Early in my career, the default answer was always,
“I can help with that.”
It opened doors. It helped me build relationships.
But at some point, if you are not careful, it becomes a habit.
Because the truth is, you can do a lot of things.
That doesn’t mean you should do them all.
I think about it this way:
I can wash windows.
I’m not good at it. I don’t enjoy it. And it takes me longer than it should.
I have a friend who owns a cleaning service. She loves doing windows.
She’s fast. She’s thorough. She takes pride in it.
Why would I spend my time doing something I don’t do well, when I can support her, and she can do it better, with joy?! I am not a robber of joy.
That’s the shift.
Not “Can I do it?” But “Should I do this? Does it allow me to bring the most value?”
At this stage, I’ve tried to stop trying to prove range.
And start defining value.
For me, that meant getting specific.
What I bring:
- The ability to see a bigger picture
- Creative problem-solving, especially when the path isn’t obvious
- Translating complex ideas into something people can understand
- Connecting people, ideas, and opportunities in a way that moves things forward
That’s it.
Not everything. But it is definitely important.
Not a refusal but an intentional filter.
It changes how you work.
What you say yes to. What you walk away from. How people understand you.
It also changes how you think about time.
Because time is no longer something to fill.
It’s something to invest.
Lately, I’ve been thinking less about “career” and more about “working life.”
What do I want the next chapters to look like?
Not the title. Not the structure.
The work.
I know I want to be useful.
Not busy. Not occupied.
Useful.
I want to work with early-stage teams, the ones trying to get to their next inflection point.
The ones with a strong idea, but not always the clarity or support to move it forward.
I want to bring what I know:
How to shape a message. How to position something so people pay attention. How to connect the right pieces at the right time.
Maybe that turns into advisory work. Maybe it leads into investing.
I don’t have all of that mapped yet.
But the point is these chapters don’t get handed to you.
You write them.
And when you trust your foundation, you stop trying to fit into someone else’s structure
and start building your own.
So, I am writing those chapters now. Feel free to check in with me to see how they are going.
