In a recent LinkedIn post, Ehsan Ali explores the profound psychological impact of career setbacks, arguing that the most significant challenge is not the loss of employment itself, but the erosion of one’s professional self-image.
Ali, addressing senior professionals in the IT sector, highlights how individuals with extensive experience—including Senior Managers, Principal Engineers, Solution Architects, and Directors—can be deeply affected by unforeseen career disruptions. These setbacks can stem from various issues such as toxic work environments, layoffs, organizational restructures, prolonged periods of being overlooked, or performance improvement plans.
“The hardest part of a career setback isn’t losing the job. It’s losing the version of yourself you believed in.”
According to Ehsan Ali, these experiences can lead seasoned professionals to question their own competence, leading to a state of panic. This often prompts a flurry of activity, such as pursuing additional certifications, an MBA, AI courses, or immediately signaling availability for new roles.
The Illusion of Progress Through Activity
Ehsan Ali cautions that this reactive approach, while feeling like progress, is often misguided. He contends that the core issue for many senior professionals isn’t a lack of effort or skills, but a fundamental difficulty in articulating the value derived from their extensive experience in a way that resonates with the current market.
“It feels like progress. It isn’t,” Ali states in his post, emphasizing that true advancement requires a shift in how one presents their value proposition.
Ali elaborates on this point, noting that when asked to describe themselves, many experienced individuals resort to simply recounting their career timeline. This approach, he argues, fails to capture the substantial value they have accumulated over years of dedicated work.
“And 20 years of real value stays buried.”
This inability to effectively communicate their worth can lead to prolonged periods of unemployment, even for highly capable individuals. Ali shares that he has observed capable professionals remaining jobless for 12 to 18 months, not due to a deficiency in their skills or experience, but because they were attempting to address a ‘positioning problem’ with ‘more activity’.
Finding and Articulating ‘Hidden Gold’
Ehsan Ali’s recent LinkedIn activity has focused on guiding these senior IT professionals through this challenge. He has been conducting live sessions demonstrating how to identify and showcase the ‘hidden gold’ within their professional histories, using real LinkedIn profiles as examples.
Ali’s proposed solution centers on learning to extract and translate the tangible achievements and unique value propositions from years of experience into a compelling narrative that the market actively seeks. This involves moving beyond a chronological recitation of roles and responsibilities.
“Because the real problem isn’t more activity. It’s that most senior professionals never learned how to find the gold in their own experience and explain it in a way the market understands.”
He offers practical guidance, as evidenced by his live demonstrations, aimed at empowering these individuals to reframe their career narratives. By doing so, they can better connect with potential employers and opportunities, effectively unearthing the value that has remained ‘buried’. Ali’s insights underscore the critical importance of self-awareness and strategic communication in navigating career transitions, especially for those with a wealth of experience.
📝 About This Content
This article is based on insights shared by Ehsan Ali on LinkedIn.
📅 Originally posted on March 10, 2026 | View original post on LinkedIn →