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Professional identity has been closely tied to job titles.
But what happens when the title changes—or disappears altogether?
On this episode of What’s Your Work Fit?, returning guest Sarabeth Berk Bickerton, Ph.D., joins host Dan Smolen for a provocative conversation about professional identity, career belonging, and why the traditional career ladder may no longer make sense.
Sarabeth argues that we are not our job titles—and never have been. A layoff, career pivot, reorganization, or changing workplace may take away a role, but it doesn’t erase the skills, experiences, perspectives, and value that make up our professional identity.
The conversation explores:
- Why professional identity goes far beyond a job title
- What we lose psychologically when a job disappears
- Why the career ladder is giving way to a “constellation of activities and experiences”
- The difference between career fit and career belonging
- Why being seen, known, and valued may matter more than asking, “Where is my career going?”
- How AI and hiring systems struggle to recognize unconventional professional identities
- Why career reinvention is increasingly “a feature, not a bug”
- What work humans should continue to uniquely own in an AI-powered workplace
Sarabeth leaves us with a different way to think about career development.
Instead of defining ourselves by the next title or rung on the ladder, perhaps the better question is:
What am I being seen, known, and valued for?
And if your title disappeared tomorrow, who would you be?
Listen to this episode of What’s Your Work Fit? and discover why your professional identity may be far more durable—and valuable—than any title an employer gives you.
What’s Your Work Fit? explores how career professionals can make work a wonderful part of their day while doing other wonderful things.
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