I recently finished reading the book The Quarter-life Breakthrough by Adam Smiley Poswolsky. In his book, Smiley discusses the feeling of being stuck in your 20s or early 30s. You’ve recently finished college and are trying to climb the corporate ladder but it just doesn’t feel right. It may be time to jump into a new career.
You could have a great job, or a boring job, but now that you’re in, society has always told you to stick to it and work your way up!
But there could be another way. You may just need to change your career mindset.
Climbing the Corporate Ladder
Most of us have been taught that the best way to build a successful life is to graduate college, get a good job, and climb that corporate ladder!
Climbing the corporate ladder usually means taking on more responsibility and getting a higher title in the same company, or maybe a different company within the same industry.
Essentially, once you begin your career, you are stuck with it. So choose wisely when you’re 18 and trying to decide what to do with the rest of your life!
Or is there another way?
Jumping to the Next Lily Pad… a New Career
In his book, Smiley remembers the way his friend once put it: instead of thinking of your career as a ladder you need to climb, picture a pond full of lily pads that you can jump between. Each lily pad is a new opportunity.
Maybe your degree was in finance. After working in a major bank for a few years writing loans, you notice that there is a real need in the community for start-up financial assistance.
You could feel that your skills would be better used for teaching start-ups how to finance their projects and want to work with a non-profit.
A short while later, you might realize that start-ups are actually a passion of yours and decide you want to make a documentary about small businesses.
As your talent and skills grow, your goals and ambitions can change.
Don’t feel forced to stay in a career just because that’s what you know. Take the things you know and use them in other areas or go out and learn new things.
Like a pond full of lily pads, your future career options don’t have to be connected, they just have to be what you want at this time in your life.
Make Your New Career Work For You
As your goals and ambitions change throughout your life, be open to the possibilities.
Maybe you have a degree in marketing and have worked as a marketing director for the last 10 years, but now you no longer feel that drive.
Those late-night dinners or owner’s box tickets to the local sports team with clients used to be seen as an awesome perk in your early 20s! But now, they are just a hassle, eating up precious time you could be spending with your family.
Or it could be you’ve always dreamed of owning your own restaurant, but being stuck in the kitchen every day now has you dreaming of a quiet desk job.
Life changes and you should feel that it’s okay to change your career as well too.
Find Meaningful Work that Aligns with Your Gifts
Many people are really good at their job, but just don’t enjoy it. They have no passion for what they do every day. Others might have a passion for a certain industry but just don’t have the skills to succeed.
If you fall into either of the categories, it might be time to look around and discover what you really want.
In his book, Smiley tells how he had what should have been his ideal job. He was working for the Peace Corps, making the world a better place. Smiley wanted to be out in the world, interacting with those he was trying to help. But he was stuck in an office, processing paperwork. It was a good company but not the right position for him. He discovered he wanted something that would allow him to make an immediate impact and see the results firsthand. He was in the right industry but simply needed to change positions.
A popular podcaster, Doc G. from the Earn and Invest Podcast also discusses how he learned he was in the right industry but the wrong position. He practiced medicine and loves helping people. But all the demands of running a practice were too much for him and didn’t enjoy it. He discovered he prefers hospice care and made the switch. He is financially independent now but enjoys the work so much, that he continues to do it part-time.
Where do You Belong?
It could be you’re in the wrong position in the right company or the right position in the wrong company. Or you could be in the completely wrong industry altogether!
Step back and figure out:
- Your strengths
- What you’re passionate about
- How you can turn those into a profession that could support your lifestyle
- Training or connections you may need to be successful
Where do you want to be and how can you get there?
Try Out a New Career First
Smiley speaks of a friend who once worked for a large computer company. This friend had worked there for 10 years. It was a great job with great benefits, but she just wasn’t feeling connected to her work anymore.
She wanted to use her programming skills to do something to help the environment. Eventually, she found a non-profit looking for someone with her exact skills. She thought it would be a perfect fit, but it was across the country and working in an industry she had never been exposed to.
She didn’t want to up and leave her awesome job for a potential dream job unless she actually knew it would be her dream job. So, she found out that her current job would allow her a 6-week leave of absence. She then contacted the potential company and asked to volunteer in their offices to get to know the company and the people. As well as see if she liked being on the east coast.
In the end, she loved the new company and the people. She got the new job and left her computer company job. Some people thought she was crazy to take a pay cut and move across the country, but for her, it just felt right. And by leaving on good terms with her old company, she knew she could return if she ever needed to.
If you have the opportunity to try out something new that could change your life for the better, take it!
Just make sure you don’t burn any bridges so that you can always go back if you need to.
Go All In, Or Not
At the end of his book, Smiley introduces the reader to multiple people who made the jump to do what they are passionate about.
All In
One young professional decided enough was enough. He quit his job and moved to the city he wanted to live in and hoped for the best. After working hard and making connections in his new community, he finally found the job he’d been looking for.
This young man cut all ties and forced himself to make the leap with no safety net to follow his heart.
While this may work for some people, others prefer to have safety nets in place when making a big life change. Even a well-funded Emergency Fund can help.
Too Far
Another took her passion for blogging and went full-time. She quit her boring job when her blog started making enough income to cover her living expenses. But after a year, she was burnt out. (Hustle or Hassle)
Everything she did in her life suddenly required her to sponsor something or promote something else in order to stay profitable. A simple weekend half marathon became a “live event” sponsored by athletic brands or beverage companies.
What was once her passion became a burden. So she cut back on monetizing her blog and got a new job in social media PR with all the skills she had learned over the last year from promoting her blog.
She was able to continue writing her blog on the side, had a separation of work and home life, and was making a good income doing something she loved!
Find Balance with a New Career
Smiley tells the story of a teacher who began her own jewelry business. She enjoyed making jewelry and learned how to promote it and wholesale to sell it in stores. At the rate the jewelry business was growing, she could quit her job teaching and do jewelry full time. But she didn’t want to completely leave teaching, and the benefits were too good to leave behind.
So she found a balance. She went to teaching part-time. It allowed her to continue teaching children and paid for her medical benefits while also enjoying the success of her jewelry business.
If she decides that she wanted to go full-time with either venture in the future she could. At this point in her life, she is able to enjoy both of her passions while living her life.
Discover Your Breakthrough – Wrap-Up
If you’re feeling stuck in your job and want to change it up, look around you and figure out what you really want.
Take the skills and experience you have learned from your current and/or past jobs and figure out where you could use them better.
If your passions don’t align with any of the past experiences you have, go figure out how to get that experience. Go back to school or teach yourself a new skill through reading, YouTube, or online courses.
Figure out what you enjoy and make it a part of your life. Whether it’s your full-time job or an after-work activity.
Don’t feel stuck in the industry you chose at 18. Choose whether climbing the corporate ladder is right for you or if you want to leap to your next lily pad. (Check out my post on 10 Ways to Increase Your Income)
What do you think? Is the corporate ladder dead? Have you ever done a 180 on your career to find something you were more passionate about?
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