When a Layoff Forces You to Rethink Success
In November of 2025, I was laid off from Yelp after 11 years with the company.
It was my 11-year anniversary.
Like many people who experience an unexpected career change, my first reaction was fear. I had built my professional identity around my role as Yelp’s Small Business Expert and the host of the podcast Behind the Review, which I had been running for more than five years.
Suddenly that chapter was over.
But what I didn’t realize at the time was that the layoff would become the catalyst for something I had quietly wanted to do for years: build something of my own.
That decision eventually became my new show, Success, Rewritten.
Why I Wanted to Own My Own Content
For more than a decade, I created content for Yelp and Entrepreneur Media.
I interviewed hundreds of small business owners, told incredible stories, and helped highlight entrepreneurs across the country. But at the end of the day, none of that work belonged to me. It belonged to the companies I worked for.
And that’s completely normal in corporate media roles. But when the layoff happened, it forced me to ask a question I hadn’t fully confronted before: What would it look like to build something that was truly mine?
Not just content that represented a company — but conversations that represented what I personally care about.
That question became the foundation for Success, Rewritten.
The Mental Health Perspective That Changed Everything
My career story can’t be separated from my mental health journey.
In 2018, I experienced a manic episode and was hospitalized. During treatment I received a bipolar disorder diagnosis, and my life changed almost overnight.
My treatment team helped me understand that maintaining stability would require real lifestyle changes:
• 2+ more hours of sleep daily
• stronger boundaries with work
• a consistent daily routine
• being intentional about stress and travel
At the time, I worried those changes would make it impossible for me to succeed in my career.
But something surprising happened! When I returned to work and implemented those boundaries, I was still successful. I was promoted. I continued to grow in my role. And I learned that prioritizing my health didn’t make me less capable — it made me more sustainable.
That experience reshaped how I think about work, ambition, and success. And it ultimately shaped the concept for my new show.
The Idea Behind Success, Rewritten
Over the past decade working with entrepreneurs, I’ve noticed a common pattern. Most people’s lives don’t follow the path they originally planned.
There are moments that disrupt everything:
• layoffs
• health diagnoses
• loss or grief
• becoming a parent
• burnout
• unexpected opportunities
Sometimes those moments are incredibly painful. Sometimes they feel like failures. But when people reflect on them years later, those same moments often become the turning points that changed their lives for the better.
That’s what Success, Rewritten explores.
The show is built around conversations with people who have experienced those kinds of life inflection points and had to redefine what success means.
Not just professionally … but personally.
Why This Show Matters to Me
Launching a show on my own is exciting, but it’s also a little scary.
Unlike my previous role, I don’t have a corporate structure behind me anymore. I’m figuring out funding, partnerships, and the future of the show as I go.
And I’m still navigating my own mental health along the way.
That uncertainty is part of the story. But it’s also the reason I believe this show matters.
Because real life (for all of us) is messy, unpredictable, and constantly evolving. And success isn’t always something we achieve according to plan. Sometimes it’s something we rewrite after life changes the script.
The First Episode Launches March 17
The first episode of Success, Rewritten launches March 17, 2026.
It tells the full story of how this show came to life and what I hope these conversations will become.
If you’ve ever experienced a moment that forced you to rethink your path — professionally or personally — I hope these conversations resonate with you. And if you know someone navigating a big life transition, I hope you’ll share the show with them.
Because none of us are the only ones going through it. We’re just often the only ones talking about it.
