A career isn't a ladder any more
Step 1 / 4·The ladder and the lattice
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Learning objectives — after this module you will:
- Understand why careers now move sideways as much as up
- Identify the three kinds of career capital and which you're short of
- Audit your own career capital
The ladder and the lattice
Change how you picture progression.
Many people still picture a career as a ladder: a rung every few years, straight up. That model comes from an era of many organisational layers and decades-long tenure at one employer.
Today it looks more like a LATTICE: you can move sideways into another function, diagonally into another industry, or deeper into expertise without becoming a manager. Many sideways moves are actually the fastest progress available, because they add the kind of capital you're missing.
Going up isn't always progress
Plenty of people take a management role because it's the only direction that counts as 'promotion', then find they've given up exactly the work they were best at and enjoyed most. Before accepting, ask precisely what the day-to-day of that role consists of — and whether you want to do those things.
Key takeaway: Careers are a lattice, not a ladder — up, sideways, deeper, diagonal — and up isn't always progress.