It usually shows up a few months into the new role, right when things are supposed to feel good.

You worked hard.
Earned the promotion.
Stepped into the bigger role.

You got what you wanted.

But it doesn’t make you feel the way you imagined it would.

A few months in, something shifts.

Externally, everything looks fine.
Internally, it takes more energy to show up.

The same work starts feeling forced.
Like you’re acting as a version of yourself that no longer fits.

What surprises most people is that it doesn’t feel like panic.

It feels calm. Almost polite.
Like your body quietly letting you know that staying in this role will require pretending to be someone you’re not.

So you keep going.

You know something’s off, but what stops you is the fear of being wrong.

What if this is just stress.
What if it’s self-sabotage.
What if you blow up a good career over something you can’t even fully explain.

When nothing is visibly broken, it’s hard to trust that inner knowing.

That dynamic is real. And it’s more common than most people realize.
I see it often enough to recognize it.

The further your work drifts from who you are and how you’re wired, the heavier it becomes to keep showing up.

Not because you’re failing.
But because you’re clear, and clarity without movement has weight.

If you’re sitting with that weight right now, you’re not overthinking.
You’re paying attention.

One way to test what you’re feeling is to notice what happens after you do the things you normally use to reset.

Sleep.
A long weekend or vacation.
Finishing a project.
Reminding yourself that on paper, things are good.

Does the discomfort fade and stay gone, or does it return as soon as things get quiet again?

If it keeps resurfacing, even when life is calm and nothing is “wrong,” that usually points to misalignment, not overthinking.

If this resonates, it may be worth trusting what you already know before talking yourself out of it.

And if you’ve been privately sitting with this feeling for a while and want support thinking through what’s next, feel free to send me a note.