He was rattled by missing out on a Dunedin City Council seat in October’s election and broke his ankle the next month.
"It gave me a lot of time to reflect, work out what was next for me, what I wanted to do, what I really enjoyed doing, and I was trying to work my way through that," Mr Whiley said.
In the end, he landed on trying to get his old job back.
Mr Whiley is the latest candidate to announce he is standing in the council’s by-election.
"Dunedin faces significant financial and infrastructure challenges," he said.
"Rising rates, increasing debt, and pressure on core services mean we must be disciplined, transparent and focused on what matters most to ratepayers."
A by-election is required after the death of councillor Jules Radich last month.
Another leading contender announced his candidacy this week — former Dunedin mayor Aaron Hawkins.
Other candidates in the race are Bill Acklin, Jo Galer, Conrad Stedman, Lync Aronson, Richard Knights and Pamela Taylor.
Mr Whiley was a city councillor from 2013 until last year.
He had enjoyed those years, he said.
He came close to being re-elected in October, finishing 16th in the race for 14 councillor positions.
Mr Whiley felt his messaging "just got lost" in the last campaign.
"I probably didn’t tell the story about what I’d done at council and especially around some of the stands I’d taken," he said.
Mr Whiley reaffirmed his opposition to the planned Smooth Hill landfill.
Emerging waste technologies and modern resource recovery solutions provided more sustainable long-term options, he said.
"I work effectively with many of the councillors around the table.
"If re-elected back to council, I will again work hard, listen carefully and remain accountable to ratepayers."
He expected more candidates would join the field.
Nominations close on March 2 and voting opens on April 10.
The by-election date is May 12.
