Why does my work feel less real the higher I climb?

You rose by being good at the work, and the reward was being taken away from it. Now you steer the whole revenue engine from far above, and the craft you loved is a memory. That ache is common at the top and rarely spoken. You are not ungrateful; you are grieving something real. The work did not become less important as you climbed — it became less yours. That is the quiet trade of leadership. You trade doing for enabling, hands for judgment. It can feel like losing yourself, but the skill did not vanish. It moved into how you shape the people who now do the work you once did. Still, you need to touch the real thing sometimes or you will dry out. Keep one small piece of hands-on work for yourself. Build one campaign, write one thing, sit in on the actual making. Not because it is the best use of your time, but because it keeps you connected to why you started.