There is so much well-intentioned but conflicting advice is out there - how many of these have you heard:

• Network online but also have coffee in real life!

• Find a mentor, no wait an advocate!

• You need an elevator pitch AND a 5-year plan!

• Self-advocate but not too much…

• It’s a jungle-gym! But is it actually a ladder?

But after all this advice, no one can tell you what to go DO. You’re now left wondering:

• How do I do those things?

• Where do I start?

• What if I do it wrong?

It’s dizzying and overwhelming. We all just want a roadmap and an instruction manual too.

The truth is - there is no roadmap. No company or learning team or leader is going to give you one. There is no right way or wrong way, but there are endless possibilities. And, why would you follow someone else’s roadmap - when instead you could chart your own path?

Possibilities are overwhelming, but they can also be exciting when you are in the driver’s seat.

The best approach is to take steps that are authentic to YOU and provide value and purpose to your unique path - odds are you can then leverage those steps for the specific growth you want. The rest is all about timing.

Let’s stop trying to mold ourselves to the way that worked for someone else and start from a place of grounded confidence that puts US back at the center of growing a meaningful career.