Every morning, it feels like I have to leave my career behind.
On mornings when I think about starting something new, the career I’ve built so far comes to mind first.
Seoyeon thinks she has to give up her career to find a new path. In a brief conversation with Baekho, she begins to see how that belief has taken shape.
Each morning, Seoyeon saves a job posting, then closes it when she thinks of the career she has now. On her way to work, a colleague suggests she bring her experience to a new role, but Seoyeon says she’d have to leave that experience behind. In the counseling room, she shares how she thinks about changing jobs every morning, yet feels she must give up her career to choose something new. Baekho suggests looking at the work she’s done so far, one piece at a time, like stones on a Go board. Even then, Seoyeon struggles to connect the pieces. She starts to say the name of the work she’s done for years.
When changing jobs means leaving your career behind
When you choose something new, it can feel like you have to throw away everything you’ve done so far, too.
When you think about changing jobs, which part of your career comes to mind first?
Every morning, the feeling that I have to leave everything I’ve done behind as soon as I wake up lingers. Choosing something new and throwing away my career so far had become tangled together. If you’ve been having mornings like that, tell us what comes to mind.
Scenes
- 01 · Morning, just awake — As soon as she wakes up, Seoyeon opens the job posting she saved. Her finger stops scrolling at the section about experience.
- 02 · A suggestion to bring her experience along — In the break room, Mingyu says they’re looking for someone to take on a new project next month. He adds that Seoyeon’s operations experience could be useful. Mingyu: The operations work you’ve done, Seoyeon, could be helpful on the new project too. Seoyeon: I thought I had to leave that experience behind and start over.
- 03 · Words repeated every morning — In the counseling room, Seoyeon says she thinks about changing jobs every morning. She adds that it feels like she has to give up the career she’s built to choose something new. Seoyeon: When I think about changing jobs, it feels like I have to give up my whole career first. Baekho: Your whole career seems to be piled into one space. What kind of work have you done for a long time?
- 04 · Before saying its name — Seoyeon starts to name the work she’s done for years, then stops. The Go stones on the table haven’t moved a single space yet. Baekho: You’ve been doing operations work for a long time. What part comes to mind first?
Stories by Baekho
- Baekho
- Even grocery shopping makes everything I need to do today feel urgent.
- Every Sunday night, I rewrite what I’m looking for.
- I open the handover file before bed.
- At a red light, I think of what I’m good at in my work.
- The day before an important meeting, I swallow my words again.
- It feels like I’m giving up my career.
- When a request comes up in the group chat, I reply first.
- Even while folding laundry, I find myself going over the reasons for the team’s decision.