I'm starting week 5 of my new job, and I'm really loving it so far. I get asked quite frequently, "Are you happy? Do you enjoy your new job? Is it all going well?" The answer is yes, it's going great. I really love it, I'm happy, there is a ton of opportunity ahead, and I'm really grateful to be in this new gig, out of real estate, and back to leading salespeople again. It's really where my happiness sits is being able to lead revenue orgs, and in this one I get to lead marketing too.
So to answer everyone's question, I'm very happy, and all is well.
However, that doesn't mean I'm not struggling to adapt to the changing seasons of life, because in some ways, I think I am.
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My new job is remote, which means I'm working from home, which is a complete change to adapt to. When you wake up, get ready for work, and head downstairs to stare at a screen, it can be lonely. The separation between work and life is often difficult, as you don't know where one ends and the other begins. It's also often draining to stare at a screen all day and to try to understand everyone's emotions, intent, and what they're really thinking and feeling when they're about to turn off the camera.
Trust me, I love working remotely, but it's a change, and it takes time to adapt.
I also went to work for an organization where I didn't know anyone. I had no referral, and I had no connection at the company. I simply applied, interviewed, and got hired, and now I'm learning everyone, finding my way with people, the politics, the values, the way business is done; it's all new, and it takes time to adapt.
Making new connections and working with colleagues takes time; it takes time to adapt.
I also haven't changed jobs for three years, and that takes time to adapt.
I'm also learning a new industry, new partners, new players, new stakeholders, new competitors, and a whole new language to learn.
It's all a season of change, and I'm doing my best to navigate it all, but I'd be lying if I told you it was easy and I was crushing it.
The thing about adaptation is that I think we often underestimate how much energy it actually takes. Even when the change is good, even when you wanted it, even when you know you made the right decision, your brain is still trying to figure out a new normal. New routines, new people, new expectations, new rhythms, new everything. There is a mental tax that comes with that, and sometimes I think we beat ourselves up because we assume we should already have it figured out.
The reality is, adaptation doesn't happen because you tell yourself to adapt. It happens slowly, almost quietly, through repetition. One day you realize you know who to call. You know how your boss communicates. You know which meetings matter. You know which acronyms mean what. You know who gets shit done. You know how to read the room, even if that room happens to be a bunch of faces in little boxes on your screen.
Adaptation doesn't really care about your timeline. It just asks that you keep showing up long enough for unfamiliar things to start becoming familiar.
I think this is where patience becomes incredibly important, especially for you high performers. We want to walk into a new situation and be good immediately. We want to understand the business immediately. We want to build relationships immediately. We want to create impact immediately. But adaptation doesn't really care about your timeline. It just asks that you keep showing up long enough for unfamiliar things to start becoming familiar.
There is also something humbling about being new again. You ask dumb questions. You don't know the history. You don't always understand why things are done a certain way. There are moments where you feel like you're behind everyone else in the room, even if you have twenty years of experience behind you. That can be uncomfortable, but it's also probably good for us. Being new forces you to listen more, learn more, and admit that you don't know everything.
So yes, I'm happy. Really happy. But I also think I'm still adapting, and I'm learning to be okay with that. Every new season comes with a little discomfort before it starts to feel normal. The goal isn't to avoid that discomfort. The goal is to give yourself enough time to grow into the new version of your life until one day you realize the thing that once felt foreign now just feels like your life.