hebel. today · 8 November 202638 / 73
Career · Career Transitions
Career pivots move from lily pads to experiments
Magdalena Ponurska transitioned from counseling to a fifteen-year tenure at General Motors, rotating through marketing, purchasing, IT, and global systems across 37 countries before launching her own consulting firm. Researchers Jordi Quoidbach, Daniel Gilbert,…
From 4 newsletters · 1 min read · one thing to try
Magdalena Ponurska transitioned from counseling to a fifteen-year tenure at General Motors, rotating through marketing, purchasing, IT, and global systems across 37 countries before launching her own consulting firm (Magdalena Ponurska from Courage to Create). Researchers Jordi Quoidbach, Daniel Gilbert, and Timothy Wilson surveyed 19,000 people aged 18 to 68 and identified the end of history illusion, where individuals recognize their past evolution but underestimate future change. Ponurska now writes three answers to the question of who she is becoming each morning, circling the one that feels most daunting to test in reality.
Jacalin Ding moved through roles as a waitress, graphic designer, and digital bank founder, eventually realizing her core identity as a business problem solver rather than a design specialist (Do your thing, Do your thing). Molly Graham suggests viewing career paths as a series of lily pads where professionals take steps sideways or backward to gather data on what they actually enjoy (Molly Graham from Lessons). Mark Meloon, a data scientist, teaches generative AI in public to bridge the gap between his expertise and the needs of beginners, turning his career into a series of public learning experiments (Between Thinking and Doing).
"The girl in the hallway had her one word, and it still sent her home crying in Chicago. One word was never going to hold me."
Try today · 15 min
Write three answers to the question "Who am I becoming?" in the present tense.
Use a pen and paper, then circle the answer that makes you feel most uncomfortable.
Steps
- Set a timer for ten minutes.
- Write three distinct versions of who you are becoming in the present tense.
- Circle the version that feels most daunting or embarrassing to say aloud.
- Read that circled answer out loud to yourself.
- Observe the physical sensation in your voice and body.