Veteran journalist and former TV news anchor Jeannette Reyes is sharing powerful reflections on identity, change, and the freedom to grow, months after stepping away from a successful 13-year career in broadcast journalism to become a full-time content creator.
In a candid Instagram post, Reyes, once a familiar face in major U.S. newsrooms, wrote:
“You don’t owe the old version of yourself a lifetime subscription.”
That statement, which she often tells others, took on new weight when she said it to herself. For Reyes, the decision to leave the anchor desk wasn’t about burnout. It was about evolution.
“I loved that job,” she explained. “But I also knew it was time to evolve.”
In a video accompanying the post, Reyes delves into the emotional complexities of career transitions, especially when one’s identity has long been linked to a title or public role. Despite having the support, savings, and flexibility to make the pivot—what she calls being a “Privilege Pivoter”—she still faced fear, self-doubt, and cultural expectations about loyalty to past versions of oneself.
“So many of us feel like pivoting means betraying who we were, or the people who supported us,” she said. “But here’s the truth: you’re allowed to grow. You’re allowed to want different.”
Reyes, who is now building a new career around storytelling, lifestyle content, and coaching, offers guidance for others contemplating a shift through her upcoming platform, The Pivot Playbook. In it, she introduces four types of “pivoters” and speaks directly to those whose transitions are driven by alignment rather than survival.
“People are really shocked to find out that overall I loved my job,” Reyes said in her video. “You don’t have to hate your job or be forced out to want to pivot. It is enough to simply want to try something new.”
Her message is already resonating widely online, particularly among professionals reassessing their paths in a post-pandemic world. She encourages anyone feeling the pull toward something new to stop waiting for a dramatic reason to change.
“You can simply want something new,” she wrote. “Give yourself permission to evolve.”
For a generation redefining success on its own terms, Jeannette Reyes is offering something rare and reassuring: clarity, confidence, and permission to change—just because you want to.
