When the world tilts, economies shake, and institutions lose footing, it’s time to position your career for disruptions. In times like these, it’s easy to feel unsteady. But looking inward can help you stay grounded and resilient in a chaotic world.
Career resilience is more important than ever during disruptions, according to executive and author Daisy Auger-Domínguez. She says resilience involves adapting, taking initiative, and staying grounded when one’s world is spinning.
For those who want more from work than a paycheck, the current moment can feel especially disorienting. You may ask yourself: What am I doing, and why does it matter? How can I deal with constant upheaval and uncertainty?
As you seek to hold onto meaning in your career in changing times, you may feel befuddled as you seek your path forward. Yet when the old systems break down, space opens for new forms of leadership and careers rooted in purpose, not just survival.
Step back from the chaos. Take the time to reconnect with what you care about and reimagine what you want from your career. With a clearer sense of purpose, you can chart a steadier course, even on shifting grounds.
Position Your Career by Reclaiming Values
You may feel compelled to do more, adapt faster, or keep up in uncertain times. But reactive motion isn’t the same as meaningful progress. If your goal is to work purposefully, you must pause and re-anchor.
You can start your career reflections by clarifying your values. According to career specialist Clara Fuller, redefining success based on your internal standards is essential to your career satisfaction. Clear values become your guideposts, especially when you face unforeseen circumstances.
Ask yourself what matters to you, not five years ago, but today? Do you care about justice, sustainability, equity, creativity, service, or community? You can ground yourself by reclaiming your values.
Position Your Career by Reestablishing Your Purpose
Next, reestablish your purpose. What impact do you want, and for whom? Don’t worry if your answer feels imperfect or in progress. What matters is that you have a direction. When the external map is confusing, your internal compass becomes your most reliable guide.
People who lead with purpose focus less on titles and more on service. They look for gaps to fill, problems they can help solve, and people who need support. Ironically, this approach often leads to unexpected advancement. However, make sure your actions reflect your purpose rather than raw ambition.
Position Your Career Through Flexibility
For decades, career advice focused on finding stability, such as long-term employment, predictable growth, and a steady climb. But those days are behind us. Today, the most resilient careers are not the most rigid. You can adapt your career goals and remain agile within your values and purpose.
Flexibility is vital for navigating career disruptions. However, you must distinguish flexibility and agility from aimlessness. True flexibility involves adapting to change while maintaining clear goals and a sense of purpose. You must maneuver through change without losing your center.
When you align your career with values and a clear sense of purpose, you will be more prepared to deal flexibly with change. You will have an internal “why” that allows you to pivot roles, industries, or strategies without sacrificing your integrity.
Instead of chasing stability in structures, look for it in your principles and relationships. Invest in networks of trust. Deepen your expertise in mission-aligned work. These are the anchors that endure.
Position Your Career by Making a Difference
In chaotic times, it is easy to get caught in scarcity thinking: Will there be opportunities for me? What if I fall behind? But when you ask how to make a difference in your organization, team, community, or world, you open up new paths.
If you work in a sector undergoing upheaval, such as climate work, education, or healthcare, consider how your skills and values could serve the changing landscape. The world needs more responsible, values-driven contributors.
Position Your Career Through Actions
Uncertainty has a way of shrinking our sense of agency. But even when options feel constrained, you can always find a next step toward aligning your purpose with the opportunities at hand.
You can engage in a values-based conversation with your manager, seek out projects that reflect your deeper commitments, or build a side project that nourishes your purpose. You may also consider walking away from an organization that no longer reflects your ethics or staying and becoming a voice for transformation.
Agency is about choosing your actions with clarity about what you stand for, rather than trying to control everything.
Lean on Like-Minded Supporters
Purpose-driven careers are rarely solo journeys. You build your career in a community with peers who challenge you, mentors who believe in you, and collaborators who share your values.
While you may be tempted to withdraw when experiencing disruptions, you’ll need to connect to preserve your mental health and to maintain a fruitful career. Find or create spaces, formally or informally, to talk openly about meaning, purpose, and uncertainty. These conversations offer moral support and foster clarity and courage.
You’re not the only one asking hard questions. You’re not the only one trying to hold onto hope, integrity, and impact. Community makes this hard work possible and sustainable.
Position Your Career for This Defining Moment
All generations face moments that test their values. Sometimes, the gap between what is and what could be may feel overwhelming. This kind of moment is here. Now is not the time to wait for someone else to lead. Commit to becoming the kind of professional who can navigate a career with vision, humility, and resolve.
You don’t have to have all the answers to position your career for productivity in the face of disruption. If you can connect with your values, contribute what you can, and keep moving toward work that matters, you are already shaping a more meaningful future. And that’s a career worth building, no matter the world’s uncertainty.