#28 | Why Redundancy Shakes Your Leadership Identity & How To Recover Your Confidence Without Letting It Define You

The shock, the shame, the emotional hangover - let’s be honest, redundancy stings. 

In this episode, we’ll unpack what just happened, why it feels personal (even when it isn’t), and how to stop replaying the bad bits on loop.

Quick Move: Write your “Not Lost List” - the things redundancy didn’t take from you.

Download the Redundancy Reset Workbook - 5 power moves, the Impact Translator, the Progress Tracker, and 19 pages built for people who refuse to let redundancy define their story.

New episodes are released every Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings.

Stuck, simmering, or onto something juicy? I want to hear it. Drop me a line at caroline@inspireyourgenius.com - I read them all.

And here is the Spotify Playlist to accompany UnShakeable Her.

Unshakeable Her is the podcast for women in leadership who are ready to build real influence, earn the promotion they deserve, and lead with confidence in systems that weren't built for them. Each episode tackles the challenges that shape leadership from the inside out, including imposter syndrome, resilience, credibility, boundaries, conflict, and feedback, while unpacking how pressure, workplace politics, strategic thinking, decision-making, and visibility affect the way ambitious women grow, lead, and get promoted without losing themselves in the process.

Transcript

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Hey there, I'm Caroline Esterson, your host, and welcome to Out of Office for Now, the Redundancy Reset Series. If you found yourself suddenly jobless, restless, or frankly just questioning everything, you are in the right place. This isn't a pity party, it's a five-day reset to get you confidence, clarity, and hopefully sense of humour and self back. So grab a brew, take a breath, and let's make today's little move count. You ready? Right, let's just call it what it is. Being made redundant sucks. It's not just the money or the routine or even the work itself. It's the identity hit. You didn't just lose a job, you lost a piece of the story you tell about yourself. One day you're saying, I work at wherever the company was, and the next day you're standing in your kitchen thinking, well, now what exactly? It's disorientating, it's personal. And you know, even if they told you it's not about the performance, it still feels personal. That's normal. But here's the reframe that I want you to sit with. Redundancy doesn't mean you're redundant, it means the role is the job no longer fits the spreadsheets, not that you no longer fit the world. Because if you start telling yourself the wrong story now, you'll carry it into every conversation you have from here on out. So before you jump into job search mode, you need to hit pause. Let's get you grounded again emotionally and practically. So here's the truth. Everyone, and I literally mean everyone, goes through a few phases after redundancy. The first one is utter shock. That wait, what just happened moment when your brain's still buffering to keep up. The second, shame. Even though logically, you know you didn't cause this, emotionally, it hits the I wasn't chosen nerve. And then, well, then comes the scramble. You start panic updating your CV, applying for jobs you don't really want, and saying yes to recruiters who can barely pronounce your name, all because sitting still feels way too scary. So if that's you right now, take a deep breath with me. We're going to stop the scramble. Because the fastest way to lose your confidence for good is to start hustling before you've healed. This first episode isn't about moving forward, it's about remembering what's still yours. Because even if your job's gone, your value isn't. So here's your quick move for today. And yeah, I want you to actually do this, not just nod like a podcast listener who never will. Are you ready? This one is called the not lost list. Grab a pen, a voice note, or the notes app on your phone, whatever works, write this title at the top. What redundancy didn't take from me? Then I want you to set a timer for five minutes, and I don't want you to stop until your five minutes is up. Now, you're going to list everything that's still true about you. Your skills, your energy, your relationships, your ideas, your value, your sense of humor, everything. Maybe even the habits that got you noticed in the first place. And I really don't want you to stop until your five minutes is up. Because by doing this, it'll force you to dig a little bit deeper from just the superficial lines that you've got in your head. Because trust me, you've still got the goods. You just need to remind your brain before it starts spinning horror stories. You can't rebuild from loss. You rebuild from what's left. And that's what we're doing this week. We're taking what's left and turning it back into momentum. So, you know what? If this does feel heavy, that's okay. You've just had the rug pulled out from under you. But I want you to know that there's a version of you on the other side of this who's calmer, clearer, and quietly thinking, you know what, I actually wouldn't go back even if I could. That version exists. We just need to help you find them again. So that's your reset for today. We'll be back tomorrow with your next little move where we're talking confidence, identity, and how to stop the self-doubt spiral before it steals your spark. So download your playbook with all of the activities in it. You'll find the link in your show notes. That's your reset for today. Remember, it's not about doing everything, it's about doing something. If this helped, please share it with someone else who might just be feeling a little bit out of office right now. I'll be back tomorrow with your next little move. Until then, chin up, shoulders back, and remember, you're still bloody brilliant. So make your move, even if it's tiny, especially if it's tiny.