Book SummaryThe Squiggly Career, by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Squiggly Career

Since the early 2000s, the nature of work has changed greatly, and as a result, so has the nature of career paths. Factors like increased flexibility and access to opportunities due to the internet have changed how and why people work. It’s no longer the norm to stick to a single profession and company and climb the corporate ladder to achieve financial stability. Instead, people frequently move between professions and companies looking for a job that brings them passion and fulfillment.

However, navigating this new approach to careers requires a different skill set than what traditionally ensured success. In The Squiggly Career (2020), Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis argue that success in this new era requires five abilities: unique...

The Squiggly Career Summary The Changing Nature of Careers

According to Tupper and Ellis, modern workers are following nonlinear career paths rather than moving up the career ladder due to three main factors.

First, the type of work we do in our jobs is changing. This is because technological advancements have automated most repetitive tasks, meaning we now do different tasks and use different skills each day. Further, companies must constantly develop to stay afloat, requiring workers to be adaptable and have a broader range of skills than ever before. Finally, rapid change means organizations’ lifespans are too unpredictable for them to guarantee workers an internal ladder to climb—who knows if their jobs, or the company, will exist in the future?

Second, how we work is changing—employers are giving us more autonomy and less direction. To highlight this, the authors point out that fewer and fewer people are working nine-to-five, on-the-ground jobs. Instead, they’re being given the ability to work wherever they want with more flexible hours. This requires employees to take control of their career growth—without constant guidance from managers and peers in person, they must autonomously set their career goals and determine...

The Squiggly Career Summary Ability 1: Unique Talents

Tupper and Ellis explain that workers must develop and leverage their unique talents to reach peak performance. Unique talents, or super strengths as the authors call them, are not just your strengths but the things you’re best at and love doing. Leveraging your unique talents is crucial in a nonlinear career for two main reasons.

(Shortform note: Many professional development experts agree on the importance of leveraging your super strengths at work; however, some categorize the components that define super strengths slightly differently. For example, in The Success Principles, Jack Canfield believes that super strengths also encompass the talents that generate the most income for you or your company. While Tupper and Ellis don’t necessarily speak against considering financial gains when identifying your super strengths, they don’t consider them relevant criteria.)

First, the authors say that leveraging your unique talents in your career makes you exponentially more productive and effective than those who don’t—this...

The Squiggly Career Summary Ability 2: Core Values

The second ability Tupper and Ellis say workers must leverage to succeed in a nonlinear career is having core values that guide their actions. Core values are the most important things to you, and knowing what they are is crucial for a few reasons.

First, core values provide a simple decision-making system—if something doesn’t align with your values, it’s not for you. This will help you easily sift through opportunities so you can find what’s right for you. Further, making decisions with less deliberation allows you to more quickly move toward your goals and find a job you’re passionate about.

Second, having a strong commitment to your values will help you understand other people—how their decisions and actions are based on their commitment to their values. This will increase your ability to collaborate with others. Collaboration and decisiveness are both skills that make you a timeless asset in ever-changing organizations.

(Shortform note: In Awaken the Giant Within, Tony Robbins reiterates the importance of identifying your core values in life to effect fulfillment, inner peace, certainty, joy, and...

The Squiggly Career Summary Ability 3: Self-Confidence

Tupper and Ellis’s third ability for succeeding in a nonlinear career is self-confidence—believing in your capacity to achieve your goals, acknowledging your success, and being resilient in the face of challenges. Self-confidence is crucial in non-linear careers for three reasons.

First, self-confidence inspires you to take action toward your goals with less deliberation, helping you forge your own path and achieve goals faster. Second, self-confidence helps you persevere when you encounter setbacks and challenges. Third, being confident in yourself inspires others to be confident in you as well, making you a valuable asset to teams and organizations.

(Shortform note: In The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, Branden argues that to achieve true success in life, you need to have more than just self-confidence—you need to have self-esteem. His concept of self-esteem includes Tupper and Ellis’s definition of self-confidence and also encompasses the belief that you’re an inherently good and valuable person...

The Squiggly Career Summary Ability 4: Networking

Tupper and Ellis’s fourth skill for succeeding in a nonlinear career is the ability to network. Networking is building a social web of people who offer mutual benefits—they help you build your career, and you do the same for them. This can be by providing advice, mentorship, skills, other connections, and so on. Networking is important for three reasons.

First, strong networking skills help you to build meaningful relationships with people. This is important because having a smaller network of close connections who are willing to help you is more effective than a large network of loose connections that you can’t leverage. Second, your network will provide a diverse web of knowledge and perspectives that help you develop your career and branch into new territory. Third, networking helps you spread your name—the more that people know you, your goals, and your talents, the more opportunities will come your way.

(Shortform note: In Never Eat Alone, Keith Ferrazzi also emphasizes the crucial nature of networking. In addition to the benefits discussed by the authors,...

The Squiggly Career Summary Ability 5: Foresight

The authors’ final ability for succeeding in a nonlinear career is foresight—the ability to strategically envision your desired future and possible career paths so you can develop truly fulfilling goals in the present. These goals will be based on genuine interests rather than objective metrics of success (like a promotion) and will be enjoyable and fulfilling to work toward.

Having foresight in a nonlinear career is crucial for three main reasons. First, it allows you to plan a fulfilling career trajectory autonomously. Second, when you work toward an interest-based goal and enjoy the process, you’ll discover additional interests and meaningful opportunities along the journey. Third, when you’re focused on pursuing your genuine interests, you ensure that your decisions guide you toward a career you truly want—many people switch to equally unsatisfying jobs just to escape their current one.

In the following section, we’ll discuss how to practice foresight by identifying possible career paths and developing the skills necessary to pursue them.

(Shortform note: In The Magic of Thinking Big, David J. Schwartz...

Shortform Exercise: Leverage Your Values

The authors explain that succeeding in a nonlinear career requires you to identify and live by your values. In this exercise, we’ll identify how you can start integrating your values into your life.

List the core values that you identified in the exercise recommended by the authors.