Redefining Success After the Title Is Gone: Dr. Linda Schubring on Identity, Control & Healing

What happens when the mountain you finally climbed disappears beneath your feet? Dr. Linda Schubring faced that exact moment and learned that losing a job doesn't mean losing your purpose. Dr. Linda Schubring joins Jaime Taets for an honest conversation about leadership, identity, resilience, and what it really takes to heal. Linda shares her journey from aspiring college president to reaching a leadership role at 29, losing that position, rebuilding her identity, becoming a mother and business owner, and navigating a breast cancer diagnosis. Along the way, she discovered that our hardest experiences can become sources of wisdom, connection, and contribution. Together, Linda and Jaime explore why leaders need to manage their hunger for control and importance, how to separate identity from work, and what it really means to heal. If you're navigating transition, redefining success, or leading through uncertainty, this conversation will give you a different way to think about what's next. Timestamped Chapters 0:00 Introduction to Dr. Linda Schubring 2:18 Linda's leadership journey: the mountaintop 4:04 You can have more than one mountain 6:15 Three lessons from reaching the top 11:42 When success doesn't protect you from setbacks 14:11 Separating your identity from your work 17:00 Turning difficult experiences into contribution 21:59 Learning to heal through adversity 28:23 What Linda had to unlearn 29:24 Redefining success 31:24 Managing your hungers for control and importance 34:20 Managing your energy as a leader 38:40 Hope, resilience, and leadership 42:46 Linda's book and leadership influences 44:10 Reflect, act, reflect Guest Bio Dr. Linda Schubring is a leadership coach, author, speaker, and co-founder of Leadership Vision Consulting. She helps leaders, teams, and organizations become healthier, more engaged, and better equipped to navigate uncertainty and change. She is also the national bestselling author of Unfolded: Lessons in Transformation from an Origami Crane. Quotes from the Episode "You can lose your job, but that doesn't mean you lose your purpose." "Healing is different from moving on." "Reflect, act, reflect, act, reflect, act." Leadership Insights Q: What does it mean to manage your hunger as a leader? A: Managing your hunger means recognizing and regulating the internal drives that can influence how you lead. Drawing from the adaptive leadership work of Ron Heifetz and Marty Linsky, Dr. Linda Schubring explains that leaders need to manage their hunger for control and their hunger for importance rather than allowing those desires to control their behavior. When leaders don't manage what drives them, they can become rigid, defensive, or disconnected from the people they lead. Q: Why is separating identity from work important for leaders? A: Separating identity from work allows leaders to recognize that losing a role, title, or position does not mean losing their purpose or worth. Linda's experience of having her leadership position eliminated forced her to reconsider who she was beyond her career. That separation ultimately opened the door to new forms of leadership, family, business, and contribution. When you know who you are beyond your title, you lead with more freedom and less fear. Resources Connect with Dr. Linda Schubring on LinkedIn  Follow Leadership Vision on Instagram Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading — Ron Heifetz & Marty Linsky Unfolded: Lessons in Transformation from an Origami Crane — Dr. Linda Schubring Leadership Vision Consulting Learn more about Jaime Taets and Keystone Group International Explore Jaime's Executive Retreats Follow Jaime on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook If this conversation gave you a new perspective on leadership, identity, or navigating a difficult season, share it with another leader who may need to hear it. Subscribe to Go First with Jaime Taets for more conversations about leadership, growth, and taking that next step forward. Go First is the show where we talk about what it takes to move forward first, fast, and with purpose. Everything you want is on the other side of the next unknown step. Let's Go First together. Jaime Taets