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Early in my career, I drew a hard line in the sand. With a PhD in industrial/organizational psychology, I saw the field as clearly divided: the "industrial" side focused on metrics and analytics, while the "organizational" side dealt with leadership and coaching. I identified strictly with the former. So, when a client suggested I apply for an organizational development manager role, my instinct was to refuse. "I don't do that," I told him.
His response was simple but pivotal: "You’ve only been working a few years. Don’t pigeonhole yourself." I took the job, and ironically, about 85 percent of my current work now sits squarely in that "organizational" territory I once dismissed. That moment was the first of several unexpected turns that defined my career.
The Pivot That Looked Like a Dream Job
Years later, I returned to consulting to build an executive assessment center, certain I would stay there indefinitely. That changed when an automotive executive I had coached urged me to join his startup to run HR. I accepted immediately, a decision that forced me to master the operational side of human resources—from payroll to benefits—and gave me the confidence to secure a seat at the executive table.
The Pivot Born of Necessity
The startup eventually closed, leaving me at a crossroads. Rather than jumping back into the corporate grind, a colleague and I decided to start our own consulting firm. What began as a stopgap between jobs ignited an entrepreneurial spark that I never wanted to lose.
The Pivot Disguised as a Sales Call
Eventually, I took a meeting with a headhunter, viewing it merely as a networking opportunity. Instead, it led to a two-year stint as a human capital managing director inside a private equity (PE) firm. There, I learned the language of value creation and EBITDA. Crucially, I also realized that while I understood the PE world, my true passion lay in consulting with portfolio company leaders.
This realization led to the creation of Lodestone, a firm dedicated to bridging the gap between private equity and organizational psychology.
The Reality of Career Pivots
We often imagine career changes as dramatic reinventions. In reality, they are usually small, adjacent moves stemming from a willingness to explore the unknown—whether prompted by a client, a colleague, or a sudden change in employment status. My path wasn't the result of a master plan, but a collection of these open-minded turns. As that early mentor advised, avoiding self-pigeonholing allowed me to build a career I never could have mapped out on my own.