Jean Kang

✨ PM Career Coach, x7 pivoter, helping other pivoters land amazing Program Manager roles and 🔥 thrive on the job | Founder of 🚀 Path to PM | Senior Program Manager @ Figma • Ex-Linkedin, Meta, Pinterest, Intuit

Over the last decade, I led impactful programs at companies like LinkedIn, Pinterest, & Figma.

But here’s the part that surprises people:

- I didn’t have a PMP certification.
- I’m a proud career pivoter. 
- I didn’t check every box.

What I did have was strategy, storytelling, and a clear sense of how to articulate my value.

That’s how I landed multiple 6-figure Program Manager roles at top tech companies not by following the “traditional” path, but by leaning into my superpowers. 

Eventually, I had a spark to do something different..

What if I used the same skills that helped me thrive in Big Tech… to build something of my own?

So I left to bet on myself (again). 

And what served me well in my career also helped me as a solopreneur.

I owned my story, built with intention and shared learnings in public.

I started creating content in 2023 and in 2 years, built a community of 350K+ across LinkedIn, Instagram, and my newsletter.

Today, I’m the founder of the PM Accelerator, a career transformation program where I help senior professionals land high-paying PM roles without another certification or starting over. 

My mission is to democratize access to tech careers + empower folks to design a career, business & life they love especially in this era of AI.

The Results:

→ Partnered with Google, Hubspot, NVIDIA, Adobe, Kajabi, Notion, & more
→ LinkedIn Learning Instructor with 200K+ learners
→ 100M+ impressions over the last year
→ 230K+ follow my journey on LinkedIn
→ Built a $200K+ business in 1 year 
→ 32K+ read my newsletter 
→ (soon TEDx speaker 😱)

If you want to learn the exact framework I used to land dream PM roles + help others do the same… 

📌 APPLY TO THE PM ACCELERATOR (link in bio)

In this 5-week career acceleration program, I teach you how to get interviews, land dream offers and literally thrive on the job.  

I helped 100+ students land PM roles at Microsoft, SoFi, Scale.AI, Adidas, Workday and more (many in under 4–7 weeks)

→ GO HERE: pm-accelerator.com 

📧 jean@jean-kang.com for partnerships, collaborations, and speaking opportunities

📌 Media kit: jean-kang.com

Founder & CEO

"Jean isn’t a program manager coach solely because she’s done the role. She’s a coach because she’s done both the role AND gone the extra mile to document what she’s researched and learned masterfully. 

“Jean’s the real deal, and I couldn’t recommend her more to someone questioning how to take the next step in their career."

Leadership isn’t a title.

It’s how you make people feel.

💸 Get promo ready here: https://lnkd.in/gvq4UBgW

My assistant said this to me the other day 💙

“When I talk to managers, I get the feeling they're important. 
When I talk to leaders, I get the feeling I'm important.”

And said this is how I make her feel 🥹 (best compliment ever)

Here’s what I’ve learned about leading with kindness

(and why it’s often your secret weapon for getting ahead especially if you’re eyeing a promotion)

☝🏼 Create psychological safety

↳ People can only thrive when they feel safe to speak up, ask questions, and be themselves without fear of judgment.
↳ Avoid interrupting or dismissing ideas, even if they aren’t fully formed yet
↳ Ask for feedback, “How can I support you better?” or “Do you need more clarification?”

✌🏼 Turn mistakes into learning moments

↳ Focus on “What can we learn?” instead of “Who’s at fault?”
↳ Provide specific guidance on how to avoid the same mistake (ex. “Here’s what to do next time when X happens. What do you think?”

🤟🏼 Give meaningful appreciation & recognition

↳ Get to know how each individual WANTS to be recognized (via DMs, team meeting, more flexibility etc)
↳ Create rituals, like “Win of the Week,” to make appreciation part of the culture

🖖🏼 Care deeply for their well-being

↳ Check in with team members beyond work - ask, “How are you really doing?”
↳ Normalize taking breaks by doing it yourself and encouraging others to do the same (”I don’t expect you to work after hours or on weekends”)
↳ Reinforce that they should focus on their well being > work. Say, “Hey, I know you’re sick. Cancel your meetings and transfer any open work. I’ll handle it.”

Leadership isn’t about power. It’s about people.

If you want to truly thrive in your career, and land the promotion you deserve

👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼

Here’s a wildly valuable and completely free Promotion Readiness Calculator built by the brilliant Shivani Berry that gives you a custom report in < 2 minutes.

Here’s what it does

☝🏼 Identifies the exact lever blocking your promotion

✌🏼 Gives you detailed, actionable next steps to remove the block and bag your dream promo

💸 Get promo ready here: https://lnkd.in/gvq4UBgW

♻️ Repost if you agree & follow Jean Kang for more.

Tech Creator (400k+) & Founder | Ex-LinkedIn, Meta, Figma | Solopreneur, TEDx Speaker & LinkedIn Learning Instructor helping you thrive at work using AI

KPI = 
Key Performance Indicators

The New Leadership
KPI
Keep people interested
Keep people informed
Keep people involved
Keep people inspired

Be the person people want to work with.

How you collaborate will define your career more than anything else.

Because let’s be real. 

No one wants to work with the person who’s genius but impossible to deal with.

Here are 6 traits that make you an invaluable teammate:

__

1. Be dependable ☝🏼

↳ Follow through on what you say you'll do.
↳ Show up on time. Physically and mentally.
↳ Be the person others know they can count on.

2. Communicate like a boss ✌🏼

↳ Get to the point (lead with a headline).
↳ Keep people updated before they have to ask.
↳ Listen with the intent to understand, not just to reply.

3. Make other people’s jobs easier 🤟🏼

↳ Offer solutions vs problems.
↳ Offer help before you're asked.
↳ Share resources, knowledge, and wins.

4. Take ownership of everything (Good or bad) 🖖🏼

↳ Give credit where it’s due.
↳ Don't wait for someone else to step up. Be that person.
↳ Say this: “I dropped the ball. Here’s what happened and what I’ll do next time …”

5. Show appreciation 🖐🏼

↳ Say *thank you.* A lot.
↳ Celebrate small wins. Not just big results.
↳ Recognize someone’s effort, not just the outcomes.

People remember how you made them feel. Make them feel valued.

At the end of the day, the best career move isn’t just getting better at your job.

It’s getting better at working with people.

What’s one trait that makes someone amazing to work with? Drop it below 👇

Tech Creator (400k+) & Founder | Ex-LinkedIn, Meta, Figma | Solopreneur, TEDx Speaker & LinkedIn Learning Instructor helping you build AI literacy ✨

be the person that everyone wants to work with

I quit my job after 14 days.

The culture reflected in the interview was NOT the reality of working there.

The interview process was amazing.

I was so excited to join a great company culture.

Unfortunately, I noticed 🚩red flags in my first week.

My boss started to micromanage, degrade, and control me.

The reality was that what I was told in the interview was a lie.

So many people told me that I should never leave a job under 1 year.

They said being a ‘job hopper’ would ruin my career, but I decided to own my story.

I chose to leave my job under 1 month to preserve my mental health.

In doing so, I landed better roles, greater salaries, a kind manager, and a healthy culture conducive to my growth.

Don’t let anyone shame you for leaving a job because it looks 'bad.'

Staying at a toxic job long-term destroys your mental health.

It’s okay to leave and put yourself first.
__

5 questions to ask if you're in the right place 👇🏼

1/ Am I challenged?

2/ Am I learning & growing?

3/ Do I feel like I can make an impact?

4/ Do I align with the values of the company?

5/ Am I being valued & recognized for my work?

If the answers are NO, it’s time to start looking.

Because person or job is worth your mental health 💙

Repost if you believe mental health matters 🙏🏼

Image credit: Thinking Minds IG

knowing when to leave is so important. the party. the job. the relationship.

📣 Employees who feel appreciated will always do more than expected.

Spoiler alert: 

If they’re not growing, they’re GOING ✌🏼

I’ve left jobs where I felt undervalued, underutilized, & unsupported.

And by choosing to leave, I found myself in healthier workplaces where I was:

✅ Supported by my manager

✅ Recognized for my contributions

✅ Treated with respect and kindness

✅ Encouraged to take time off without the guilt

5 simple things to show your people you actually care:
__

☝🏼1. Be personally helpful

↳ Forward a helpful article, intro them to someone who can help, or share a tool that made your life easier.

Example: “Hey, this podcast made me think of you. It has great advice for client conversations!”

✌🏼2. Connect with, not above, your people

↳ Open up about your own challenges. Ask for feedback you’ll actually use.

Example: “I’ve been feeling stretched lately too. Curious what's one thing I could do better to support you this week?”

🤟🏼3. Get curious about their life outside of work

↳ Ask about their weekend, their dog, their side project. Actually remember the details.

Example: “How was Max’s first soccer game? You looked so proud in that photo!”

🖖🏼4. Acknowledge their people

↳ Celebrate their partners, families, even friends who support them.

Example: “We’d love to see your partner at the team BBQ. Would they be open to joining us?”

🖐🏼5. Be radically transparent

↳ Honest, kind feedback beats sugarcoating every time. Truthful & transparent feedback is a gift.

↳ Try the SBI method: Situation, Behavior, Impact

Example: “In today’s meeting (S), when you interrupted Jane (B), it shifted the room's tone (I). Can we be more mindful of that next time?”

Happy employees make the best employees. Repost if you agree 🙏🏼

Repost if you agree 🙌🏼

a person who feels appreciated will always do more than expected

From 23 to 33, my income jumped 10x 

Looking back, here are the smartest things I did:

1/ Negotiated every offer 

Not just salary, also sign-on, PTO, title, bonus, equity, & professional development budget.

I’ll share my top negotiation tips I gave Business Insider in the comments.

2/ Approached *every* job with an ownership mentality 

I stopped being just an employee. I showed that I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, wear different hats, and bring solutions (not just problems).

Remember, you are the CEO of your own career.

3/ Built a side hustle with a 9-5

I launched a coaching business while working FT at Figma and made +$30K in my first year.

It was proof that optionality is everything.  

4/ Invested in my personal brand 

I started posting on LinkedIn 3 years ago, and it genuinely changed my life. 

It helped me leave my tech career, replace my salary in < 1 year, and start living my dream life.

5/ Got ✨great✨ at articulating my impact

This one’s important. I learned early on that good work alone isn’t enough. What matters is whether people see it and believe it.

You need receipts. Track outcomes, tell the story behind your results, and build relationships internally. Make it so easy for people to advocate for you.

Lastly, if you’re not learning, earning, or growing in your role. 
It’s time to leave. No one can make this decision for you.

And there is a huge opportunity cost if you choose to stay at a place with no growth. 

If you’re ready to grow in your PM career: to land a strategic role, increase your impact and income, and feel confident doing it…

I help senior professionals level up their leadership and land roles they love (in big tech or not)

Want to accelerate your career?

Apply here to work with me: https://lnkd.in/d8e-JAPt

My best career advice:

At every job, you should either learn or earn. Either is fine. Both is best.

If neither, quit.

🔥 17 Remote Job Boards You Didn't Know About (until now)

Included the links below 👇🏼

1/ Wellfound - https://wellfound.com/jobs

↳ Over 130K remote jobs from top companies to fast-growing startups

2/ Working Nomads - https://lnkd.in/ewwG6j-a

↳ A curated list of remote jobs for the modern working nomad

3/ #Web3#Web3 - https://web3.career/ 

↳ Connecting blockchain professionals with Web3 companies

4/ RemoteOK - https://remoteok.com/

↳ Has 129000+ remote jobs as a Developer, Designer, Copywriter, Customer Support Rep, and more.

5/ We Work Remotely - https://lnkd.in/eTb-W9zT

↳ One of the largest remote work communities in the world with over 6M visitors

6/ Jobspresso - https://jobspresso.co/

↳ Expertly curated remote jobs in tech, marketing, customer support, and more

7/ FlexJobs - https://www.flexjobs.com/

↳ Find Remote, Hybrid, & Flexible Jobs (all verified with over 10K+ reviews)

8/ JustRemote - https://justremote.co/

↳ Discover fully and partially remote jobs from the greatest remote working companies

9/ StillHiring.Today - https://stillhiring.today/

↳ A community-sourced, no-pay-to-play, ungated, BS-free list of tech companies who are still ACTUALLY hiring by Ross Pomerantz and Adam Schoenfeld

10/ Wiseful

↳ Central layoff list used by thousands of companies to hire - updated weekly.

11/ Jobgether - https://jobgether.com/

↳ Access to over 100K remote jobs that fit your lifestyle

12/ Underdog.io -Apply to top tech jobs in 60 seconds. A place where companies apply to you - https://underdog.io/

↳ Apply to top tech startups hiring in NYC, SF + remote jobs with one application

13/ BuiltinTech - https://builtin.com/jobs

↳ Tech jobs, news, and resources for local tech communities

14/ Remote.co - https://remote.co/

↳ 146 remote companies and virtual teams answer your top questions about remote work

15/ SkipTheDrive - https://lnkd.in/e8YAUwTx

↳ Search for flexible, remote & hybrid jobs from thousands of jobs

16/ Remotive - https://remotive.com/

↳ Find tech remote jobs (get 100+ jobs posted per day with the Remotive accelerator)

17/ Virtual Vocations, Inc. - https://lnkd.in/etqHtmWR

↳ A job service that provides job seekers with hand-screened remote job leads

repost to help your network get hired 🫶

17 Remote Job Listings You Didn't Know Existed (until now)

AI can get you hired 🤯

My community has been LOVING this trick for standing out.

Here’s how to turn your LinkedIn profile into a ✨killer✨ personal website < 3 minutes
__

1. ☝🏼 Download your LinkedIn profile as a PDF
2. ✌🏼 Go to Replit(.)com + Create App 
3. 🤟🏼 Click Design + drop in the PDF with this prompt in ChatGPT (just tag “Replit”) 
__

“Create a modern, dark-mode personal website using my LinkedIn PDF. Include sections for Home, About, Experience, and Projects. Add smooth scroll navigation, a clean grid layout, my profile image, my updated headline, and space for key stats. Use a deep charcoal background with minimal neon accents. Make it look custom coded and easy to update.”

___

4. 🤟🏼 Click “Start Designing.”
5. ✋🏼 Adjust the content + layout
6. ✅ Hit publish and share live ✨ (that’s it!) 

Congrats 🥳, you’ve created a beautiful, shareable version of your story 🎊

Now here’s a bigger reason why this matters (and why vibe coding is having a moment).

While everyone’s raving over Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and other “AI-first dev tools”, I personally found it intimidating as a non-technical person.

And I found Replit is one of the best places to take my genuine curiosity into an actual *tangible* product (and bring my ideas 💡 → life)

(But if you are *technical*, Replit still works with Claude Code).

I’d love to invite you to build something from zero to 1 (and see how fun it can be!)

📌 Bring your creative ideas to life here: https://lnkd.in/dNGeWji5

#ReplitPartner

Brand partnership • Tech Creator (400k+) & Founder | Ex-LinkedIn, Meta, Figma | Solopreneur, TEDx Speaker & LinkedIn Learning Instructor helping you build AI literacy ✨

Turn your LinkedIn Profile Into a Personal Website

7 Korean proverbs that will change your perspective (in life and career). 

What still sticks with me from childhood to adulthood (instilled by my Dad): 

"𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚'𝙨 𝙖 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡, 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚'𝙨 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙮" ✨

Which one resonates with you?

📌 Share and follow Jean Kang for more.

7 Korean Proverbs That Will Change Your Perspective 

You’re gonna want to 📌 this

OpenAI shared prompt hacks by job function + work use case 🙌🏼

(and they’re REALLY good)  

Think:

- IT
- HR
- Sales
- Product
- Marketing
- Managers
- Engineering
- Customer Success

You're welcome 🤗

Dropping the link to OpenAI Academy  ⬇️ 

Learn how to use ChatGPT for any role: https://lnkd.in/gwvkduCJ

Share this with your work bestie 🫶🏼

PM roles in tech explained in 1 min 😉

Product and Program Managers sound similar, but they’re NOT the same 🙈

Watch till the end to see the difference (and see which one fits YOU best)

If you’ve been wanting to land a Program Manager role and know you can do it *really* well (without having the PM title).

That’s exactly what I’m helping professionals do :)

If you’re ready to grow in your career, to land a strategic role, increase your impact + income…

I’d love to help you level up your influence, articulate your value and land a job that you love (without needing another degree or certification)

Apply here to work with me: https://rb.gy/q08oyc

ADHD Career Coach | Founder of Momentum — the 8-week coaching program built to get ADHD brains off the overthinking line and into a rhythm of task execution (even on low-energy days)

If you're like most senior leaders I work with, you're not stuck because you lack experience, but because locking into your next move feels impossibly heavy.

I know that feeling well.

For years, I could lead teams, close deals, and make high-stakes decisions without blinking.

But when it came to my own next step?

– Everything blurred.
– The options multiplied.
– The second-guessing crept in.

And the longer I sat with it, the harder it got to move at all.

You can probably relate:

– You can see multiple lanes.
– You can imagine yourself in all of them.
– You can talk yourself into each one if you're not careful.

But eventually, the weight of all those possibilities starts to work against you.

➝ Your story doesn't point anywhere.
➝ Your positioning feels scattered.
➝ Your confidence nosedives.

And you start asking the real question:

"𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄?"

Most people assume it's a motivation problem.

It's not.

𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗮 𝗵𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.

Because when you're keeping too many options open, nothing really lands.

Once you stop hedging and lock into one clear lane, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀:

➝ Your direction locks in. 
➝ Your positioning becomes clear. 
➝ Your visibility grows in the right spaces. 
➝ Your authority increases with the people who matter.

Small wins start stacking again.

Movement feels normal.

Confidence comes back online.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗜 𝗱𝗼.

Through 𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺 — my 8-week 1:1 career accelerator — I help leaders in transition stop hedging, lock into one clear path, and build visibility and authority where it actually matters.

Here's what you get:

– A structure for clarity, positioning, visibility, and authority
– The accountability and scaffolding that keep you steady
– 1:1 support to reduce friction instead of adding pressure
– A 2nd brain to guide the work between calls (Persona™)

By the time the conversations start, people already understand who you are, what you bring, and where you fit.

And once you lock in?

Momentum becomes the norm.

📩 𝗗𝗠 𝗺𝗲 "𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺" 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗵𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱.

David Hannan

I keep coming back to this photo.

I almost didn't take it.

— Last summer
— Olivia's first day of kindergarten
— I was just focused on getting her through the door

I was 48 when I became a dad.

— Older than expected
— Less apologetic than I imagined
— Already more at peace with it than I realized

People didn't say it outright.

They rarely do, but the message was there:

— It's selfish
— You won't keep up
— She'll graduate before you retire

I didn't debate it.
I just carried on.

Last year, at 53, I walked my daughter Olivia into her first day of kindergarten.

— Her hand in mine
— Purple backpack bouncing
— That half-skip kids do when they're excited

That's when it landed: if I'd listened to them, this moment wouldn't exist.

And while that decision was playing out at home, I was watching the same pattern play out at work.

I've spent years watching people edged out after 50.

— Resumes stop getting traction
— "Too experienced" turns into a liability
— "Not a fit" says everything without saying anything

Translation: ageism in disguise.

Here's the part that's stayed with me since.

That same stretch of life is often when things click.

That was true for me.

In my early 50s, I was diagnosed with ADHD.

— A clearer view of my patterns
— A new way of working with my brain
— A reframing of everything that came before

It forced me to strip away the noise.

— Better systems
— Cleaner decision-making
— Fewer obligations I never agreed to

I grew more in my early 50s than I had in decades before.

We're sold a neat timeline:

— Career first
— Family on schedule
— Progress in orderly stages

Real life doesn't follow that script.

Some of the most important things arrive once you stop racing the clock.

I turn 54 next month.

I don't feel late.
I feel settled.

And when someone quietly decides I've missed my window, I don't feel the need to correct them.

I know what opened once I stopped believing in that clock.

P.S. A lot of people already have a "late" moment behind them.
They just haven't given it credit yet.

Helping high-performing leaders get clear on their next move and show up with confidence | Founder of Momentum | Former $4M full-desk recruiter

My client, a Head of Marketing in EdTech, recently received a $265K offer because of this:

We'd been working 1:1 to get clear on her next step after feeling stuck for months—riddled with overwhelm and imposter syndrome.

Before then, she had no clarity on what role she wanted next.

Her resume and LinkedIn profile told two different stories.

Every rejection felt personal, feeding her imposter syndrome and making it hard to keep going.

Networking felt overwhelming and random (which is fine, but not effective).

So what changed?

4 things:

1. Clearer, more specific career direction
2. Cohesive resume and LinkedIn branding
3. Targeted engagement/networking strategy

But #4 has been the wildest unlock of them all ↓

4. Consistently posting authority-building content

Once her approach changed, she not only landed conversations with key decision-makers…

But she built real momentum and started drawing the right roles without overthinking every step.

Before, her job search efforts looked like this:

— Applying to roles without tailoring outreach
— Sending connection requests with no purpose
— Hesitating to engage out of fear of being judged
— Never sharing her insights or perspective publicly

Now, her strategy looks like this:

— Clear direction on the role she wanted
— Cohesive resume and LinkedIn throughline
— An engagement strategy that built real visibility
— Posting original content weekly to build authority

See the difference?

❌ Less guesswork
✅ More intentionality

But that's not all.

We got crazy specific about her LinkedIn content:

— The exact topics she wanted to align with
— The companies that should be paying attention
— The decision-makers she wanted reading her posts
— The exact message she wanted to communicate
— The clear value her expertise demonstrated

This works because your content shapes who pays attention and what happens next.

It's like a magnet.

Attract the right people and the right conversations, and it's just a matter of time before you get that offer.

Get it wrong though?

You're left wheel-spinning.

P.S. If you're feeling stuck and:

➝ struggle with focus challenges or overthinking
➝ have zero clarity on what you want to do next
➝ have a confusing resume and LinkedIn profile
➝ want a strategy that plays to your strengths

I'm opening up 4 more spots to work 1:1 with US-based senior leaders to help them do just that.

DM "Momentum" if you want to see how this works.

2025 David: What I got wrong (and what actually worked):

1. Every tough year means something is broken.
↳ Last year stretched me.
- It also sharpened the business.
- Some things worked. Others needed rebuilding.
- Both were true at the same time.

2. Growth required grinding harder each year.
↳ That belief aged poorly.
- Revenue stabilized when systems replaced urgency.
- Fewer calls, better containers, clearer expectations.
- Momentum came from consistency, not exhaustion.

3. More availability meant better service.
↳ Wrong math.
- Being always on blurred boundaries fast.
- The work improved when I protected my time.
- Clients got a calmer version of me. Family did too.

4. Recruiting expertise alone would be enough.
↳ Half true. Half naïve.
- I knew hiring systems inside out. 
- I underestimated the impact of identity loss.
- Execution followed once people felt steady again.

5. Transparency would land the same for everyone.
↳ That was projection.
- My ADHD diagnosis reshaped how I work and talk.
- I assumed everyone shared the same openness.
- Meeting people where they are built trust.

6. One unified workspace would solve everything.
↳ Spoiler: it didn’t.
- Persona worked for strategy and layered thinking.
- Content suffered when context got too crowded.
- Custom GPTs restored clients' voices fast.

7. More structure always equals more progress.
↳ I learned this one the uncomfortable way.
- Granular milestones worked for me.
- Clients experienced the same system as overload.
- Fewer steps created more follow-through.

Here’s what I know for sure:

☑ Clarity compounds faster than effort.
☑ Systems fail quietly before people do.
☑ Protecting your energy is part of the work.

Grateful for the clients who trusted me through the experiments and the resets.

2026 gets a cleaner version of everything.

P.S. What’s one shift from last year that stuck?

——
Hi, I’m David. I help high-performing leaders get clear on their next move and show up with confidence.

If time off didn’t shift the direction question, it probably wasn’t ever about energy.

I keep noticing this in the first week back. 

People get a bit of distance over the holidays. 

Quieter mornings. Fewer meetings. 

Just enough space to breathe and think that once the noise drops, things will probably feel clearer.

And then you make it to Friday.

You’ve been back in it long enough to tell what actually changed and what didn’t. 

The same career question’s still there. 
The same next role that isn’t quite defined. 
The same sense that the story still isn’t clear.

Even though you really hoped it might be by now.

Nothing really shifted. 

It’s not heavier, but it’s not lighter either.

From the hiring side, this is usually the part people don’t clock straight away.

It’s rarely about motivation, or effort, or a reset.

What lingers tends to be quieter than that. 

It’s the part where what’s next still feels fuzzy, where every option can still be justified. 

Where the story sounds fine in your head but wouldn’t quite land in a real conversation yet.

That’s the stuff a few days off doesn’t touch.

I don’t think that moment gets talked about much. 

That realization in the first week, when the calendar’s filling back up but the direction still hasn’t locked.

You’re left sitting with the same unanswered question you parked a couple of weeks ago.

It tends to just sit there for a bit, whether you’re ready to deal with it or not.

Some questions just take longer than a break.

The hardest roles to leave are the ones you're stuck explaining why you stayed.

I was sixteen years into a recruiting career. 

It wasn't bad, it just wasn't right anymore.

I remember this one Friday night, dinner done, sitting on the sofa half-watching Dexter, phone in my hand.

And there it was again, that question, the one I'd been carrying around for months but kept putting off because there was never a good time to deal with it.

I wasn't stressed or spinning, and to be honest, my week had been fine, which was the weird part.

When things are bad, you have a reason to move.

But when deals are closing, and big commission checks are rolling in, you start wondering why you're still thinking about leaving at all.

I sat there for a bit, finished my tea, and went to bed.

Woke up the next morning, same commute, same desk, same pipeline to work, and that question was right there with me like it had been the whole time.

I didn't do anything about it that week. 

Or the week after.

But it didn't go anywhere either.

P.S. Ever had one of those moments?

——
Hi, I'm David. I help high-performing leaders get clear on their next move and show up with confidence.

You don't need a perfect story to start a job search.

But most senior leaders act like they do.

That usually means:

- Waiting until the story feels "tight"
- Believing every chat has to go somewhere
- Pressure to sound confident before you feel clear

At senior levels, you're carrying identity, reputation, and expectations into every single conversation. 

That's a lot of weight. 

No wonder it feels exhausting.

Here's the reframe most leaders need:

A search is a private, low-pressure exploration phase.

The goal is just to gather information:

- What energizes you now
- What you don't want anymore
- What trade-offs you're willing to make

Clarity doesn't come 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 you start.

It comes 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 you start.

taplio

The Battle

Jean Kang

David Hannan

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taplio

The Battle

Jean Kang

David Hannan

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Jean Kang's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreDavid Hannan's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreJean Kang's LinkedIn Performance