“I was made redundant… and I can feel my confidence sinking.”
At my CORE Leadership talk in Sydney this week for Cancer Chicks, one woman shared this with the entire group, tears in her eyes.
She spoke about interviewing, not getting the role, and slowly starting to doubt herself.
It is so easy to lose confidence when you are out of the workforce for a while or when a role is eliminated. Rejection feels personal, even when it isn’t.
One distinction we discussed is simple but powerful:
You were not made redundant.
The role was made redundant.
That distinction matters.
When we blur the two, it becomes personal. It turns into “I wasn’t needed” or “I wasn’t good enough.”
When we hold the distinction clearly, we create space to think more accurately. Organizations restructure. Strategies shift. Budgets change. Roles evolve or disappear.
A position was eliminated.
Your experience, strengths, and character were not.
Keeping that distinction intact protects your identity. It allows you to learn from the experience without absorbing it as a verdict on your worth.
And how you present it to yourself matters.
Your self-talk can either build your confidence or quietly erode it.
Confidence is quiet self-trust.
It is alignment.
It is knowing who you are beyond a title.
It is gaining clarity on your values, priorities, and strengths.
It is taking intentional action that reflects who you are now.
It is monitoring and reframing the stories you tell yourself.
It is remembering that a role being eliminated does not eliminate your capability.
To the woman who spoke so bravely in that room:
Your tears were not weakness. They were evidence that this matters to you. They were tears of courage. Courage to be vulnerable and share a difficult time.
If you are navigating redundancy, rejection, or re-entry into the workforce, start here:
You are not your last job.
You are not your last interview.
You are not a role.
You are a person with values, strengths, and something meaningful to offer.
And that is where confidence begins again.
