But are you happy?

No podcast episode this week, so I’m using the space to reset, reflect, and get practical.

So, are you happy?

I ask this question a lot in coaching, and almost never as a fluffy “good vibes” check-in.

I ask it because your happiness matters. A lot. And it's also data that feeds into our career planning.

Not “happy all the time.” Not “passionate about every task.”

More like: Is your work giving you enough of the right ingredients, often enough, to feel steady, proud, and in control of your life?

Recent research keeps landing on the same tension (and I see it all the time in my coaching practice): people can look successful on paper and still feel flat, stuck, or quietly unhappy. Workplace engagement is low in many places, managers are feeling it acutely, and the “I should be grateful” narrative is doing a lot of damage.

So this week, I want you to hold two sentences side by side:

• But are you happy?
• Nostalgia is not a strategy.

That second line showed up in a very big, global context recently, but it applies painfully well to careers.

The career trap I’m seeing right now

When work feels uncertain, many experienced professionals do one of two things:

1. They chase “back to normal.”
   Back to the title they had. The industry they know. The salary band that once made sense. The version of them that was thriving in 2018.

2. They delay decisions by staying busy.
   More applications. More networking coffees. More short courses. More tweaking.

Both can look productive. Neither guarantees progress.

Nostalgia can be meaningful, even helpful. Psychologists describe it as something that can restore a sense of meaning and connection. But nostalgia becomes a problem when it turns into career decision-making.

Because the market does not hire your past. It hires your next.

A simple framework for this week: The Happiness Audit

If you’re employed and unhappy, or job searching and exhausted, try this as a 20-minute reset.

1) Name what “happy” actually means for you

Pick your top three, not ten.

• Autonomy

• Respect

• Learning

• Flexible time

• Money

• Stability

• Purpose

• Interesting problems

• Better leadership

• Better team culture

In Australia, SEEK’s workplace happiness research flags common pain points like stress, career progression, senior leadership, and pay, while things like team, balance, and day-to-day work tend to score better. That’s useful because it helps you diagnose what’s actually broken.

2) Identify what’s missing right now

Write two lists:

• More of this:
• Less of this:

Be blunt. This is for your eyes only.

3) Decide what you will change in the next 30 days

Not your whole life. Not your whole career story. Just 30 days.

Examples I’m using with clients:

• Rebuild role clarity with your manager, in writing

• Reduce the role scope you’ve silently absorbed

• Change how you’re positioning yourself on LinkedIn so you stop looking like a “safe pair of hands” and start looking like a solution to a problem

• Shift from “open to work” to a targeted market strategy

• Apply to fewer roles, with stronger alignment and better storytelling

“If you’re not showing up on LinkedIn, you’re invisible.”

This is still one of the most frustrating truths for experienced professionals.

If you’ve disappeared because you’re tired, I get it. I also think it’s fixable without turning LinkedIn into a second job.

A lightweight plan I recommend on weeks like this:

• 1 post that states a point of view (not an update)

• 2 comments on posts where your target audience hangs out

• 1 DM to a warm contact with a specific ask

Visibility beats intensity.

Want to do LinkedIn with me on a weekly basis? Join my RB Lndkn Club. It's a monthly membership, and the group is awesome and supportive; we have weekly tasks and meetings together. So much more fun than you trying to guess what to do to raise your profile. Click here to join now.

3 prompts to journal on this week

If you do nothing else, answer these:

1. Where am I outsourcing my career decisions to my past self?

2. What am I pretending is temporary that is clearly structural? (in my company, my industry, or my energy)

3. What would I build next if I stopped trying to recreate what I had?

What I’m reading and thinking about

• Workplace engagement and well-being trends remain a real concern, with clear signals that manager workload and poor support are dragging teams down.

• Job satisfaction data continues to show gaps across age groups and working conditions. I don’t use this to stereotype generations. I use it as a reminder that career design needs to be intentional at every stage.

• The research on nostalgia is nuanced: it can support meaning, but it’s not a plan.

If you want to get more done, faster

If you’re done circling the same decisions and you want a solid plan ahead, I can help.

When you work with me, we get clear on:

• what you’re aiming for (and what you’re no longer available for)

• how you’ll position it (resume, LinkedIn, networking)

• what your week-by-week plan looks like, so momentum stops relying on motivation

Go to this link on my website, and choose a service or course that is right for you. Or you can reply to this email, and I’ll point you to the best next step based on where you are right now.

Time out:

• I've been playing Scrabble with family and friends on the New York Times CrossPlay app. So much fun and a great way to do something with a loved one who is far away and loves a game.    

• Music I listen to all the time, and haven't shared with you yet: I'm Not In Love (10cc -  oh the voices! it's divine), Vingance Colorida (Samuel de Saboia - It's a Brazilian Dune-Hanz-Zimmer-like sound, but also very tropical. I love it), and Don't Speak (Loaded Honey - It's a song from 2025, but feels like an 80s hit. Very nostalgic).

I'll see you next week with a new podcast episode and newsletter

Sending you my very best wishes

RB