Do you know about the “Squiggly Career”?

If you feel demotivated about the career ladder, here is an exciting alternative

Thump..thump..stomp..stomp..trudging up the career ladder, stuck in one job, one role and one industry all your life is a thing of the past. A squiggly career is all about embracing change, exploring diverse interests, and being open to new opportunities.

Developing in different directions with freedom and flexibility, not being defined by you last job, or area of formal education and exploring your curiosity by upskilling is the core mantra of a squiggly career.

How can you embrace a “Squiggly Career” according to Helen Tupper, co-author of the №1 Sunday Times Bestseller, “The Squiggly Career: Ditch the Ladder, Discover Opportunity, Design Your Career”?

1. Think about Talents, NOT Titles

Titles are like pieces of a puzzle, and one has to try to fit into a predetermined picture. Talents, on the other hand, are the puzzle pieces you get to choose. You’re not assembling someone else’s picture; you’re crafting your own masterpiece. Squiggly careers are the grand canvas where you arrange your talents into a stunning mosaic of innovation.

Remember, talents don’t come with labels or user manuals. They’re like secret passages waiting to be discovered in the labyrinth of your potential. Squiggly careers invite you to explore these passages, even if they lead to uncharted territories.

While searching for a job or a specific career, don’t get attached to titles. Instead, do a skill and talent based search for organizations and roles that will allow you to leverage those skills.

2. The Accidental Meaning Hypothesis

People developed a tendency to believe that they derived their happiness from staying in one job, at one company, in one place for a long period of time to jump onto the career ladder. But, actually meaning came from other sources like the local community, neighborhood and other cliques around them.

But, nowadays, meaning is not tied to religious and local communities as much and hence, people have to put effort into finding meaning because career ladders are also not commonplace. So the pressure to find meaning from work has increased ever more. The Squiggly Career route is guided by curiosity and freedom, hence, giving you meaning through work.

3. Figuring out what you value

Look at the people you are naturally attracted to. What are their qualities and behaviors? How do they inspire you? What would you choose to do if you had no restrictions in the world? Which beliefs do you have an unwavering faith in?

Although these may sound cringy, all of these questions uncover what you value and prioritize in life.

If you can discover your values and find industries, domains, roles and organizations that align with them, you can grow and prosper in different directions, instead of being stuck in one place.

4. Super strengths are those that give you energy and not your talents necessarily.

A big misconception is that super strengths are skills or tasks that you are good at. Being good at something and truly enjoying it are two different things altogether. I might be good at coding but it might not be boosting me with energy. Whereas, I might find it very difficult to give presentations, however, it might be a source of thrill, engaging and challenging me.

Go back and recall all the moments when you felt a surge of energy and accomplishment to uncover your “super strengths” and build your career around these energy boosters.

5. Confidence gremlins

Imposter syndrome, overthinking and being self-critical can be a friction in exploring new and unchartered territories. Which monsters inside you and in your environment trap you into a career that is unfulfilling? The moment you feel confident about your potential to try diverse and unfamiliar roles, you set afoot on a “Squiggly Career” route.

6. Future possibilities, being proactively curious

The traditional career ladder holds little space for curiosity and randomness. It is a more reactive and fixated way to develop. Career curiosity is an imperative need in today’s day and age with new innovations every second. Diversifying your network, building passion projects and exploring counterintuitive careers that set you on a whole new journey, opens up a world of possibilities to grow!