The Rise of Squiggly Careers - Rethinking the Future of Work!

Yesterday I had lunch with my college senior after 15 long years. While there was the joy of reconnecting after such a long time, I was more impressed and inspired by her career journey. She had continuously reinvented herself from one role to another, staying resilient over the last twenty years.

Her career started, like many MBA HR graduates, in a well paying corporate role.  After embracing motherhood she took 2 years sabbatical and then restarted as a freelance content creator producing visual content for social media campaigns. Her continuous search for learning and evolution led her to become a UX Designer first and today she has transitioned as a Product Manager for a Technology Startup. 

At first glance, moving from HR to UX Designer to Product Management might  seem quite unusual. For generations, careers have been viewed as linear - study hard, go to a good school/university, land a dream job and climb the corporate ladder. But times are changing. Increasingly professionals are embracing new roles, new industries, new functions, new skills or even intentional pauses in career. The non linear or Squiggly careers are on the rise. 

Rise of Non-Linear Career 

Several forces are driving this shift from linear to non-linear career paths

● Rapidly changing ecosystem: The industries are changing at breathtaking pace. Technology, globalization and disruption are making many skills obsolete very quickly, while simultaneously creating demand for new skills and new capabilities. 

● Longer working lives: Better healthcare and medical technology is continuously extending life expectancy and pushing the retirement age beyond 60. Professionals seek variety and growth to stay engaged and derive higher job satisfaction. 

● Shifting work values: Post pandemic the outlook towards work and life outside work has shifted. Individuals are seeking more work life balance and personal growth rather than traditional growth. 

● Generation Z’s perspectives: Generation Z charter their own values. They are more independent, confident and get bored very soon. They seek purpose, independence, fulfillment and like to explore various things. They do not shy away from pursuing their passions or interests 

Why Employers value Non-Linear Career Journeys

In the rapidly changing environment, employers are also valuing people with non linear careers for multiple reasons. 

● Adaptability & Resilience:  Whether facing industry disruption, health challenges, or family responsibilities, professionals with non-linear careers can adapt as life unfolds around them.

● Unique Perspectives: The multitude of experiences create a unique perspective that traditional careers rarely provide. 

● Focus on Transferable Skills: With the evolution of AI, the focus is on fungible and transferable or rather soft skills. Skills like communication, collaboration, creativity and problem solving are required across roles/industries. 

The Future of Work: Squiggly? 

Are Squiggly Careers the future or work? All signs say Yes.

They reflect the realities of Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) world - where long careers, evolving passions, need of resilience demand flexibility

But pursuing a non linear career is not about an aimless exploration, but a strategic pursuit. The key is to build a strong foundation through deep functional knowledge. Augment the depth further by adding breadth- acquiring knowledge and skills across the spectrum.  This is the “T-shaped career” where the vertical bar represents the deep specialisation or core expertise and the horizontal bar represents ability to collaborate across disciplines, learn and adapt to new challenges. 

Final Word

In a world where change is the only constant, the most successful careers will be those that embrace both depth and breadth. The Squiggly career is not only about career progression, but about a career journey filled with learning, experiences, meaning and a sense of fulfilment.