“My opportunity cost is invisible, but it compounds daily.”

The most painful career losses aren’t the failures.
They’re the ones you never see.

Not the roles you lost —
but the roles you never stepped into.

Not the conversations you got wrong —
but the conversations you were almost part of.

Not the influence you misplaced —
but the influence you never claimed because staying comfortable felt safer, easier… reasonable.

From my seat coaching senior leaders, I watch this play out in real time.

They tell themselves,
“I’ll make my move when the timing is perfect.”
Meanwhile:

Peers step into stretch roles.
Markets shift to new names.
Strategic conversations they should be leading happen without them.

Nothing feels urgent in the moment.
That’s the trap.

Career drift rarely announces itself.
It shows up quietly:

A year that feels “fine.”
A scope that no longer stretches you.
Rooms where your voice used to matter, but now feels peripheral.

This is the cost leaders underestimate —
the unwritten chapters of their career.

And here’s what I’ve seen repeatedly:

Within 90 days of strategic repositioning,
the opportunities leaders thought had passed them by
suddenly reappear.

Not because the market changed.
Because their story did.

The roles they “weren’t ready for”
become conversations they’re leading.

The influence they thought they’d lost
turns into authority others actively seek out.

The momentum they feared was gone
rebuilds faster than they imagined.

Momentum compounds just as quickly as drift —
once you start moving again.

I know this feeling personally.

I was performing well.
The titles kept getting grander.
But something had shifted.

Certain conversations no longer included me.
Sometimes I was looped back into an email because someone remembered I had a POV.

That’s not inclusion.
That’s maintenance.

One day I realised:
This isn’t what I signed up for.
This is drift.
Time to bet on myself again.

And the step that broke the freeze?
It took 20 minutes.

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Learn more.

I wrote three simple messages — and this alone reshaped my next chapter.

“Here’s what I’m seeing and feeling. What am I not noticing?”

“Here’s what I’d love to be doing next — problem-solving and building. Who’s wrestling with this?”

“Here’s what I’d love to learn this quarter. Any resources or people I should know?”

New ideas to explore.
Companies to research.
Literally, a colleague of mine picked up the phone and said, “I think I have a role for you in Singapore.”

Six weeks later, I had packed my bags, was in a new country, in a new industry. In a role that was created for me that made the most of my experience and talents

This is the power of re-entry:
small signals that open big doors.

Freezer time isn’t neutral.
It quietly erodes relevance and confidence.

People will tell you, “It’s okay to be in the freezer for a few years — it happens to everyone.”

You get to choose whether you wait to be remembered
or decide,
“My momentum is my job.”

👉 Who are your three Re-Entry Notes going to?

Take 20 minutes.
Write them now.
Send them today.

Your opportunity cost is compounding either way —
but so is your momentum once you start moving.

For the first time, I’m opening a small-group Bold Shift Sprint for 3 leaders. You’ll get the benefit of 1:1 coaching - and the benefit of learning from your peers.

If you want to one of these slots, let me know.

Let’s explore your next chapter.