Never Take Directions From Someone Who’s Never Driven the Car: Networking in the Fog 🚗

If you’re in career transition right now—especially after redundancy—this might feel like a strange time to be alive.

We’re living in a digital-first era.

Everyone has a polished story.

• Confident storytellers

• Certified experts

• Builders, pivoters, thought leaders

Everyone seems to be launching something. Rebranding something. Or “figuring it all out” in public.

And when you’re the one in the fog, it can feel suffocating.

You look around and think:

Everyone else got a map. Why am I just trying to breathe?

Fog isn’t failure (it’s the space before reinvention)

Let me say this clearly:

You are not behind. You are in a different phase.

A phase where clarity is still forming. That phase deserves respect—not shame.

Fog isn’t failure.

It’s the space before reinvention.

The pressure to perform in 2026 is real

This isn’t “just mindset”. There are real market forces creating real emotional weight.

Across industries, many organisations entered 2026 in efficiency mode, not growth mode.

• Hiring freezes and quiet restructures

• Fewer roles and more competition

• Tighter targets and stricter policies

• Less room to coast

And at the same time, AI is accelerating fast.

Tools are improving. Headcount is shrinking. Many professionals feel they must constantly prove they’re “still relevant”.

So the comparison game starts quietly.

Suddenly, everyone looks ahead of you—while you’re asking a very human question:

“What now?”

What this feels like on the ground

I hear this every week from smart, capable people:

• Pressure to up-skill endlessly

• Leaders feeling they must be louder to stay visible

• Many sitting between burnout and invisibility

This isn’t only a market shift.

It’s an emotional shift.

And it’s real.

In a world where words are cheap, connection is priceless

When everyone sounds perfect online and AI can write faster, cleaner, and more confidently than most human does. It's easy to feel like authenticity doesn’t stand a chance.

But after 16 years in HR across talent acquisition, employer branding, and inclusion work, one truth remains steady:

Real connection never goes out of style.

Not performative confidence.

Not polished scripts.

Not pretending you’re “fine”.

Real connection.

The power of networking (still and become more important)

Not the name-dropping kind.

Not the spray-and-pray kind.

And definitely not the “pretend everything’s okay” kind.

Networking isn’t about who you know.

It’s about how you connect.

It’s about letting people see your value—without performing, perfecting, or hiding.

And when you’re in a foggy season, networking matters even more because it does two things at once:

1. It opens doors.

2. It reminds you who you are.

A simple reframe: ask for direction from people who’ve driven the car

When you’re unsure, you’ll hear a lot of loud advice.

But not all advice is equal.

Never take directions from someone who’s never driven the car.

Look for people who’ve actually:

• hired for the roles you want

• made the transition you’re navigating

• rebuilt after burnout

• led teams through change

Then ask them one good question.

Not to “get a job”.

To get clarity.

Want practical words you can borrow?

That’s why I created my free resources 📌 5 Proven Networking Email Templates for Career Transitions for people navigating transition (senior leaders, mid-career changers, recent graduates), especially those who are simply exhausted from trying to sound like someone they’re not.

It starts with something simple:

You can borrow my words until you find your own.

In Blog 2, I’ll share what the scripts help with and how to use them without sounding awkward, needy, or overly formal.

If you can't wait do download the 📌 5 Proven Networking Email Templates for Career Transitions  now!