Graduate high school, go to college, get a job, work your way up within that company, and retire. That’s the typical career path we’ve all heard, right? Many of our parents may have followed a very similar career path. And, though they are very well meaning, may have encouraged us to follow that career path, too. They may have even cautioned us about changing careers too fast. A year or less at a company? Unthinkable!
If this sounds like you, you’re not alone! So many of us grew up thinking this was the “right” career path. Or, at the very least, we thought it was the career path that led to “success.”
But now, more than ever, that’s simply not the way the working world works. Millennials will, on average, will switch jobs every three years.
Why You Should Embrace the Squiggle
In The Squiggly Career: Ditch the Ladder, Discover Opportunity, Design Your Career, Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis have written the guide to make the most of our own squiggly careers.
The authors reiterate that moving frequently between roles (and even industries, locations, and careers!) is this new normal.
This can feel extra stressful, especially when we have the voices of our parents or even our peers telling us it’s “bad” for our careers.
But, if you know how to lean into your own squiggly career, then you can unlock more opportunities, freedom, and purpose than climbing up the corporate ladder, especially if it’s a ladder you don’t want to be on in the first place!
…We are living and working for longer, spending an average of 90,000 hours at work in our lifetime…it’s a useful reminder of just how important it is to design a career that delivers personal fulfillment, growth, and happiness.
The Squiggly Career: Ditch the Ladder, Discover Opportunity, Design Your Career
What The Squiggly Career Teaches You
The Squiggly Career will help you “find happiness in the modern world of work and take control of your career now and in the future.” It does this by helping you develop five skills:
- Define your “Super Strengths” and find ways to play to them.
- Pinpoint your values and build a career that honors them.
- Build your confidence by reducing the amount of “confidence gremlins” that are holding you back.
- Learn to create a network…”based on what you can give rather than gain.”
- Explore all the opportunities you may not even realize you have.
Throughout the book there are exercises and tools you can use to take action on building your wildly effective squiggly career.
Frankly, one of the biggest takeaways from the book may be that you’re not alone in having a squiggly career! Embrace it.
Your Turn
How are you building your own squiggly career? Share your path in the comments below!
Note: This post contains affiliate links.
Last Updated on March 21, 2024
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