Some career struggles are easy to explain. The job is toxic. The boss is difficult. The company is unstable. The work is clearly wrong.
But other career struggles are harder to name because, from the outside, everything looks fine.
This was Maddy’s story.
She had a great role at a great company with great benefits. She worked as an Executive Coordinator at Deloitte, supporting leaders across the firm and gaining valuable experience along the way. But behind the scenes, she was exhausted, underemployed, and quietly convinced that her resume only qualified her for one kind of work.
If you’ve ever looked at your job and thought, “I should be grateful, but I cannot keep doing this,” Maddy’s story is for you.
When You’ve Outgrown Your Job…
Maddy came to us after four years in an administrative role that had slowly become draining.
She was good at the work. That was part of the problem. The job no longer challenged her, stretched her, or gave her much room to grow. Day after day, she was spending most of her time in calendars, repeating the same tasks, and pouring out energy without feeling like she was moving forward.
Eventually, burnout started affecting more than her work.
At the end of the day, she had nothing left for her husband, her friendships, or the people she loved. She described it like juggling too many balls and realizing that if something dropped, one of the most important parts of her life might shatter.
So she made a brave, prayerful decision.
She left her job without another role lined up.
That is not the right decision for everyone, but for Maddy, it was a necessary step toward rest, clarity, and healing.
How Maddy Found Clarity After Burnout
Maddy’s next step didn’t become clear all at once. It came through rest, honesty, prayer, conversations, and practical action.
1. SHE ADMITTED THAT BURNOUT WAS COSTING TOO MUCH
Maddy didn’t leave because she was careless or impulsive. She left because she could see that something had to change.
Work had become the ball she needed to set down for a season so the rest of her life didn’t shatter. That honesty helped her stop pretending she could keep pushing forever.
2. SHE RECEIVED REST AS PART OF GOD’S CARE
Leaving her role brought fear, especially around resume gaps, finances, and uncertainty. But Maddy also sensed the Lord inviting her into rest.
She described this season through the story of Peter stepping out of the boat. She had taken the step, but then she saw the wind and the waves: rejection, waiting, fear, and a shrinking bank account.
Still, God kept reminding her of His faithfulness. Trusting Him looked like journaling, praying honestly, reading Scripture, talking through her fears, and remembering how He had provided before.
3. SHE STOPPED BELIEVING SHE WAS PIGEONHOLED
At first, Maddy believed her resume only qualified her for executive assistant roles. She had administrative experience, so she assumed that was all she could do.
But through the clarity process, she began to see that her experience was not a limitation. It was transferable.
She was not “just” administrative. She was organized, systems-minded, strategic, relational, and able to identify gaps and improve processes. The same skills that made her good in her old role could support a new direction.
4. SHE USED CONVERSATIONS TO DISCERN WHAT FELT ALIVE
Networking used to feel uncomfortable to Maddy. It felt like asking too much of people or treating relationships like transactions.
But her view changed when she started having informational interviews. She realized most people actually enjoy talking about work that matters to them, and those conversations helped her see possibilities she could not have seen alone.
One conversation in particular opened her eyes to business operations. Suddenly, something clicked. She could see how her skills translated into a path that felt both practical and exciting.
5. SHE TOOK ACTION INSTEAD OF OVERTHINKING
Like many career changers, Maddy had to fight the urge to overthink everything.
Eventually, the phrase “less think, more click” became a helpful mindset. Send the message. Apply to the job. Stop self-selecting out before anyone else has even seen your name.
Practically, she used a tracking system, created a list of possible job titles under the business operations umbrella, and focused on roles posted within the last 24 hours. Those small systems helped her stay organized, consistent, and less emotionally overwhelmed.
6. SHE FOUND A ROLE THAT BUILT ON WHAT SHE ALREADY HAD
Maddy’s next role was not a total rejection of her past experience. It was a better use of it.
She accepted a business operations role within the Strategic Growth Office at Crow. The role still includes some administrative support, but now it also expands into the work she wanted more of: supporting initiatives, improving systems, identifying gaps, and helping sustain growth.
The pivot was not about throwing away her experience. It was about changing the percentage.
Instead of doing almost all administrative work with only a small amount of strategic work, she found a role where her administrative strengths could support a much more growth-oriented path.
For Anyone Feeling Stuck in a Job Title
If you feel trapped by your resume, your job title, or your experience, Maddy’s story is a reminder that you may not be as stuck as you think.
Sometimes the next step isn’t a total reinvention. Sometimes it’s learning how to name your transferable skills, recover from burnout, and trust God enough to move forward with wisdom.
Maddy’s story didn’t unfold overnight, but it did unfold faithfully. Through rest, prayer, honest conversations, and practical action, she found a role that gave her room to grow again.
Listen to the full episode here.
