How to Navigate Non-Linear Career Progression

Your career path doesn't always have to be linear. I took a step "backwards" for a 37% salary increase. Sometimes you make lateral moves or seemingly "backwards" moves in order to grow in the direction you want. It's okay if you don't get that lead or director title you want as long as you're moving in a direction where you'll be happy and set yourself up for the future. Here's my career path: Predictive Analytics Intern Data Analytics Intern Data Analyst Senior Analyst Data Analytics Manager Senior Risk Analyst Senior Data Analyst To many, it may look like moving "back" from a manager position was a step back for my career. But for me, it was a big step forward in my personal growth (and salary!). As a manager of a small team at a startup, I realized I wasn't ready to jump to another manager position and give up all of my technical work to be in meetings all day. I chose to go back to an IC role (individual contributor)-- but it was really a huge step forward for me to grow my technical skills and learn new skills at another company. Plus, I got a 37% salary increase without having to manager anyone. Many people believe that you have to climb the management ladder for higher salaries, but becoming a technical expert is extremely valuable as well. IC is where I'm happy now-- who knows where I'll go later on in my career? There may be more lateral and seemingly "backwards" moves in my future. As long as I'm growing my skills and salary, that's what really matters to me! Have you ever taken a lateral or "backwards" move to spring yourself forward?

If someone read my résumé out of context today, I imagine the reaction would be something like: “Wait… what is going on here?” Marketing, sales, recruiting, ops, consulting, branding, leadership coaching. Big firms. Startups. My own company. It’s giving… “𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦.” But if you actually 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘳, you’d see the through line. I’ve always worked at the intersection of people, operations, sales, and marketing. I build what’s missing. I fix what’s broken. I connect the dots that others don’t even see. And I do it all with a deep understanding of how business works and how humans thrive. That’s not confusion. That’s range. And if you’ve got a non-linear path like mine, here’s what I want you to know: You are not harder to hire. You are just harder to categorize. There’s a difference. So what do you do when your résumé doesn’t follow a “traditional” arc? A few tips: 1. Lead with your narrative, not your job titles. Tie it together 𝘧𝘰𝘳 them. Don’t assume they’ll connect the dots. 2. Highlight themes, not just industries. Perhaps you’ve worked across various sectors, but have always focused on strategy, communication, or systems. Call that out. 3. Create a personal brand headline. Something like: “𝘉𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩-𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵, 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦-𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘰𝘱𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨.” Boom. Clarity. 4. Don’t hide the pivots, own them. Every shift is a choice. Talk about 𝘸𝘩𝘺 you made it and what it taught you. 5. And yes… this might actually be the one time you write a cover letter. (I know. I’m sorry. But it helps.) A non-linear path doesn’t mean you lack direction. It means you’ve been collecting skills, building context, and figuring out what matters to 𝘺𝘰𝘶. The right company won’t be scared off by that. They’ll be smart enough to see it for what it is: 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘵. So carry your chaos proudly. That’s where the magic usually lives. #dobetterpeople

Over the last few days, I have had conversations with folks who are questioning their career paths. Or, put differently, they are wondering what to do with what they have. An example. A lawyer also likes to do podcasts, loves fashion, and is now thinking of making a segue into entertainment. Another, a medical doctor, possesses a PhD as well, has been involved in consulting, and is considering building a startup. All true life stories. If you’re focused on climbing a career or corporate ladder, it would be hard to figure out what to do with all that. Thus, having a career that is defined 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒍𝒚 by what we learned in school can be limiting. A few weeks ago, I wrote about cultivating a career portfolio, and these scenarios show how we unconsciously get to a point where we develop one. A career portfolio is a collection of your professional experiences, skills, and accomplishments that go beyond the traditional resume. It represents your diverse and evolving journey in the world of work, encompassing various roles, skills, and experiences that you've gained throughout your life. Like how an investor invests across different asset classes or companies in his portfolio. Here's how to understand and build a career portfolio: - A career portfolio is different from a traditional career path, which often follows a singular trajectory. It's more like an ongoing journey of self-discovery and fulfillment. - It encompasses a wide range of experiences, from traditional jobs to volunteer work, community service, side hustles, passion projects, hobbies, and other activities where you've created value and served others. - It may include personal experiences, skills, or aspects of your identity that don't typically appear on a resume but are essential to your professional identity and work.   The benefits of a career portfolio are that it’s a lifelong asset that you build and maintain, and it can't be taken away from you. Your diverse set of skills allows you to navigate ambiguity and make creative connections between different experiences.   You can combine skills from various experiences to tackle new challenges, diversify income sources, and serve in different ways.   Make connections between the different components of your portfolio.   Develop a portfolio narrative that explains how your combination of skills makes you valuable to employers and how these skills enhance each other. Your portfolio becomes a powerful tool for telling your unique story to potential employers or collaborators, helping you secure the roles you want. It's great to have a career path and climb the ladder. But don't neglect building a career portfolio.

My career path has been anything but linear. I started as a journalist, but soon found myself managing a magazine and leading a team as managing editor. Then, I built a content marketing department from the ground up. When new opportunities appeared outside my department, I seized them. Now, I’m in Operations, driving growth through marketing, sales, people, and processes. Careers don’t have to follow a straight line. If you want to grow, you can't just excel at one thing. Jason Feifer, editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine, put it perfectly: "In front of you right now, there are two sets of opportunities: Opportunity Set A is all the things being asked of you at your job. It’s the stuff you’re being measured by. Opportunity Set B is all the stuff available to you, but nobody’s asking you to do. Opportunity Set B is always more important. If you only focus on what’s asked of you, you’ll only be qualified to do the thing you’re already doing. But when you learn new things, pursue new opportunities, and constantly seek out change, you will set yourself up for an unpredictable but extraordinary journey." As you navigate your career, don’t forget to look for Opportunity Set B. Embrace the winding journey, take chances, and let it lead you to extraordinary places.

Over the past couple of months, I've thoroughly enjoyed connecting and speaking with people here on LinkedIn to learn more about what challenges they face in their careers. Many of those I’ve spoken with wish they were further along professionally and are looking for guidance on how to course-correct. The truth is, I was in that same place of career dissatisfaction not too long ago… In the first four years of my sales career, I was on fire. I didn't just meet my sales quota; I obliterated it, surpassing expectations by a staggering +125% every year. I was a consistent top performer–in the top 5% of sellers in the company–obtaining the highest awards one could achieve. I could have easily leveraged that strong track record into a much higher paying sales role at a top-tier company, but what did I do? I went horizontal, moving laterally into various other roles for the next 4 years—taking the easy next job. In essence, I wasted the momentum I had built… We’re all guilty of it, and it’s human nature to take the path of least resistance. It's like watching a car with a full tank of gas (or electric charge these days) choosing to cruise in the slow lane. Why? Because it's easy. Now there’s nothing wrong with lateral moves. Careers are naturally not straight ladders that we climb. And we can always learn valuable lessons in every role we take on. But with hindsight being 20/20, I know now with absolute clarity how much I could have accelerated between year 4 and 8 of my career, instead of cruising. 📌 3 things that I failed to do early in my career that I'd share with my past self: 1️⃣ A career goal without a plan is just a wish: To achieve your career goals, you need to strategically plan out your moves, skills you need to build and connections you need to make. Have a 1-3-5 year roadmap. Don’t ‘hope’ it will happen. Be intentional. Periodically zoom out and assess if you're making the right progress to where you want to be. 2️⃣ Maximize momentum: Don't squander momentum when you've worked hard to build it. Recognize when you’re crushing it consistently and use it as a slingshot to your next role. Make it a priority to maximize the ROI from your efforts. 3️⃣ Know your market worth: One of my early career oversights was not exploring other opportunities outside my company. I should have been doing that every 2-3 years–but it took me 8 years to figure out that I was severely undervalued. Interviewing doesn't mean you're planning to leave, but it gives valuable insights into your market worth, and what other companies are willing to pay for what you can deliver. As you understand your true value, the landscape of possibilities becomes clearer, revealing new opportunities worth exploring. — Ever wondered about the real cost of sitting still in your career? 📡 I dive into the data here: https://lnkd.in/dyna5uG5 What’s ONE insight you wish you could share with your past self?

You are probably familiar with Amazon's "Start with the press release" or working backwards method for product releases (link in comments below). This week I had the idea to do that with my career development. Almost certainly, I am not the first to think of this, but thought I would share my version. 1) Start with the announcement - write the announcement of your next role no matter how far out that is. Include the unique strengths, skills, and experiences you are bringing to the position. 2) Create your future resume - write the resume/CV that got you the next role. What is in that future version that you don't have on your resume today? 3) Use the announcement and resume as guiding principles to get clear on any gaps and to make informed decisions on where to invest your time next 4) Start collecting the experiences you need with intention 5) Continually reflect and adjust as needed, career development is never a straight line and you don't know what you don't know yet. I am a fan of prioritizing growth and development even (especially?) when you are enjoying where you are today. Today is always the best day to do anything, so am off to write my future resume. 😃

As a producer of educational software in Silicon Valley in my early 20s, I started to realize my passion was more in the purpose and the educational side of the work and less about the project management and development of technology itself. I moved into a technology integration role in a school as a transition role and then earned a degree as a school counselor and moved from there into career coaching. It was a total shift but I made it happen over a number of small steps. Leaving a long-held job can bring up a lot of emotions. Transitioning to entrepreneurship or a new role adds complexity. Here’s what’s (probably) going to come up for you as you navigate this change: 1️⃣ Ruminating and Second-Guessing: Experiment with small steps towards your desired path. 2️⃣ Feeling Guilty: Recognize natural emotions but focus on new opportunities. 3️⃣ Fear of Losing Status: Embrace shedding old identities for growth. 4️⃣ Needing to Adapt: Be prepared to embrace change in different environments. 5️⃣ Managing Perceptions: Demonstrate eagerness to learn and evolve. 6️⃣ Balancing Emotions: Embrace excitement and fear as fuel for growth. Remember, a career transition is about both emotional and professional evolution. Aim for a balance of terror and exhilaration for a bold leap forward! Read more at HBR: https://lnkd.in/eaPq2XSp

I once equated lateral moves with nonprogression. "Up or nothing" was my mantra, and I believed that the only way to succeed was to climb higher on the career ladder. I was so focused on moving upward that I didn't consider any other possibilities. Then reality hit me hard. I found myself stuck in New Haven, feeling frustrated and unsure of my next steps. Swallowing my pride, I reached out to a former colleague and admitted, "I need you to get me out of here." It was a humbling moment, but it ultimately proved to be pivotal. That sideways step I took? It opened doors I never knew existed and led me to opportunities I hadn't even imagined. It taught me that sometimes the most powerful career moves aren't about climbing up the ladder, but rather moving strategically across the chessboard. It's about positioning yourself wisely before seeking a promotion. Reflecting on my journey, I realize that lateral moves can be just as valuable, if not more so, than upward ones. They can lead to unexpected growth, new skills, and fresh perspectives. So, I ask you: What "lateral" move changed your trajectory and helped you grow in ways you never anticipated? #careeradvice #leadershiplessons #strategicmoves #careerdevelopment #professionalgrowth #careerjourney #unexpectedopportunities #growthmindset

When I was younger, I believed that the ideal career trajectory looked like an unbroken, unbending vertical line, moving northeast, over time. Hindsight brings tremendous clarity, though (it's a cliche for a reason), and looking back it's obvious that my greatest growth and development occurred after lateral moves. Beyond building breadth of knowledge, entering a role which requires new ways of working, new ways of thinking, and new ways of leading forces you to grow in ways you don't expect. Most of us will work 40+ years as professionals. There is ample time to grow vertically and more than ample time to expand your scope, also. These are not mutually exclusive concepts.