When Changing Jobs Changes Your Identity

Half of all new hires fail in their roles due to lack of fit, according to studies. The author believes that a failure to complete the psychological transition from one identity to another can lead to fit.

Major shifts in the labor market have made it more likely for workers to switch organizations. As our careers progress, we ourselves are not completely reinvented. The pieces of our past work experiences that we bring with us make our work selves more like a palimpsest than a whiteboard that can be wiped clean. The termlingering identities has been used to describe the ghosts of the past.