by LaTia Few, Certified BG5 Career & Business Consultant, Founder of Unmask by Design and LaFew & Associates, LLC
I remember the exact moment I saw the Microsoft Teams invite from my supervisor, added to my calendar for Monday at 8am, one of my work from home days. Just to "check-in." Eight in the morning. That had never happened before, not once in five years. I sat there staring at the invite thinking, I know exactly what this is.
You know that feeling when something small confirms what you already suspected but didn't want to admit? The office mandate came next. Then the layoffs. I watched an institution I had given fifteen years to turn back into a place that manages people instead of trusting them.
Something in me knew I was out of alignment before I had the language for why.
I was the Senior Project Analyst for a student facing department and the work itself was never hard for me. What took most of my colleagues eight hours or more to finish, I could knock out in two or three. It was the same tasks, day after day, same reports, same meetings. I wasn't challenged. Frankly, I was bored. But I stayed anyway, because the benefits and the flexibility were good, and I was comfortable. For years it was hard to walk away from a comfortable, easy job, but it was quietly killing something in me.
Here's the problem, and it took my own design to name it for me. I am an Advisor/Projector. My strategy is to wait for the invitation, to let my work and my presence speak for me instead of proving myself in advance. For fifteen years I did the opposite. I initiated everything. I said yes before anyone asked, because saying yes was also a way of me overproving my worth.
So, a company deciding it needed to check on me, at 8am, on my work from home day, with a reputation of producing excellent work, was wild and I had enough. This is one thing my design depends on not needing.
If you've ever felt your body reject something before your mind could explain why, you already understand what that moment was for me.
My off-track key indicator is bitterness. For an Advisor/Projector, that isn't a dramatic collapse, it’s quiet. Its energy given, year after year, to a place that was never built to receive it, until the weight of it finally breaks something open.
I did the same thing in my marriage five years earlier. Different situation, but the same pattern. I was overriding what I already knew, because I thought I was supposed to want something else.
The solution wasn't a new job, it was learning to actually live by my design.
But here's the thing—I realized I was doing what I loved in the background while juggling the day-to-day grind of corporate life. Deep down, I knew that helping others find their purpose was my real calling. So, I took a leap, aligned my work with my passion, and unlocked the tools to guide others to do the same.
Now, as a BG5 Certified Career and Business Consultant, I work with people like you—entrepreneurs and business owners who want more than success. You want a career or business that fits you, feels aligned, and allows you to thrive without burning out.
When we work together, I show up as your partner, not as some distant authority figure. I listen, understand your unique challenges, and work with you to build a clear vision and practical steps to achieve it. Together, we'll create a path that's all about you—your strengths, your purpose, your success.
If you're ready to stop feeling stuck and start building something that feels right, I'm here to help. Let's make it happen.
