Stop Outsourcing Your Career to Other People’s Opinions

How to Trust Yourself and Take Back Ownership of Your Career Path

Kamy Charles

5/23/20251 min read

a poster with a quote about a career
a poster with a quote about a career

Let’s Talk About Career Co-Signing

We all crave validation.

But too often, we turn decision-making into a group project—especially when it comes to our careers.

We ask:

“Does this look right to others?”

“What will people think if I leave this role?”

“Will they approve of this pivot?”

But here’s the problem:

No one else lives with your decisions but you.

So why do we give so much weight to opinions from people who won’t live the consequences?

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How You Might Be Outsourcing Without Realizing It

Choosing a career path based on “what makes sense” to your parents or peers

Staying in a title you hate because it impresses others

Avoiding job changes because “it’s not the right time” by someone else’s standards

Letting fear of judgment override your desire for fulfillment

This isn’t strategic. It’s self-abandonment.

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The Truth About Opinion-Based Careers

You can’t build a life that feels right by only doing what looks right.

And no amount of external validation will ever feel as powerful as internal alignment.

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How to Take Your Career Power Back

1. Run It Through Your Lens

Ask: Does this align with how I want to live, lead, and feel?

2. Get Quiet Before You Get Input

Make space to hear your own voice before collecting others’.

3. Trust Your Patterns

Your values, instincts, and wins already hold clues. Look inward, not outward.

4. Normalize Disappointing Others (If It Means Honoring You)

If pleasing them means betraying yourself—it’s not worth it.

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Final Thought: Be the CEO of Your Career, Not the Consultant

You don’t need everyone’s approval to move forward.

You just need your own permission.

So stop waiting for the green light.

You are the green light.

Ready to make confident, self-led career decisions? Let’s build a path that honors your direction.