Redundancy Wasn’t the End. It Was the Redirection I Didn’t Know I Needed

From boardroom breakdown to creative breakthrough. This moment captures the chaos, clarity, and quiet confidence behind launching Pronto Studio after redundancy.

A few months ago, I was called into a meeting with HR and the CMO.
My role had been made redundant.

Not because of poor performance.
Not because I dropped the ball.
But because a new manager had come in — and with that came a new direction, a fresh team, a reshuffle.

I knew it was coming. The signs were there.
Still, hearing it out loud made my heart pound in my ears.
And weirdly — I didn’t feel sad. I felt… relieved.

The truth? I was already burnt out.

I was proud of what I’d built. The brand refresh. The campaigns. The foundations we’d laid — not just creatively, but operationally. I’d built systems, processes, and templates from scratch. I’d filled gaps that weren’t mine to fill. I’d done the work of a team, because we were the team.

But it had stopped being sustainable.
We were all burnt out, trying to keep it together — and we stayed, because we genuinely liked each other.

The support we needed never came.
And maybe that was my turning point.

Redundancy felt like someone hit pause on the hamster wheel.

For the first time in a long time, I could stop running.
I could ask: What do I actually want?
Not someday. Not on the side.
But now.

Thank god for my side hustle.

Pronto Studio — my “after-hours” dream — was already quietly growing. And suddenly, I had space to give it my full attention.

What started as a 5-to-9 became my 9-to-5.

I went from in-house designer to creative director, running a studio that now partners with clients across Australia, the US, and beyond — from AI companies to pet food brands, healthcare to SaaS.

And I did it without needing permission.
Without waiting for the timing to be right.
Just with the willingness to back myself.

If you’re facing redundancy right now…

Here’s what I want you to know:
Redundancy isn’t a failure. It’s a redirection.

It forces you to step back — to jump off the wheel and look around. To re-evaluate. Reimagine.
And if you’re lucky (or brave), it gives you space to build something better.

As Founder of Mamamia, Mia Freedman once said: “Redundancy is the universe giving you a push… when you weren’t going to jump.”

I didn’t know it then, but this was one of the best things to happen to me.
It set me on the path I was always meant to take — one I was already quietly building at night.

So maybe this is your sign…

To start the side hustle.
To back your skills.
To rewrite what “career stability” really looks like.

If you're navigating a change, know this: what feels like an end might just be the start of your best chapter yet.