Carmen Van Kerckhove writes for those standing at a personal and professional crossroads—the high achievers quietly questioning the lives they spent years, even decades, building.

Her work sits at the intersection of career reinvention, identity, ambition, and emotional reckoning in an era defined by AI disruption and collapsing workplace narratives. While most writing about the future of work focuses on trends and tech, Carmen writes about what’s harder to name: how it feels to change.

With a rare blend of sharp cultural analysis and raw personal insight, her essays speak to the emotional cost of professional ambition—and the courage it takes to let go of outdated scripts in order to build something more honest, human, and sustainable.

Her Substack, read by thousands of professionals in transition, offers permission, language, and clarity for people who are no longer impressed by performative success—and are ready to define it for themselves.

Below is a selection of essays that have resonated most deeply with her readers.

You are not your job. And soon, you won't have one.
The identity collapse hiding inside the job market crisis

Stop pretending you don’t care
What happens when you stop playing it cool and start owning your ambition out loud

Your job used to impress people. That era just ended.
You've built your life on a version of work that no longer exists—and everything you thought you knew about success is about to flip.

Forget grit. It's time you learned how to quit.
The hidden cost of pushing through what no longer fits

This isn’t about AI. It’s about how disposable you’ve always been.
Why companies replace you whether the technology works or not

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Carmen is available for select editorial assignments, including op-eds, essays, and contributed features on career reinvention, workplace culture, and the future of work. Email us about your editorial needs.