I'm Audie Ignatius.

I'm Alison Beard, and this is the HBR IdeaCast.

So, Alison, I want to start today by talking about identity and specifically our identity at work.

So you and I, I think, are both people who feel very connected to our work.

Our self-identity is wrapped up in our jobs, in our titles.

We're editors, we're journalists. That's a big part of how we think about ourselves. A hundred percent. I think especially when you've studied and trained to do one

profession, you've been doing the job a long time, you become an expert and leader in your

organization and your field, and you're recognized for all of that.

It really becomes who you are. Okay, so take that idea, right, that feeling, that sense of

identity, and think about the rug being pulled out from under you. So maybe your company goes

out of business, maybe you get laid off, or somehow the journey you thought you were on has been derailed.

That sounds absolutely horrible, and I think it would be really hard to figure out how to recover.

So it is, and look, we talk about change, we talk about adaptability all the time.

It's sort of theoretical.

Today's guest is here to offer real,

concrete ideas based on research as to how to frame sudden change, how to adapt to it, and how to

really grow from it. So Maya Shankar is a cognitive scientist. She's host of the podcast, A Slight

Change of Plans, and author of the book, The Other Side of Change, Who We Become When Life Makes

Other Plans. Here's my conversation with Maya.

The starting point of your book is a personal setback, and people who know your podcast,

a slight change of plans, know that there

too you've tried to learn from, you've tried to share inspiration from, you know, bad breaks that

...