How to make your career ‘future forward’

A fascinating paradox about expertise is that we use our experiences from the past to prepare ourselves for the future. We do that in several ways—some of which are more backward-looking and others of which prepare you for the future.

The most obvious of the backward-looking strategies is habits. When you develop a habit, you are associating a specific environment with a particular behavior. When you engage in a habit, you are basically letting your past actions dictate what you do in the moment. And that isn’t a bad thing. Many aspects of the world are pretty stable, and you should continue to do what has worked for you in the past when nothing in the world has changed substantially.

An extension of habits is that there are many settings in which we exploit our past preferences to drive future actions. If you have lived in a town for a long time, then you probably have some favorite restaurants. Every time you return to a frequent haunt, you are exploiting your past knowledge. Again, you’re allowing the past to dictate what you do now. And if you like that restaurant, you’re probably serving yourself well. Many new restaurants you might try can be disappointing.

But, the world of work changes. You can’t rely just on your habits and your preferences for what has worked in the past. Technology changes. Laws change. Competitors are constantly trying to find ways to cut into any advantages you have. So, how can you overcome your tendency to allow the past to rule the future?

Think about what can go wrong

We often don’t consider the costs of continuing to do the same thing. Indeed, our habitual responses often happen quickly and unconsciously. So, we are already responding to the present based on the past before we have even thought about it.

So, take some time to think about what happens if you continue to approach your career in the way you always have. Are there other people who will advance into positions you would prefer to have? Are there opportunities that you have missed because you keep doing the same thing? Are there factors like technology that may make aspects of your job obsolete?

Because doing the same things you always have feels comfortable, you often focus on the benefits of the status quo. It takes effort to explore what can go wrong. At the corporate level, Kodak was famously the developer of digital imaging technology, but didn’t pursue it as a business. Their focus on the status quo led the company to avoid diving into the technology that ultimately upended film-based photography as the standard.

Similarly, you should be thinking about the ways that your own tendency to continue doing things you have done in the past may lead you to miss out on new opportunities.

Keep learning

One of the best ways to ensure that you stay focused on new opportunities is to continue learning new things. Not only should you hone skills that are relevant to the job you have now, you should learn more broadly. That includes job skills that aren’t obviously related to your current position, but also things that don’t seem obviously job-related at all.

Everything you learn leads you to see the world differently. When you learn a new fact or a new skill, it changes what you notice. New facts can cause you to interpret things in the world in a new way. Skills may enable you to notice details that were invisible until your new skill made them relevant. 

When you start to view the world differently, your habits and prior preferences begin to seem inadequate as responses. Your new learning naturally makes you dissatisfied with the way you have done things in the past. That opens you up to new potential career paths and to the need to adapt to changes in the world.

Force yourself to explore

Doing something different in your work life requires some effort. Exploiting your habits and your prior preferences is often the path of least resistance. Doing something consistent with what you have done previously is low-effort and leads to relatively predictable outcomes. Exploring new options involves more effort and also more uncertainty.

But, you need to force yourself to engage in that exploration. Volunteer for new projects at work. Take a shot at some new responsibilities. Find ways to be part of discussions that are not typically required of your role. 

Not every exploratory venture at work will be a great success. You may not be ready for a project you’d like to help with. A new venture at work might turn out to be a dud. But, the openness to go beyond your normal work routine means you’ll also be more likely to see upcoming trends than you would if you continue focusing on the tried-and-true. Those efforts to break out of your rut will pay their dividends in the long-run.