Is a full circle a failure? Or can we redefine Reinvention?
- Amanda Trenfield
- Aug 24
- 4 min read
For many of us, the idea of reinvention carries an unspoken rule: once you move on, you never look back. The narrative goes that if you return to a career, a relationship or a lifestyle you once left behind, it must mean you failed to create something new. But life isn’t linear, and neither is reinvention. Sometimes the most powerful transformation happens when we come full circle.
I know this intimately, because it’s my story right now. After five years spent studying, writing, coaching and diving deep into Human Design, I’ve returned to financial services - the very industry I thought I had walked away from for good.
At first, I struggled. I worried people would see me as someone who gave up on reinvention. I feared that coming back meant my efforts to build something new - to write a book, to launch a business, to help women transform their lives hadn’t “worked.” But the truth is far more nuanced, and, once I had worked through enough reflection , I recognised - that perhaps - it's more beautiful.
The Myth of Forward-Only Reinvention
We live in a culture obsessed with progress. Growth is equated with constant upward movement, as if the only proof of evolution is visible change. Yet, as Brené Brown reminds us:
“Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we’ll ever do.”
Owning your story doesn’t mean cutting out entire chapters because you’ve moved on. It means integrating them, returning to them when life invites you back and seeing them with fresh perspective. Coming full circle doesn’t erase your growth; it illuminates it.
The Struggle with “Going Back”
I’ll be honest: when the opportunity to return to financial services arose, I wrestled with it. After years of pouring myself into transformation work, writing my memoir When a Soulmate Says No, and guiding women through reinvention coaching, I questioned whether stepping back into finance would undo everything.
But reinvention is not about erasing who we were. It’s about becoming more of who we are. When we return to something familiar, we bring with us all the resilience, self-awareness and perspective we’ve gained along the way. The world may look the same, but we are not the same.
As Mel Robbins so brilliantly says:
“You are one decision away from a completely different life.” — Mel Robbins
Returning to financial services wasn’t about retreating. It was a conscious decision - made by a different version of me than the one who left. A decision that will shape my future differently because of the growth I’ve already lived.
Full Circle as Integration, Not Failure
Every experience we’ve had, every risk we’ve taken, every lesson we’ve learned, comes with us when we return. The “me” that stepped back into finance isn’t the same one who left. I’m not driven by the same beliefs, nor do I carry the same limitations. I know the value of boundaries, the importance of self-worth and the strength in showing up authentically.
That’s the gift of reinvention: not just creating something new, but seeing the old with different eyes.
Choosing courage sometimes looks like moving forward into the unknown. Other times, it looks like choosing to return - with new boundaries, new awareness and the courage to face the whispers of “you’ve gone backwards.” It takes guts to say, I am different now, and because of that, this will be different too.
Reinvention Is a Spiral, Not a Straight Line
We often imagine reinvention as a straight path: a one-way journey from where we were to where we want to be. But in reality, it’s a spiral. We circle back, but we do so at a higher level of awareness.
Every return is layered with perspective. What once felt confining may now feel purposeful. What once felt impossible may now feel natural. That’s not regression - that’s growth in disguise. Mel Robbins puts it simply:
“The fastest way to change your life is to start by changing how you think, how you act, and how you feel every single day.” — Mel Robbins
And that’s the essence of full-circle reinvention. We don’t return unchanged. We bring with us the mindset shifts, the choices and the daily actions that reshaped us along the way.
What This Means for You
If you find yourself circling back - to a job, a city, a relationship - resist the temptation to label it failure. Ask yourself instead: Who am I now that I wasn’t before?
Your return is not about repeating the past. It’s about integrating it. It’s about allowing your growth to meet familiar ground and experiencing it in an entirely new way.
In my own life, returning to financial services doesn’t mean I’ve abandoned writing, coaching, or Human Design. It means I’m bringing all of those experiences with me. They’ve changed how I see the industry, how I lead, how I serve and how I align with purpose. This is reinvention - not despite the return, but because of it.
Five Reflective Questions for You
Where in your life are you circling back to something familiar - and what new wisdom are you bringing with you?
What fears are you holding about being “seen as a failure,” and how might you reframe them as signs of growth?
How has your sense of self-worth, boundaries or confidence changed since you last stood in this place?
What opportunities exist to integrate your past experiences into your present chapter?
If you trusted that life is a spiral and not a straight line, how would you view your own reinvention differently?
Final Thoughts
Reinvention isn’t always about forging ahead into uncharted territory. Sometimes, it’s about circling back but with courage, humility and wisdom. Full circle isn’t failure. It’s proof of evolution.
I look forward to helping you when you're ready to explore your own reinvention.
Amanda
