Your career path doesn’t exist – Here’s what to do instead
I once read a book called Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office. It promised to teach women how to act to reach that coveted office with a view – society’s symbol of professional success.
The only problem? Who wants to spend their working years acting like someone else… just to end up in a glass box?
The ‘corner office’, a symbol of professional success.
Rethinking career progress
Leadership expert Simon Sinek and Harvard University professor and happiness expert Arthur Brooks said that “backwards career moves” can actually lead to greater happiness and success.
These ‘backwards’ moves might mean going back to school or taking a lower-level role in a new industry.
It’s about time someone finally challenged the myth that careers are meant to move only up. That myth – the ladder, the corner office, the linear trajectory – keeps so many people stuck in roles that don’t fit.
In fact, Sinek made me see career moves like a board game:
- Forward: climb for pay, status or influence.
- Sideways: shift laterally to gain new skills or explore interests.
- Backward: take a temporary step down to grow, retrain or realign.
Every year, I meet conservation career switchers considering sideways or backwards moves. Many consider staying in a similar role, taking a pay cut, starting from the ‘bottom’, or competing with recent grads.
They often assume this is the only way to change careers:
But what if it’s not?
The career ladder myth keeps so many people stuck in roles that don’t fit.
What if you’re playing the wrong game?
What if none of those moves – forward, sideways or backward – are motivating?
If the career ladder is a game, we have to ask:
- What game are we even playing?
- Who made the rules?
- And what does it mean to win?
Many of the people I’ve coached didn’t move forward in their old sector, or sideways or backward into conservation. They did something entirely different.
They threw away the rules.
What’s left without the rules?
What’s left? Only us. Brilliant, one-of-a-kind, creative humans who happen to care deeply about the planet.
And what do we brilliant, planet-saving humans do when we stop playing by someone else’s rules? We start remembering our own.
We define success for ourselves, rooted in:
- Our personal values
- Who we are at our best
- Our passions and dreams
- Our sense of purpose
- The skills and activities that make us come alive
Sure, pay or recognition might matter too – but as part of a much bigger picture.
Once we define success for ourselves, the whole idea of “career moves” stops making sense. Because we’re free from the game.
A new perspective, and a new definition of success.
Proof that it works
You might be thinking this all sounds too good to be true.
So did I.
But I’ve seen it – again and again.
For example, I’ve supported someone returning to conservation after five years away, convinced they were no longer relevant – who proactively created and secured their dream job.
I’ve coached a marketing professional who planned to shift into conservation communications but felt uninspired – until they launched their own regenerative agriculture project.
I’ve worked with a career returner who thought they’d have to pay for a conservation internship, but instead landed a professional contract.
And I’ve worked with an entrepreneur who thought they’d need to start at the bottom, but instead generated a business idea that blends their unique skills with impact for people and planet.
Each story is different – and none of them happened overnight – but a the pattern is clear.
They didn’t move up or down. They threw away the rules long enough to remember who they are, what matters most, and act on it.
Not sure if you want to follow the pod?
Your move
If you’re feeling unsure which direction to go – or sensing there’s more out there for you – maybe you’re not stuck.
Maybe you’re just stepping off the ladder.
And that’s where real freedom begins.
If you’d like support rediscovering your values, unearthing forgotten strengths and creating a career that feels true to you and your mission – that’s exactly what we do as career coaches. Let’s talk.
PS: if you really do want that corner office, we’ll support you with that, too 🙂
What does freedom in your career mean to you?
Career Clarity | 1:1 Coaching
You’re passionate about protecting nature – but unsure what role truly fits you? Maybe you’re overwhelmed by options or don’t know what’s even possible.
This is where clarity changes everything.
Through personalised coaching, you’ll uncover what fits you best – your strengths, values and purpose – and map out a clear path to a fulfilling career in conservation.
Go from confusion to clarity. Let’s talk.
Author Profile | Kristi Foster
Kristi Foster is the Head of Coaching at Conservation Careers and has a Master’s in Conservation Biology. Her own conservation career journey has led her across the globe from East Africa to the Amazon, working with organisations such as Fauna & Flora, the World Agroforestry Centre and Ecotourism Australia. Since joining Conservation Careers in 2019, she has coached over 100 conservationists in career direction and fulfilment, and consulted in job applications, interviews and more. Today a key part of her mission is supporting conservationists to transform who they are and want they do in the world. Learn more.