Are You Your Job?

With the merging of life and work – and women’s passion to make a difference – it’s easy to see how one can confuse her career with who she really is.

Thirty-year-old Kelly Smith Beaty knows what it’s like to lose your identity to your job. “After spending countless years and dollars on educational and building high-profile careers, we begin to identify ourselves almost exclusively with what we do,” says Beaty, who appeared on season 10 of “The Apprentice” after being laid off from her job at Edelmen PR.

“Having been suddenly stripped of my title, I was at a loss for how to introduce myself. I found myself having to show [people] exactly who I am with no company affiliation, salary range or client roster attached.”

Beaty says the show taught her many lessons, like your title doesn’t define you, attacking others doesn’t make you look superior, and trusting the instincts that brought you success “is the difference between falling down and staying down.”

Want more?

Psychology Today notes that too many of us are defined by a job title, which can lead to jeopardizing yourself emotionally. It may result in taking work issues personally, not being fully present outside the office and only valuing people who can help your career.

Experts say things like volunteering, focusing on better Life/Work balance and developing interests that make you happy will broaden your viewpoint and identity to matters outside work.

Bonus PINK Link: Learn how to keep your identity – and your spirit – to go from laid off to lift off.

By Caroline Cox

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you
something else is the greatest accomplishment.” Ralph Waldo Emerson