Who are you without your job?
Activity 1 : Watch the video
Activity 2: Complete the True or False below.
1. Arthur Brooks believes that political identity is the only kind that matters today.
2. Many professionals define themselves mainly through their work success.
3. The speaker says that fear of failure at work is similar to fear of death.
4. Only a small part of the population is afraid of dying.
5. The “Maranasati” meditation encourages people to focus on their achievements.
6. The exercise helps people accept their own mortality and let go of fear.
7. The nine-step meditation describes stages of a person’s professional decline.
8. Brooks suggests that fearing the end of your career is irrational and unhealthy.
9. The speaker believes peace comes from success that lasts forever.
10. Accepting change and creating “new good times” are part of a healthy life.
Activity 3: Match the vocabulary to the correct definition
1. Identity politics
2. Cardboard cutout version
3. Fear of failure
4. Mortality
5. Contemplate
6. Decomposition
7. Transcend
8. Trajectory
9. Submit
10. At peace
a) To rise above or go beyond normal limits
b) The state of being subject to death
c) Emotionally calm, not struggling internally
d) A fear connected to losing your sense of self-worth
e) The natural process of decay after death
f) To accept or yield to a situation you can’t control
g) A way of defining yourself through group labels or affiliations
h) The process of accepting the end of something
i) To think deeply about something
j) The path or direction something follows over time
Activity 4: Fill the blanks with the vocabulary from Activity 3
1. Many people experience an identity crisis when they realise how much their job defines them — it becomes their entire ______.
2. Brooks argues that fearing career failure can feel like a small version of fearing one’s own ______.
3. The Buddhist meditation invites practitioners to ______ on the stages of death and decay.
4. By facing death in this way, they can ______ fear and live more fully.
5. Professionals who lose their job may find it difficult to ______ to the new situation.
6. The video describes how identity based purely on work can become a ______ of the real person.
7. The nine-step meditation reflects the natural ______ of a career.
8. Accepting the end of success doesn’t mean failure — it’s a kind of healthy ______.
9. Understanding that life changes helps people feel more ______.
10. The speaker links extreme perfectionism to ______, not just ambition.
When English speakers talk about career, identity, and success, they often use figurative or idiomatic expressions — not just literal language. These expressions make speech sound more natural and emotionally authentic. Let’s explore a few from the video and from everyday English.
Tie your identity to something
To connect your sense of self too strongly to a role or activity
He’s tied his identity to his job so much that retirement feels terrifying.
Lose your edge
To become less sharp, effective, or competitive
I feel like I’ve lost my edge at work since the new manager arrived.
The party’s over
To say that a good period or success is ending
When the funding ran out, everyone realised the party was over.
At peace with something
To accept something emotionally and calmly
After years of chasing promotions, she’s finally at peace with where she is.
Get forced out
To be made to leave a job or position
He didn’t want to retire, but he got forced out in the end.
Move on
To accept change and continue with life
It took a while, but I’ve moved on from that stressful job.
To have a trajectory
To have a direction or path in your personal or professional growth
Your career has its own trajectory; it doesn’t need to be compared to others’.
Be comfortable in your own skin
To feel confident and content with who you are
She used to chase external validation, but now she’s comfortable in her own skin.
Chasing success
To constantly pursue achievement or recognition
He’s been chasing success for so long he’s forgotten what makes him happy.
Step back
To pause and gain perspective
Sometimes you need to step back and see what really matters.
Mini practice
Complete the sentences with one of the expressions above.
a. After leaving my job, it took months before I finally felt ____________.
b. Many people ____________ from corporate life after burnout.
c. When the company’s biggest client left, we all knew ____________.
d. She’s been ____________ for years but never feels satisfied.
e. Once you stop ____________ your job, you can actually enjoy what you do.
Reflection challenge: Rewrite one of your own sentences about work or identity using one of the expressions from the list. Try to make it sound like something you’d say in a real conversation.
Activity 5: Choose a debate question or a reflection question and write a short paragraph (share it below) or record a voice note.
Redefining Identity:
Why do so many people define themselves by what they do rather than who they are? What risks come with linking identity to career success?Fear of Failure:
Brooks compares fear of failure to fear of death. Do you agree with this comparison? How can that awareness change how we approach work?Letting Go:
The “death meditation” sounds extreme — yet it’s designed to create peace. How might facing uncomfortable truths actually free people?New Good Times:
Brooks says we must “engineer new good times under different circumstances.” How can this apply to life transitions such as retirement, career change, or moving countries?
Inner Stability:
What does it mean to be “at peace” in a world that constantly tells us to achieve more? How can we balance ambition with acceptance?
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Photo by Girl with red hat on Unsplash
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