Too Experienced to Be Starting From Scratch

It’s dead easy to look at those people the ones pulling off midlife career changes or pivoting their lives/businesses entirely and assume they’ve unlocked the universe’s cheat codes. But let me break it to you: even the most “together” online entrepreneur has hit the existential wall, usually around the sacred hour of 3am. The What the hell am I doing? Who do I think I am? Am I really that special? moment.

The weirdest part? You and I have already made it this far, so why do the doubts ramp up sometimes louder than ever right when we’re ready for something new?

Here’s a secret: It’s the stories we tell ourselves that quietly (and sometimes loudly) shape what we believe is possible. And sometimes, our greatest strength experience turns into its own weird booby trap.

Why The Stories We Tell Ourselves Matter

Brains cleverer than mine have spent ages studying this. Psychology types call it “self-narrative” basically, the way we make sense of ourselves by threading our experiences into a story. Our story.

Alice was right, by the way:

The catch? These stories are the filter we use to face the future. Depending on the script, they can be rocket fuel for reinvention or invisible shackles keeping us put.

The Usual Suspects: Common Limiting Narratives

Let’s name a few greatest hits:

• “I’m behind the tech curve.”

• “Younger people are better suited to online business.”

• “Starting over means losing everything I’ve built.”

• “If I ask for help, I’ll look incompetent.”

Sure, you’ve probably got a catalogue of evidence tucked away for some of these. But past experience doesn’t guarantee the future plays out the same (unless you’re in a ‘Groundhog Day’ sequel).

We’re hardwired to spot trouble a leftover from when a snake might actually be hiding under that rock. But not every rock is hiding a snake.

So… What Do You Do About It?

Notice Your Script

Start tuning into those automatic “I never…” or “I can’t…” statements. That’s the sound of a well-worn narrative in action.

Hunt for Contradictions

Played catch-up before? Learned something from scratch? Switched lanes? Your stack of resilience, empathy, leadership all of it proves you can adapt. You’ve done it before.

Write a New Chapter

Instead of “I’m starting from zero,” try: “I’m building a next act that sits on a foundation most people would envy.” Let your lived expertise steer the ship, not hold you back.

Learn from Real Stories

Ignore airbrushed success tales. Find peers who’ve made authentic pivots, drama and setbacks included. Reality is messier,and more inspiring than a highlight reel anyway.

Try This

• Script It Out: Write your “career story” so far with all its twists. Then add: “The next chapter begins when I…”

• Visualise: Picture a day in your life, one year into your reinvention. What’s changed? Who are you helping? What’s different about you?

• Share It: If you’re brave (and even if you’re not), share your next chapter draft with a peer. What strengths do they spot, that you’ve missed?

Writing Your Next Chapter

You’re not starting over you’re building the next scene in your story. The previous chapters inform who you are, but don’t get to call the shots from here. Your expertise. Your hard-won humility and curiosity. Your wild (possibly still underused) capacity for reinvention. That’s your unfair advantage now.

Try This

Next time your internal narrator starts rattling off old lines, pause and ask: “Would I let a mate talk about themselves like this?” If not, rewrite the story and see what new doors swing open.

Got a story or mental script you’ve outgrown? Hit reply and tell me about it especially if it’s a weird one. Let’s crowdsource some new narratives. Faark it, it might just help.