If you've ever taken the "smart" next step in your career — the promotion, the raise, the role everyone congratulated you for — and still felt like something was wrong, this episode is for you.
I'm joined by Nyam Adodoadji, a somatic practitioner, poet, and guide for creative leaders navigating career transition, to unpack why the most logical next step often isn't the right one — and how to tell the difference.
Nyam spent years in product management at a Silicon Valley startup before burnout (crying in bathrooms, working brutal hours) pushed her toward a year-long sabbatical across Ghana, Colombia, Mexico, Spain, and Portugal. She didn't come back with the clarity she was looking for. She came back with better questions — and a new career helping other people ask them.
In this conversation, we talk about:
- Why the career ladder narrative (college, job, climb the rungs) was never actually a choice for most people, and how financial pressure keeps us from questioning it
- How midlife and the pandemic forced a wave of career reevaluation, especially for women and femmes socialized to prioritize everyone else's expectations first
- Why your body signals misalignment (panic attacks, exhaustion, burnout) long before your mind is willing to admit something's wrong
- Why career change doesn't have to mean quitting your job tomorrow — and what low-stakes experimentation actually looks like
Whether you're a mid-career tech leader feeling the pull toward something different, quietly burnt out but still high-performing, or just trying to figure out what you actually want instead of what you were conditioned to want — this episode will give you language for what you're feeling and a real place to start.
________________________________________
Connect with Nyam on LinkedIn or grab a copy of her career reflection guide
Connect with Roberta on LinkedIn and grab a copy of her workbook
Connect with Roberta on LinkedIn
Grab Consciously Crafting Your Career Path: https://www.learnmindfully.co/store
If this episode sparked new insight, please consider rating, following, or reviewing the show. It’s the best way to help more people find and benefit from these vital conversations. Thanks for listening!
More episodes from "In Her Words"
Don't miss an episode of “In Her Words” and subscribe to it in the GetPodcast app.
