection
Step back. What truly matters now? Not twenty years ago. Now. What do you value? What do you want more—or less—of?

Prioritization
Identify five key areas that will define your next decade. Health, relationships, financial security, intellectual growth, contribution—choose consciously.

Action Planning
Break each priority into concrete steps. Ambition without structure is wishful thinking. Build a roadmap.

Accountability and Adaptation
Share your priorities with someone you trust. Revisit them regularly. Adjust as life evolves. Discipline and flexibility are not opposites—they are partners.

The second act is not an afterthought. It is a design challenge. With clarity, structure, and courage, it can become the most intentional and rewarding chapter of your life.

The question is simple: what are your five long-term priorities—and are you living by them?

When Job Titles Define You: Overcoming Status Anxiety in Career Change

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Are you feeling apprehensive because you’re afraid to lose your social status as you transition to a new career?

You might be. And that fear can quietly paralyze you. The anticipated loss of recognition, prestige, or influence can feel heavier than the desire for change itself. It keeps you stuck between aspiration and anxiety.

It’s time to look at this fear directly. Social status does matter. But it should never be the deciding factor when pursuing a fulfilling second act.

The Hidden Weight of Status

Social status plays a far greater role in our professional identity than we like to admit. Titles, visibility, influence, and perceived success shape how others see us — and how we see ourselves.

Losing a title can feel like losing a part of your identity. It can shake your confidence. It can make you wonder how you will introduce yourself at the next dinner party.

But here’s the truth: if your sense of worth depends solely on your status, it was fragile to begin with.

The Social Limbo of Transition

Career transitions often come with an uncomfortable in-between phase. The familiar nods of recognition may disappear. Introductions become less obvious. Some people will lean in with curiosity and support. Others may distance themselves.

You may feel invisible. You may feel like you’ve stepped off the boat while it continues without you.

This social limbo is real. But it is temporary. And it is part of the transformation.

Redefining Success on Your Terms

Now is the moment to reassess your definition of success.

Is it the title? The office? The external validation? Or is it autonomy, meaning, impact, freedom, alignment?

Status symbols — impressive business cards, company cars, exclusive invitations — can be seductive. But they rarely create deep fulfillment.

A meaningful second act requires courage: the courage to let go of outdated markers of success and redefine them for yourself.

The Emergence of a New Identity

When you dare to step into a new professional chapter, you are not losing yourself. You are expanding.

Your new identity will not be built around hierarchy or labels. It will be shaped by purpose, contribution, and coherence between who you are and what you do.

That kind of status — the quiet confidence of alignment — cannot be taken away.

Your career transition is not a fall from grace. It is a conscious evolution.

And the only status that truly matters is the one you grant yourself.

 

will-you-need-extensive-training-for-a-successful-career-transition

Career Reinvention and Continuous Learning: Why Motivation Matters More Than Age

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One of the most persistent myths about career change is this: you need years of retraining before you can even consider it.

Not necessarily.

One of my clients moved from being a CEO in the media industry to becoming a professional skipper, sailing clients across the Mediterranean. He already had sailing experience, but he knew the difference between a passionate amateur and a professional. So he committed to six months of intensive training, earned his professional skipper’s license, and graduated with honors.

I have also seen seasoned executives in advertising or finance enroll in professional culinary schools. They may be older than most students in the kitchen, but they are often the most focused and disciplined learners in the room.

The common denominator? Motivation

Of course, not every career transition needs to be radical. You may want to move into a new industry while leveraging your existing skills. Or remain in the same sector but shift departments, bringing fresh perspective and hard-earned expertise.

The challenge is that hiring managers and headhunters often struggle to look beyond linear CVs. Even when you possess strong transferable skills, they may hesitate if your experience doesn’t perfectly match the job description.

This is where strategy comes in

A short, targeted certification can help bridge the gap and signal serious intent. Continuous education — while still employed — can also reposition you. Some of my clients completed MBAs or executive programs alongside demanding roles. The days were long, but the return was powerful: renewed confidence, sharper positioning, and expanded opportunities.

Recent surveys consistently show that the desire to learn does not diminish with age. In fact, experience brings perspective, discipline, and clarity of purpose — three powerful accelerators in any learning journey.

If you are considering training as part of your transition, reflect on three things:

Assess your motivation

A 360-degree pivot requires time, financial investment, and lifestyle adjustments. Be clear about what you are signing up for. A gradual path — evening classes, certifications, modular programs — may suit you better. In every case, clarity of intention is your fuel.

Be candid with yourself

Experience is an asset, but it can also create blind spots. The very expertise that makes you strong in familiar environments can slow down new learning. Approach training with humility. Adopt the mindset of a beginner.

Activate your learning strengths

If you are competitive, aim to excel. If you are perfection-driven, use that energy to master the craft. If you are reflective, allow yourself to go deep. Mature professionals often learn faster because they understand who they are and why they are learning.

Training is not a barrier to career reinvention. It is a lever.

Once you are clear about your direction, education becomes a strategic move — not a burden. The question is not whether you are too experienced to learn something new. The real question is whether your motivation is strong enough to carry you through.

Because when it is, six months can change everything.

why-its-never-too-late-to-embark-on-a-career-change-alexandra-humbel-origetAlexandra Humbel

Facing the Retirement Cliff? Why Career Reinvention After 50 Is the New Normal

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Aging is still wrapped in quiet taboos and stubborn myths. The moment you officially enter the “senior” category, the narrative seems written for you: prepare for retirement. Step aside. Wind down.

But what if that is not what you want?

What if, instead of slowing down, you feel the urge to redirect? To start something new? To build a different professional chapter?

You might wonder: How old is too old to succeed in a new job?
The answer is simple: the same age you would be if you stayed exactly where you are.

Aging is inevitable. Stagnation is optional

Starting a new career that energizes you may mean embracing a different lifestyle, one where work and freedom coexist more intentionally. According to recent Aegon research on retirement trends, many professionals no longer aspire to a dramatic “cliff edge” retirement. They seek gradual transitions, flexibility, and purpose.

Let’s clear up a few persistent misconceptions.

Success does not expire. In your 40s, 50s, 60s, or beyond, your experience, judgment, and perspective are strategic advantages. You have pattern recognition, resilience, and credibility. These are not outdated assets. They are rare ones.

You Have More Choices Than You Think

Career transitions are not acts of desperation. They are acts of design. You can explore adjacent industries, deepen expertise, launch something of your own, or reinvent your professional positioning. Support exists: coaches, mentors, peer networks. Reinvention is not reckless. It is deliberate evolution.

Work-Life Balance Becomes Intentional

With maturity comes clarity. You know what matters. Many seasoned professionals are not chasing titles anymore. They are pursuing alignment. A career shift can become the vehicle for that recalibration.

Retirement Is Being Redefined

Retirement is no longer a binary switch between “on” and “off.” Phased retirement, portfolio careers, consulting, entrepreneurship, encore careers: the models are expanding. The question is not when you stop working. The question is how you want to contribute.

Age is not the obstacle. The real limitation is the story you accept about what is possible.

You are not approaching a cliff. You are standing at a crossroads.

One direction is dictated by convention.
The other is designed by you.

Unleashing the Renaissance: Thriving as a Multi-Talented Professional - Alexandra Humbel CoachingAlexandra Humbel Coaching

The Rise of the Renaissance Career: Why Multi-Skilled Professionals Have the Advantage

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If you excel in more than one discipline, you may not be scattered. You may be a Renaissance professional.

In my coaching practice, I have the privilege of working with highly talented individuals who possess expertise in diverse domains. They are accomplished in one field — sometimes two or three — and yet often question whether their multiplicity is an asset or a liability. Does this resonate with you?

The Renaissance period in Europe was marked by extraordinary cultural and intellectual breakthroughs

Think of Leonardo da Vinci — painter, scientist, engineer, inventor. Michelangelo — sculptor, painter, architect. Galileo Galilei — physicist, mathematician, astronomer, philosopher. Their multidimensional expertise did not dilute their genius. It amplified it. Their ability to connect disciplines fueled innovation.

Today, the term “Renaissance professional” applies more broadly to individuals who integrate expertise across multiple domains. They may be corporate leaders with artistic practices, engineers who write, entrepreneurs who teach, executives who coach, scientists who build businesses. Their strength lies not in dispersion, but in integration.

Renaissance professionals embody lifelong learning, adaptability, and intellectual curiosity. They demonstrate that mastery in one area can enrich and elevate performance in another. They do not simply accumulate skills — they connect them.

Why do we see more Renaissance profiles among experienced professionals?

Because over time, careers layer skills upon skills. Technical competence, leadership experience, strategic thinking, communication, negotiation, mentoring, governance. Some skills remain dormant for years. Others evolve. But none disappear. Even forgotten capabilities can resurface in unexpected ways when a new project demands them.

Renaissance professionals are also naturally curious. They gravitate toward learning — sailing, accounting, cooking, Mandarin, artificial intelligence, philosophy, design. Curiosity is not a hobby. It is a structural trait.

In From Strength to Strength, Arthur C. Brooks describes “crystallized intelligence” as the accumulation of knowledge, experience, and wisdom developed over time. It includes verbal ability, pattern recognition, judgment, and the capacity to synthesize information. This form of intelligence is particularly powerful in later career stages — and it is the foundation of the Renaissance advantage.

Why is being a Renaissance professional a blessing?

Because reinvention becomes richer.

When reconsidering your professional life, you may discover that you have more options than you initially imagined. You may not want one linear job anymore. You may want a portfolio life: advisory roles, teaching, consulting, creative work, entrepreneurship — two or three streams that reflect different parts of your identity.

This path, however, requires strategic thinking.

Financial clarity matters. Multiple revenue streams can create flexibility, but they also generate administrative complexity and tax considerations. Freedom requires structure.

Time discipline is key. Each activity deserves focus and excellence. Without clear boundaries, diversity can become dilution.

Personal branding matters. The professional world often values specialization and may mistrust multi-skilled individuals. You must articulate your narrative clearly. Not “I do many things,” but “Here is how my diverse expertise creates unique value.” Integration, not accumulation, is your differentiator.

There is also an emotional dimension. Renaissance professionals sometimes struggle with identity. “Am I legitimate if I don’t fit into one box?” The answer is yes — provided your choices are intentional and aligned. Multiplicity demands coherence.

When well integrated, multidimensional profiles bring extraordinary benefits to organizations and ecosystems. They cross-fertilize ideas. They see patterns others miss. They connect silos. They innovate not by invention alone, but by synthesis.

Being a Renaissance professional is about connecting what you know in ways others cannot.

If you recognize yourself here, perhaps your task is not to narrow down, but to design your integration with clarity and confidence. Your multidimensionality may not be a distraction from your path — it may be the path itself.

Breaking Free from Boreout: Empowering Your Career with Coaching - Alexandra Humbel CoachingAlexandra Humbel Coaching

From Career Stagnation to Growth: Practical Steps to Overcome Boreout

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Burnout Gets the Headlines. Boreout Drains You in Silence.

In the world of work, burnout and boreout are two very different traps. Burnout is loud. It comes with stress, overload, and visible exhaustion. Boreout is quieter, but no less destructive. It is marked by chronic under-stimulation, disengagement, monotony, and a subtle yet persistent sense of emptiness.

If you feel underused, unchallenged, or disconnected from meaning, take it seriously. Boreout can be just as soul-wrenching as burnout. As David Graeber powerfully illustrated in Bullshit Jobs, the absence of meaning at work erodes something fundamental. Even if your job is not absurd, repetition, lack of challenge, and the feeling that your contribution barely matters are red flags you should not ignore.

Here is how to begin breaking free.

1. Regain Clarity Before You Make a Move

Boreout often leaves you drifting. You may complain silently, scroll job boards half-heartedly, or make endless lists of “possible next steps” without taking action. Reflection can quickly turn into rumination.

Start with deeper questions instead. What energizes you? Where do you feel competent but underused? What kind of problems do you enjoy solving? Do not do this alone. A trusted friend, mentor, coach, or peer group can help you move from dissatisfaction to structured insight.

Clarity does not emerge from despair. It emerges from alignment.

2. Reignite Engagement — Where You Are or Elsewhere

Once you understand what is missing, you can explore options with a more open mind. Sometimes the solution is not to leave immediately but to redesign your role: take on a project, propose an initiative, ask for a move into a new department, develop a new expertise. Small injections of challenge can reignite momentum.

Other times, boreout is a signal that the environment itself has become too narrow for who you are becoming. In that case, the question is not “What is wrong with me?” but “Where would my energy be better used?”

Either way, you are no longer passive. You are experimenting.

3. Set Goals — and Make Them Concrete

Boreout thrives on inertia. The antidote is structured movement. Define what you want to explore and break it into actionable steps. One conversation. One course. One application. One proposal. Progress does not need to be spectacular to be transformative.

Accountability is powerful. Share your goals. Track your steps. Celebrate small wins. Momentum rebuilds confidence, and confidence fuels further action.

4. Develop What Wants to Grow

Very often, boreout hides a hunger for growth. Identify the skills you want to strengthen or acquire. Invest in learning. Take a course. Join a community. Explore a side project. Skill development is not only strategic; it restores a sense of expansion.

Growth creates energy. Stagnation drains it.

Boreout is a signal that your potential is under-challenged. Ignoring it may feel safe in the short term, but over time, disengagement erodes confidence and vitality.

If you recognize yourself here, consider this your invitation.  Not to resign tomorrow. But to listen carefully. Your boredom may be pointing toward your next evolution.

Recovering from Burnout? Here’s How to Design Your Next Career Chapter

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Congratulations on your recovery from burnout. The fact that you are eager to move forward is already a powerful sign of resilience. As you step into this new chapter, approach it with both gentleness and determination. Just as a runner patiently rebuilds strength after an injury, you now have the opportunity to redefine success and design a path that brings you genuine fulfillment.

Embrace the Power of Slowing Down

This is the moment to honor what you have been through. Allow yourself to slow down — without guilt. Burnout has not only exhausted you; it has revealed things. It has clarified your values, exposed your limits, highlighted your need for self-care, and perhaps awakened a longing for a different relationship with work.

Pause and reflect: What has changed in you? What feels non-negotiable now? What are you no longer willing to tolerate? Release what no longer serves you and lean into what feels more aligned. Surround yourself with people who can hold space for your reflections — a trusted friend, a mentor, a coach, or a supportive group.

Uncover the Opportunity Hidden in the Aftermath

Burnout is painful, but it can also be catalytic. When something breaks down, something else becomes possible. This period may be an invitation to revisit long-forgotten aspirations.

Did you once imagine working in a different industry? Studying something new? Reducing your hours? Starting your own venture? Relocating? Reclaiming your time?

Reconnect with those ideas. Not all of them need to become reality. But allowing yourself to explore them expands your sense of possibility. Burnout may have closed one chapter — it may also have cleared space for a more intentional one.

Change Course — or Rediscover Your Brilliance

In my coaching practice, I see two common paths after burnout.

Some professionals choose to pivot boldly. With renewed clarity, they pursue work that feels more aligned with who they have become. They embrace the discomfort of change because staying the same no longer fits.

Others discover that it wasn’t the profession itself that drained them, but specific circumstances — a toxic environment, blurred boundaries, chronic overload. They acknowledge those conditions and rediscover how much they once enjoyed doing what they do. They remember the value they bring and return with stronger boundaries and renewed energy.

Both paths are valid. What matters is alignment.

You are not “going back” to your old life. You are stepping forward, shaped by everything you have learned. Be patient with your pace. Celebrate small progress. Trust that this experience has refined your understanding of what truly matters.

Burnout does not define you. It has simply redirected you.

Soldier to Leader

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: A Career Lesson from the Fashion World

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In this picture, it’s me—arms crossed, wearing a beret—unknowingly photographed at the exit of the Fall/Winter 1995 fashion show in Bryant Park, New York.

The next day, I was flying back to Paris. Imagine my surprise when colleagues called to say, “You’re in today’s fashion section of The New York Times!”

What strikes me today is the title of the article. “Classically neat.” An incredibly accurate description of who I was at the time.
Here’s why.

Powerful fashion brands are defined by image. That image is not accidental—it is carefully coded, like a language. Every detail reinforces the narrative: product, advertising, media relations, retail design, events, social media, packaging… Everything must tell the same story.
The codes apply to the team. We dressed “Ralph Lauren.” We spoke “Ralph Lauren.” We breathed “Ralph Lauren.” We did it willingly, because the designer had created not just clothes, but a world—an aesthetic of cool elegance reflected in the company’s culture. Frankly, it was a beautiful world to belong to.

Being a Good Soldier — and Loving It

There is abundant literature about leadership. Much less about the value of being a good soldier.
At that stage of my career, being a soldier worked for me. I was immersed in an environment overflowing with opportunities to learn. As a PR Officer, I was exposed daily to journalists, creatives, executives, crises, deadlines. I absorbed knowledge like a sponge.
Was I demonstrating visionary leadership? Probably not. I was efficient, reliable, accountable—a busy bee determined to master the job quickly and thoroughly.

And it paid off.

An opportunity opened to lead PR for a department with a strong entrepreneurial dimension. The team was small, largely US-based, and required autonomy. My deep understanding of the brand’s codes and culture became a strategic advantage. I could embody the brand effortlessly.

When Mastery Becomes a Limit

A few years later, something shifted.
New collaborators arrived from other fashion and luxury houses. They brought fresh perspectives, new marketing strategies, innovative approaches to storytelling. As I listened, I felt a subtle tension inside me. Part of me resisted: This is not how we do things here. Another part was intrigued: That’s actually brilliant.

I realized I had become a guardian of the codes. I knew how to execute them perfectly. But I was no longer questioning them.

My references were solid—but narrow.
I was on the wrong side of innovation.

Marshall Goldsmith famously said, “What got you here won’t get you there.” The habits, reflexes, and strengths that helped me thrive in one chapter were not the ones that would help me grow in the next.
And this is the quiet trap of early success: you start confusing excellence with permanence.

Time to Break the Frame

That New York Times photo captured more than a look. It captured an identity. “Classically neat” was not only about style—it was about alignment, discipline, belonging.
But growth requires expansion.
There is a time to be the good soldier. A time to master the codes. A time to absorb and execute.
And there is a time to step back and ask:

Am I still learning?

Am I still expanding?

Or am I protecting what I already know?

Comfort is seductive, especially when it looks like success.
But evolution demands curiosity. It demands the courage to question the very system that once elevated you. It demands stepping out of the frame—even when you look perfectly composed inside it.
Looking at that picture today, I feel gratitude. That version of me was exactly who I needed to be at that time.
But she was not meant to stay there.
And neither are you.

Alexandra Humbel
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