Unbreakable: The Vaccine for Career Resilience

A Vaccine Against Breakability in Your Career

My Father’s Breaking Point

My dad lost his job after 28 years when Reynolds Aluminum was acquired by Alcoa. He was smart, hardworking, loyal—a turnaround artist. But he had never been on a job search before.

He fought to land a role at an overseas metals company in Houston and moved my mom there. But after two years of mistreatment, they let him go. Then, as my grandfather’s dementia worsened, my dad chose to step away from his career to take care of him. I admired him for that, but I also knew he still had so much to offer. He could have made a continued impact somewhere. Instead, he ended up doing odd jobs for retirees in a mobile home park.

It felt like watching a Ferrari pulling a plow on a farm.

Everyone Has a Breaking Point

I faced my own in 2016 when I was let go after just a few months on the job. Then again in May 2020, when COVID layoffs wiped out countless sales roles, including mine. I fought through that job search and landed somewhere new—but within months, the environment turned toxic. I had to make it work.

Despite the challenges, I was publicly praised by our Chief Revenue Officer in a company-wide video. But shortly after that, I got seriously ill and spent six days in the hospital right after turning 50. I forced myself back to work earlier than I should have—still on an oxygen tank—only to be let go over Zoom on my second day back.

That was my third job loss.

I Felt That Breaking Feeling

I couldn’t believe I was going through another job search. But because I had watched my dad’s story unfold, I saw my own situation with clearer eyes.

I knew my dad had so much more to give. His setbacks weren’t his fault, and he could have kept going. But after everything he had been through, he broke. And because I had seen that happen, I was able to step outside my own emotions and analyze my situation differently.

Tough things happen in a career—sometimes more than once. But I didn’t have to break. Just recognizing what was happening gave me the mental protection I needed. It was like a vaccine against despair. I could feel the weight of discouragement without letting it define me.

And because I didn’t break, I fought harder. I got creative. I networked. I landed a job quickly.

If I had let myself break, I don’t know what would have happened.

A Vaccine for Your Thinking

Now, three years later, I see people breaking in their job searches every day on LinkedIn. You’ve seen it too. People who have been through layoffs, broken promises, and frustrating recruiting processes.

You can see the breaking point in their posts—when disappointment turns into despair, when exhaustion turns into self-doubt. But here’s the truth:

• That feeling of breaking isn’t real.
• That belief that you have no value isn’t real.
• That thought that no job will ever come isn’t real.

It’s not an accurate forecast of your future—it’s just normal human breakability. We all have limits. But we don’t have to let those limits define us.

The Ultimate Protection Against Breaking

My hope in sharing this is to give you a mental vaccine against quitting on yourself.

You’ve now seen two paths—my father’s and mine. One option was stopping. The other was recognizing the warning signs of breaking and making the choice to keep going.

That’s your vaccine. Knowing that these feelings are real—but they don’t have to control you.

Your ultimate protection isn’t found in blind optimism, but in intentional action. Keep going. Keep creating. Keep networking. Keep pushing forward.

Feelings will come and go. But you don’t have to break.