The Corporate Crashout: 6

Hey Besties,

What are we crashing out about today, bestie?

First of all, welcome. You’re not the only one. I'm right there with ya. A lot of people are waking up to the fact that the rules we were taught about work don’t actually lead to the life we were promised.

We spend more much time at work, thinking about work, or panicking about work that we forget to enjoy the life we've worked so hard for .

That realization, quite frankly, sucks.

It can feel scary. It can feel messy. BUT, what if we turn your crash out into data set instead of a flurry of panic?

Data sets allow us to build better.

If you’re trying to figure out what your next chapter looks like, pay attention to what you day dream about, what your thoughts are when you're crashing out.

Where you really want to be? I bet it's not on linkedin.

When we start to untangle the career expectations that aren’t serving us anymore we can start to build a path that actually fits the life you want.

Not the one LinkedIn told you to want. I am not going to tell you to get up at 5am, or work 72 hours a week.

Because sometimes the real glow-up isn’t another promotion. It’s realizing you don’t need one.

Just a reminder. This is the internet. You don’t know me. (Unless you do. And if you do, hi.)

But most of the people reading my content don’t actually know me, which makes it fascinating when someone feels deeply called to slide into my DMs to tell me how I should be doing… the internet.

This is my phone, I will do what I want. There’s thiks weird phenomenon that happens when you have any kind of platform. People start to believe they’ve been personally assigned the role of creative director for your life.

They read your posts. They watch your content. They observe how you show up. And then they feel compelled to offer “feedback.”

Unsolicited feedback.

Let me say this clearly because people seem to struggle with it:

Unsolicited feedback is not a gift. Unsolicited feedback is not support. Unsolicited feedback should, nine times out of ten, remain safely tucked away in your draft inbox where it can live out the rest of its quiet little life.

Earlier this week someone slid into my DMs to tell me I should hire an editor for my newsletter.

My free newsletter. The newsletter about crashing out.

Apparently after reading all of them, their biggest takeaway was that they don’t like my grammar, my punctuation, or my lack of punctuation… because I hate an Oxford comma.

YeS, I know that is a hot button topic but I am STANDING ON THIS.

After reading multiple newsletters about burnout, joy, work culture, and the general chaos of modern employment, the conclusion was that the real issue here is punctuation.

Imagine reading someone’s writing and deciding the biggest contribution you could make is recommending that they spend money fixing commas.

Imagine sliding into a stranger’s DMs to tell them what they should spend money on.

Imagine using an AI prompt to do it. My credibility, it seems, is hanging by a delicate grammatical thread.

Meanwhile… this is the internet. We are communicating through memes, TikToks, screenshots, hashtags, voice notes, and half-finished sentences typed while waiting in line somewhere.

It is not that deep.

But my content, as I've said over and over and over again isn't for everyone, and that is by design. The people your content is meant for will hear it exactly the way it’s intended. The people it’s not meant for will focus on the commas.

Both groups will exist forever.

The lack of Oxford commas will remain consistent, just in case you were worried that I would bend to societal pressure, you're safe.

The newsletter will still go out. The people who this content is for will still receive it. And everyone will be okay.

I know I certainly am, ironically it's something I've dreamed about ever since I joined corporate america. Every week I get messages that all sound slightly different but are basically asking the same question.

“I think I’m done with corporate.”

“I don’t know how much longer I can do this..”

And honestly? I get it.

Something has shifted in the way a lot of people think about work

We were sold a lie that if you work hard, and stick with it, you'll move forward, but what we got was hard work, little payoff, and alot of anxiety.

The promise was that if you kept playing the game long enough, eventually it would all feel worth it.

Narrator: It's not worth it.

Over the past few years, a lot of people have started looking around and realized, they never got to spend a moment truly inside the life they built, dreamed about or existed with in.

The ladder didn't actually lead to a better life, it led to more work, less time, and more stress.

And once you see it, you can't unsee it.

People start questioning things they used to accept without thinking.

Why does my job get the best hours of my day?

Why does my energy always go towards working for someone else's dream?

What about my dream?

When people start dreaming about leaving corporate, they often imagine it as one dramatic moment.

Quitting with a cake that says "sorry for your loss"/

Walking away and flipping a desk on the way out.

Crashing out on your way out.

But in reality, the transition usually looks a lot messier than that. It’s testing new ideas. Trying consulting. Doing fractional work. Building something on the side. Reimagining what work could look like if it actually fit your life instead of consuming it.

That’s what this week’s newsletter is really about. Not just escaping corporate. But questioning the assumption that the traditional path is the only path available. Because sometimes the most radical career move you can make is simply deciding you want something different.

What is stopping you from chasing your own dream?

If you’re sitting there thinking “okay but what is my dream?” you’re not alone. Most of us were so busy following the “responsible” path that we never stopped to ask what we actually wanted.

A few ways to start figuring it out:

Pay attention to what gives you energy.
Not just what you’re good at, but what actually makes you feel alive, curious, or excited.

Notice what you complain about.
The things that frustrate you most often point to what you care about fixing or changing, and I just don’t mean when they forget your sweet and sour sauce at the drive thru.

Remove the “shoulds.”
If you didn’t have to worry about titles, expectations, or what people might think how would you spend your time?

Follow the yearning,
When you see a place, a food, or an experience that has you searching it over and over on tiktok, ask yourself what’s stopping you from doing it yourself instead of living through others? How do we put it on the bucket list?

Test small versions of the dream.
You don’t have to blow up your life overnight. Start small. Try things. Curiosity is a powerful compass.

Give your permission to want something different, and give yourself permission to put a plan in place to get there.

Meet Vanessa Smithers , a Toronto-based African Nova Scotian narrative consultant, legacy archivist, and speaker whose work sits at the intersection of story, identity, and legacy.

And truly, I am fangirling, hard. She has been one of my favorite creators on IG FOREVER.

Follow her there: lovevanessasmithers

Vanessa’s roots trace back to The Hill in Truro, Nova Scotia, a historic Black community that shaped the way she understands memory, language, and belonging. Long before she had the language for it, she fell in love with writing. What started as a way to survive eventually became a way to protect and name the truths people carry but don’t always know how to say out loud.

Over the years, people across communities, classrooms, and institutions have trusted Vanessa with their most unfinished stories. Her work spans community advocacy, education, and narrative consulting, but the thread running through all of it is simple: language can be a tool for clarity, dignity, and care.

Today she supports individuals, creatives, nonprofits, and institutions through keynote speaking, workshops, mentorship, legacy archiving, and narrative consulting. She helps people say what they mean, whether that’s through speeches, biographies, brand messaging, grant narratives, pitch decks, or the quiet work of shaping a story that actually feels true.

To date, Vanessa has supported more than 3,200 people internationally, working with grassroots builders as well as organizations like Apple, Spotify, Netflix, Salesforce, VaynerMedia, and the Government of Canada.

Earlier this year she self-published her debut book, oh, to be tender, a collection of reflections on feelings, experiences, and all the heart things. It sold more than 1,000 copies in its first two weeks, which feels very on brand for someone who believes that legacy isn’t just about money.

It’s about language. It’s about memory. It’s about the stories we leave behind in our own words.

Vanessa will also tell you she’s actually a big introvert which means every space she shows up in is intentional. She doesn’t sign up just to sign up. She shows up because the work matters.

If you want to support her work, you can grab a signed copy of her book here: https://www.vanessasmithers.com/offerings/p/signed-personalized-paperback-oh-to-be-tender-a-compilation-of-reflections-on-feelings-experiences-all-the-heart-things

Or check out The Legacy Draft, a beautiful offering helping people capture and protect their stories: https://www.vanessasmithers.com/offerings/p/thelegacydraft

I am also giving away a copy of her newsletter to someone who shares this newsletter.

Meet Eboni Lacey. She launched The Identity Of She in 2015 as a self-help blog for women. The blog tackled issues like diversity, body positivity, feminism, and equality, quickly gaining recognition for its unique voice.

Another big fan girl moment for me, The Identity of She was a pillar in my self love and body acceptance journey.

Follow her IG: TheIdentityOfShe

Eboni later expanded TIOS to include bold statement apparel, saying, “There’s power in a slogan on a t-shirt, it fuels my spirit and makes a statement about who we are and what we deserve.” Beyond The Identity Of She, Eboni also works as a Digital Marketing Strategist for a seven figure business.

Her vision is to grow TIOS into a global platform, empowering female-owned businesses and girl bosses worldwide.

Eboni just launched Fruits of Her Spirit, a monthly self-love experience designed to help you slow down, reconnect with yourself, and pour back into your own confidence.

Each month, subscribers receive two thoughtfully curated items meant to celebrate your worth and support your self-love journey. After your first delivery, you’ll also get a follow-up email to help personalize future boxes, making sure what you receive actually reflects you.

Subscribers also get access to a private Instagram community, where members can connect, share, and support each other along the way.

It’s a simple but intentional reminder that confidence and care for yourself aren’t luxuries — they’re practices.

Sign up for her subscription box here:

https://www.theidentityofshe.com/pages/fruitsofherspirit

Got a chance to get really real with Jarrett Thomas , stay tuned for what we're about to cook up.

So… we’re taking the crash out on tour, well virtual tour. I’m launching a Crash Out With Me Live series where each week I bring on a different guest and they get to pick the topic they want to crash out about.

That’s it. That’s the format. No corporate panels. No weird preset questions. No pretending everything is fine when it clearly is not.

Each guest chooses the topic that’s been sitting in their spirit, work, burnout, entrepreneurship, the internet, corporate nonsense, building something different, whatever it is that’s been making them go “okay… we need to talk about this.”

And then we talk about it.

Some weeks will be thoughtful. Some weeks will be spicy. Some weeks might get a little chaotic depending on who I invite. But the goal is simple: real conversations with interesting people who are willing to say the things most people are only thinking.

If you’ve ever read this newsletter and thought, “oh thank god someone else is saying it,” you’ll probably enjoy these.

Come crash out with us.

This week, I'll be crashing out with Alison Taylor. She’s a leadership architect, MBA faculty member, and someone who firmly believes that the breakdown is usually the blueprint.

Alison is also currently navigating life as an immigrant in Spain, JUST GOT MARRIED, lifting heavy weights, questioning the global wedding industrial complex, and figuring out why Amazon Spain still can’t compete with American Amazon.

So naturally… she has things to crash out about.

Topics may include:

• the American wedding industrial complex vs. European bureaucracy

• why women need to lift heavier weights (and why nobody warned her about anterior pelvic tilt)

• the chaos of watching American politics from abroad

• Amazon Spain vs. American Amazon

• hormones, luteal phase coffee, and removing an IUD that was apparently running the show • inflammation, gluten, and bodies doing weird things

• being a Black woman in an interracial relationship and why that still makes some people big mad

• why entrepreneurship is easier than ever to start, and still incredibly hard to scale without real support

• and possibly why fruit selection is terrible during the winter-to-spring transition

Basically: thoughtful insights, global perspective, and at least one extremely passionate tangent.

Come crash out with us.

RSVP HERE.

If you’re in the middle of a corporate existential crisis… welcome.

If you want help figuring out what comes next, that’s literally what I do.

Crash Out With Me Is for people who are ready to rethink their relationship with work and build something that actually fits their life

COME WORK WITH ME.

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