Have you ever caught yourself thinking: “It’s too late to (fill in the blank – start that business, change careers, relocate to where you’ve always wanted to live)” or “I should be ____ (at a certain career stage” or “earning $___ or retired) by now?”
This type of thinking reflects a linear approach to work and life that views our lives or careers unfolding in an orderly progression like those of our parents or grandparents.
A linear worldview is completely at odds with today’s fast paced globalized world where technological innovation and myriad social, cultural, and economic changes are impacting all professional and business sectors.
Thriving in this brave new world requires adopting a non-linear view of your life’s work which replaces the notion of an upward career trajectory with a winding path that might involve switching industries, combining a side hustle with a job, or reinventing yourself.
A non-linear path offers an opportunity to redefine success for yourself and design a work/life aligned with your purpose, passions, and priorities instead of running on a meaningless “success” treadmill.
Adopt a Non-Linear View of Your Work/Life
The first step in crafting this life of meaningful success for yourself is shifting to a non-linear perspective in the following ways:
- Release the outdated notion of the career path. In his book, The Search – Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World Bruce Feiler describes our brave new world in this way:
“The most important thing to appreciate about the world of work today is that it’s meaningfully different from any world of work that came before it. We’re all trying to survive in a business environment that’s more global, a family environment that’s more chaotic, and a stress environment that’s more round-the-clock. To think of work primarily in terms of a single employer, a single profession, even a single skill set is deeply misguided.”
Coming to terms with this non-linear world of work means not just releasing the idea of a career path but also the idea that you must work in a field related to your educational background or experience. New technologies are emerging almost daily that are creating jobs in fields that never previously existed while making many existing jobs obsolete.
- Focus on WHO you aspire to be. Who would you have to become to make your contribution to the world? This requires some inner self-discovery to clarify what matters to you and the work scenario you’d find most fulfilling and meaningful at this point in your life. It also requires stepping out of your comfort zone to show up in the role you’re seeking.
A good example is Diana, a comptroller at high tech company, who had a passion for writing and wanted to move into a more creative role. When I encouraged her to start showing up as a writer, she did some freelance writing projects and joined a writers’ meetup group. Through the group, she learned about a writers’ conference, where she met a recruiter which eventually led to a more fulfilling job, where she could use her writing skills.
- Be open to acquiring new skills and learning new technology. Instead of clinging to the way things used to be or should be in your profession or field, invest in acquiring the knowledge and skills to equip yourself to move into a new role or a fresh new career.
One of my clients, Mike, a program manager, had always enjoyed mentoring and coaching others. Although his current position didn’t afford him coaching opportunities, he volunteered to become certified in sales enablement and started showing up in his workplace as a mentor and coach, which led to more workplace coaching opportunities. His next step will be to become certified as a coach so he can launch his own coaching business.
Why Not You?
Each of these people had the courage to jump off the expected career path, take the road less traveled and show up in the world as who they wanted to be. Instead of saying “not me” they asked, “Why not me?”
Instead of staying trapped by the stale expectations of their parents, their peers, or the culture, they listened to that inner voice calling them to step into a new way of being.
Instead of discarding a dream as impossible, they asked “What’s possible now?”
Could it be your turn to ask, “What’s possible now?’
