How To Manage Your Career When The Future Is Fuzzy

During my very first job interview, I was asked where I saw myself in 10 years. My perhaps naïve response was, “I don’t know. Do you?” The bemused look on the interviewer’s face told me I had made a grave career mistake. Needless to say, I didn’t get the job.

This question perhaps ranks among the worst in the realm of terrible interview questions, right alongside “What’s your greatest weakness?” But it made me think. Why couldn’t I have said something like leading a team or managing a significant portfolio or becoming a CEO? Wouldn’t that have sounded smart, ambitious and made me look like a go-getter? Instead, I had committed career hara-kiri in my very first job interview.

Why Your Future Self Feels Like A Stranger

There is scientific evidence that humans struggle to visualize their future and often prioritize immediate gains over long-term ones. This is a form of temporal discounting—the tendency to value rewards less when they are delayed rather than when they are immediate. The immediate career move might seem more valuable than potential progression in five years. Consequently, we often play the career game to achieve smaller, sooner wins rather than long-term fulfillment.

Hal Hershfield, a professor at UCLA Anderson School of Management, conducted a remarkable study comparing neural patterns in subjects’ brains (using an fMRI machine) when they described their current selves, their future selves 10 years hence, and other people. The study found that the neural patterns evoked when thinking about the future self were most similar to those when thinking about another person. Essentially, when we think of our distant future selves, it feels like we are thinking about a stranger.

If you can’t recognize yourself in 10 years, how can you imagine yourself in a career in 10 years?

As you think about the growing unpredictability of work, careers, and life in general, what are some ways in which you can start building a career that can truly provide you with a sense of fulfillment? Here are three to consider:

1. Center Your Career Around Your Strengths

A frequently quoted pearl of Confucian wisdom is, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” It’s uncertain whether Confucius actually made that statement, but while the sentiment is uplifting, it doesn’t always reflect reality. You don’t always have the opportunity to choose your career, job or the future path you take; sometimes, life has other plans.

Research from the Burning Glass Institute and the Strada Institute for the Future of Work reveals that over half of Americans with college degrees end up in jobs that don’t require their bachelor’s degree or utilize the skills they acquired. Unfortunately, many remain in these roles throughout their careers. This is sometimes also referred to as ‘underemployment’ – being employed in less than full-time or regular jobs or insufficient jobs for one’s training or economic needs.

However, you gain much more fulfillment when you build your job around what you love—or your strengths. According to Gallup, this approach results in about six times higher engagement at work and three times better quality of life.

So, if I may be so bold, my slight rephrasing of the Confucius quote would be: “Choose work that fuels your strengths, and you will love what you do every day of your life.”

Center your work and life around your strengths, not just your pedigree and educational degrees. Here are some possible actions to consider:

• Research roles or industries where your strengths are in high demand.
• Let go of what doesn’t serve you. Limit distractions.
• Focus on activities that amplify your unique abilities and passions.
• Seek feedback on where your strengths shine – ask friends, colleagues, mentors, coaches what you do best.
• Set purposeful career goals that build on your natural strengths.
• Learn Adjacent Skills – strengthen complementary skills to make your strengths even more effective (e.g., enhancing public speaking if you’re a natural communicator).

2. Visualize Your Why

Visualization is a useful technique and can be applied effectively when thinking about your career or future roles. But visualization isn’t just about projecting what you want (which might not align with what you need or ultimately achieve). Typically, visualization involves imagining the form your future might take: what you’re doing, what job you’re in or how much money you’re making.

Instead of visualizing what you will be doing in the future, focus on why you would be doing it. While the specifics might be unclear, you can gain clarity about your purpose and align your future learning and growth to what truly matters to you. Consider these questions:

• What drives your passion for your chosen field, and how do you envision that passion influencing your future career decisions?
• How does your work contribute to a larger purpose or mission that resonates with you? What impact do you hope to make?
• When you picture your future career, what legacy do you wish to leave behind, and how does that shape your daily actions and decisions?
• How do you envision your work aligning with your life goals and aspirations outside of your career? What role does your job play in your overall fulfillment?
• What moments of inspiration or pivotal experiences have shaped your understanding of your “why,” and how can you carry those insights forward?
• How can regularly revisiting your “why” serve as a source of motivation and resilience as you pursue your career goals?

By anchoring your career journey in your “why,” you can navigate the uncertainties of the future with a clearer sense of purpose, rooted in the personal values that matter most to you.

3. Prioritize Experiences, Not Career Rungs

For many of us, our careers have likely taken unexpected or unique paths, diverging from our original intentions. Many have taken sideways steps and are in professions or jobs radically different from their initial plans or education. What often proves most valuable is how these journeys provide exposure and opportunities to venture into new areas of practice or even unfamiliar geographical territories.

Staying curious and following unconventional paths while prioritizing experiences over titles is becoming increasingly important. Ask yourself these questions to explore unconventional but rewarding career moves:

• What conventional career moves could you deprioritize in the short term in favor of meaningful and impactful experiences?
• Where (and how) can you acquire these experiences?
• What specific life and leadership lessons do you hope to gain?
• Once you’ve acquired these experiences, how will your performance and perspective change?

Roads Less Traveled

Taking the road less traveled isn’t always the best choice, but it’s often worth considering. Conventionally, we’re wired to seek comfort in the obvious or predictable. However, the increasingly dynamic and unpredictable work environment doesn’t necessarily support a straightforward or linear career path.

According to several sources, around 80% of people are not currently in jobs they truly like or consider their “dream job.” While not everyone gets to enjoy their dream careers, steps can be taken today to shape the kind of career you want—one that may not resemble your original dream but provides personal and professional fulfillment.

Choose curiosity, prioritize experiences, and align your strengths and purpose. Over time, you’ll discover a career path uniquely yours, shaped not by rigid goals (or terrible interview questions) but by meaningful milestones along the way.