I recently worked with a client who wondered if what they were feeling was even real. On paper, everything looked fine. Recent promotion. Respected team. Great salary. But what they actually felt was emptiness.

"I feel like I'm watching myself move through my days rather than actually living them."

You hit the external markers of success, but those markers don't match your definition of what success means. When that misalignment exists, restlessness shows up. Emptiness shows up. And it's confusing, because there's no clear crisis to point to.

Most people who feel this way aren't ungrateful. They're thoughtful, accomplished, kind people. And that awareness can make the misalignment even harder to sit with, because guilt starts stacking on top of everything else.

But you're not the problem. And deep down, you know that.

The first thing I want you to know is that you're feeling the effects of misalignment. Not failure. Not brokenness. Misalignment.

It shows up in different ways. Sometimes the work doesn't feel meaningful. Sometimes it doesn't energize you. Sometimes the content of the role doesn't engage you. And sometimes the environment just isn't a fit for who you are.

You're not imagining this. It makes complete sense given how we're wired as humans.

But here's the real fear: The unknown.

What you need is clarity around what's driving the misalignment so you can make intentional adjustments. This doesn't mean blowing up your life or starting over. That fear is almost always bigger than the reality.

Because the moment you name the misalignment, something shifts. Relief shows up. Agency shows up. That moment when you can finally name what's been quietly draining you, it often feels like permission to stop pretending everything's fine.

If you're feeling this way, ask yourself: Which type of misalignment am I dealing with? Values? Motivators? Interests? Fit?

Clarity starts there. And in my experience, clarity begins to emerge faster than you'd think—usually within a few weeks—once you can name the specific kind of misalignment you're feeling.

If this resonates, take 15 minutes this week to ask yourself which type of misalignment you might be dealing with. That clarity will tell you exactly where to start.