Career
by Herminia Ibarra
Why is changing career so hard?
Herminia Ibarra, a business school professor, followed people in mid-career as they tried to reinvent their working lives. Most had been told to work out exactly what they wanted, then go and do it. Ibarra found that the people who really changed did it in almost the opposite order.
Hear a sample · read by Laura
The usual advice is to look inward first. Take the tests, reflect, find your true self, then act on it. Ibarra calls this plan and implement, and says it keeps people stuck, because we can't know who we'll become in the abstract. Reflection alone mostly produces more reflection.
The people who made it through acted first and made sense of it afterwards. They tried things, noticed what gave them energy and adjusted. Ibarra's point is that you discover a new working self by doing, one step at a time, and the clarity arrives later than you'd like.
Ibarra borrows the idea of possible selves from psychology. Each of us carries several versions of who we might become, some hoped for and some feared. Changing career means testing a few of them against real life and letting the others go.
Ibarra calls it crafting experiments. Her changers tried new work on the side, through weekend projects, courses, short assignments or volunteering, while their old job paid the bills. Each one taught them something no amount of thinking could, and several quietly grew into the new career.
Old colleagues and friends know you as you are, and often want you to stay that way. So Ibarra's changers shifted connections, seeking out people already doing the work they were curious about. Those new contacts made the new identity feel possible, and often opened the first door.
Act first
Most of us try to find our true calling first, then act. Ibarra found career changers did it the other way round.
Experiments
Skip the perfect master plan. Try side projects and short stints, and learn from what happens.
Possible selves
We each carry several possible selves. Changing careers means testing which ones hold up.
New people
Old colleagues often hold you to your old self. Spend time with people in the field you want to join.
The in-between
Expect the change to be messy and slow, with a long stretch between the old life and the new.
One thing to try
Pick the possible self you think about most. This month, do the smallest real version of it, like a day shadowing someone, a weekend course or one small paid job. Afterwards, write down what gave you energy and what didn't. A personality test can't tell you that.
Knotd has the key ideas from 250+ non-fiction books, each in a few minutes, in plain words. Working Identity comes with a Your Move story to make it stick.
Get the whole book on KnotdOpen in the appWhy is changing career so hard? Herminia Ibarra, a business school professor, followed people in mid-career as they tried to reinvent their working lives. Most had been told to work out exactly what they wanted, then go and do it. Ibarra found that the people who really changed did it in almost the opposite order.
Plan and implement; Test and learn; A crowd of possible selves; Small experiments; New people, new you.
Pick the possible self you think about most. This month, do the smallest real version of it, like a day shadowing someone, a weekend course or one small paid job. Afterwards, write down what gave you energy and what didn't. A personality test can't tell you that.
Yes. Knotd has the key ideas from Working Identity in a few minutes, in plain words, plus a Your Move story to test them. It's one of 250+ non-fiction books in the app.
