In a Career Transition? You may be asking the wrong questions.

At some point, everyone reaches a crossroads. You can continue along the path you’ve been told to walk—the stable career, the predictable choices, the expectations others have set for you. Or you can step off that trail and create your own.

The predetermined path is comfortable. It offers the safety of structure: do what’s expected, meet the benchmarks, stay the course. But comfort often comes at the expense of growth. The danger isn’t failure—it’s stagnation.

When people talk about career change, they often focus on “doing”:

• What industry should I move into?

• What skills should I acquire?

• What role should I pursue?

But true transitions go deeper. They’re less about doing and more about becoming. A career is not just a set of tasks—it’s an expression of identity. The real question is not “What should I do next?” but “Who am I becoming?”

Start With “Who”

Ask yourself:

• Who do I want to be five years from now?

• Who do I want to serve or impact?

• Who do I need to grow into to live the life I imagine?

These are identity-level questions. They pull you beyond the checklist of titles and job descriptions and into the deeper work of becoming.

Then Ask “Why”

Simon Sinek reminds us that great leaders, organizations, and movements don’t start with “what” they do, but with why they exist. The same is true for you.

When you know your “why,” career choices stop being about chasing titles and start being about alignment. Ask:

• Why does this work matter to me?

• Why do I want to commit my time and energy here instead of elsewhere?

• Why does this path feel true to who I am?

Your “why” gives purpose to your “who.” Together, they form a compass.

Arriving at the What and How

Once you’ve clarified who you want to become and why it matters, the “what” and “how” fall naturally into place. The job description, the industry, the role, the daily tasks—these are no longer the starting point but the outcome.

• What you do becomes a vehicle for expressing who you are.

• How you do it becomes the style, culture, and rhythm you bring into your work.

This reframing takes you out of survival mode (“What job will pay the bills?”) and into purpose mode (“What role will allow me to become the person I want to be while serving something larger than myself?”).

Practical Steps to Creating Your Own Path

1. Identity Mapping (Who)

   Write down words that describe the person you are becoming. Don’t focus on roles—focus on qualities. For example: resilient, creative, compassionate, innovative, courageous.

   
   

2. Clarify Your Why

   Take each of those qualities and ask: Why does this matter to me? Keep asking until you reach the deepest reason that resonates emotionally.

   
   

3. Translate Into What and How

   Once you have your “who” and “why,” brainstorm possible careers, roles, or projects that would allow you to live them out. Ask: What context would allow this version of me to thrive? How can I bring my strengths to life here?

   
   

4. Experiment Small

   Instead of overhauling everything at once, test your direction. Take a course, start a side project, volunteer, or shadow someone in a field that intrigues you.

   
   

5. Commit to Endurance

   Change takes time. Write down one action each day that moves you closer to your desired path. Celebrate small wins—they’re proof you’re creating, not just following.

Career transitions aren’t about doing more. They’re about becoming more. They begin not with résumés or applications but with identity and purpose.

You can follow a predetermined path, where your career is defined by external expectations.

Or you can create your own, where your career is an authentic extension of who you are becoming and why you’re here.

The first keeps you busy. The second helps you become.

The pen is still in your hand. Who will you write yourself into next?