What are you doing???

I feel as though I've heard one version or another of this question over the last couple of months.

Usually, it starts out from a place of curiosity, with just one question mark, wanting to know what my plans are now. The follow up is usually the same, but with at least 2 question marks, and maybe an expletive thrown in the middle.

Let me explain.

I thought I had landed exactly where I was meant to be.

I had worked my way up through the ranks of corporate actuarial roles, eventually stepping into what I had once considered my dream job: leading a team of brilliant actuaries and data-driven professionals, doing meaningful work, and sitting at the table where big decisions were made. It was challenging, respected, and intellectually rewarding. It checked every box I’d worked toward for nearly two decades.

And then—I left.

Not for another title or a bigger company. I stepped away from the certainty and structure of corporate life to start my own consulting business: Integral Edge.

To be honest, it’s still a little strange to write that. Because for much of my career, I thrived in environments where success was clearly defined—where outcomes were measurable, and expectations were spelled out in spreadsheets, deadlines, and dashboards. I was comfortable with structure. I was good at my job. And I was someone people counted on to have the answers.

But something was shifting. Quietly, over time.

While I still loved the technical side of my work, I found myself most energized by a different kind of challenge: helping people grow into better leaders, stronger communicators, and more confident professionals. I saw high-performing, highly analytical people struggling to influence, to connect, to lead with presence—and I knew that wasn’t a skills gap, it was a development gap. One that I felt increasingly called to help fill.

Still, leaving felt risky. Uncertain. Vulnerable. The part of me that had spent a career managing risk for large corporations wanted to run the numbers again.

But the part of me that was ready to grow—not just climb—kept getting louder.

So I chose clarity over certainty. And I made the leap.

Now, through Integral Edge, I work with actuaries and technical professionals to build the skills that don’t always come with credentials: leadership, influence, communication, and connection. I support people in bridging the gap between technical expertise and human impact—because I’ve lived that journey, and I believe deeply in what’s possible on the other side of it.

Starting over hasn’t been easy. It has been and will continue to be humbling and stretching and full of “figure-it-out-as-I-go” moments. But so far, it’s been one of the most meaningful experiences of my career.

This blog will be a space where I share lessons from that journey—my own, and the ones I’m learning alongside the brilliant people I now get to work with.

If you’ve ever felt the tension between being comfortable and being called, or between what’s expected of you and what’s possible for you—I hope this space helps you explore it with a little more clarity, courage, and confidence.

Because sometimes the real dream job isn’t the one you climb toward.

It’s the one you build for yourself.