This time, the 2020s, is an exciting time to begin your career. As the two generations before you experience nearly half of their jobs change with the proliferation of artificial intelligence, you get to enter the workforce as a digital native. I love that for you. I also appreciate your optimism about the future, which will serve you well as you study and begin your professional careers. 

Yet, you may be wondering how to make the connection from education to a fulfilling professional career. And this is important given that, on average, we spend 90,000 hours—a third of our lives—working. 

As a young Gen Xer, I share with you more than our mutual appreciation for wide-leg jeans and wired earbuds. I hope to share practical strategies you can implement now, while at school, to empower yourself for a fulfilling and successful career.

1. Create Your Compass

Whether you know where you want to go or are figuring it out, a compass will help you navigate your career readiness and decisions. You may have choices ahead of you and feel overwhelmed by a flood of great advice. To confidently make empowered choices, create a unique compass that grounds you, with these items in mind: 

• Values: your core beliefs as a human, not related to school or work; 
• Work values: what is most important to you in a job; 
• Strengths: what you’re great at. 

Building your compass will help sift through the options and advice and lay the foundation for your career authentically and confidently. Additionally, your compass may later serve as part of your personal brand, which is how employers and colleagues perceive you. 

2. Don’t Worry About Purpose (Yet)

The idea of creating a career founded on purpose from the very beginning sounds meaningful and poetic. However, the pressure to align to purpose may feel massive. What if you don’t yet know your purpose? Focusing on purpose from the jump may lead you to miss out on growth and opportunities.

Don’t fret about purpose-filled work just yet. People typically have one of three work orientations: job, career, or calling, and this orientation can change over time with experiences. Instead, concentrate on gaining work experience to learn and acquire new skills. Allow yourself time to develop and grow as you gain professional work experience. Through this experience, you may discover your purpose. 

3. Build and Expand Your Network

A network of relationships enhances our career development. We are social beings wired for social connections. We crave connection. Yet, we avoid people. We unnecessarily struggle through problems—on our own—and do not reach out for help. We ignore phone calls and consider it too much effort to start and carry on conversation. But we are meant for connection. We need it.

Building a network is the process of making connections and cultivating relationships. The people we meet may be the connections we need to gain access to career opportunities and learn critical skills. Here are some examples. (Names changed to protect anonymity.) 

• Jason applied for a role at a new company. He contacted Kate, who works at the company, for an “in” to get an interview. Kate sent a message to the hiring manager, Mike, who then asked the recruiter to schedule an interview with Jason. 
• I had a customer experience-impacting technology issue beyond my expertise. I contacted several experts I had worked with on previous projects and asked for their help. In 23 minutes, we figured out a temporary mitigation and a possible solution. 

We might think of “networking” as awkward or daunting. I am an introvert—I get it. However, if you know another person, you already have a network to nurture and grow.  

To build and expand your network, first assess where you have connections, such as your school, work, and community. Then, evaluate areas where you don’t have connections but want to have some. Make a list of individuals you want to connect with and reach out to them. To make it less awkward, here are some questions to get the conversation started:

• I see you are great at [insert skill]. How did you learn?
• I’m interested in learning more about [topic]. May I put time on your calendar to chat?
• I heard you are working on [initiative]. Would you tell me about it? 

Also, leverage LinkedIn. I cannot overstate the power of networking on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional networking platform. On LinkedIn, you can connect with people in almost every industry worldwide and build door-opening relationships. Start building your professional network now while in school to make it available when needed. Send connection requests, follow accounts related to your interests, and check out the job and internship openings.

Remember that relationships are a two-way street. Lean on your professional network for support, and be generous and help the people in your network. The result will be a strong network of mutually beneficial relationships.

4. Form Your Professional Development “Board of Directors”

Large companies have a board of directors. The board is a group of advisors who care about the company and contribute to its success, led by the chairman. Similarly, you can form a “board of directors” for your professional development, comprised of people you trust to pour into your personal and professional growth. You can share your goals, wins, and challenges with these advisors, who will support you with guidance and feedback, challenge you, and may open doors. 

Tap into your network for members of your professional development board of directors. Include mentors who are successful in areas of expertise in which you want to grow. Your college advisor and favorite professors are great candidates, too. If you already have a job, recruit your manager or their manager. Of course, you are the chairman, in charge of your career development and guided by your compass (values, work values, and strengths). 

5. Develop A Growth Mindset

A growth mindset is the belief that one can develop abilities and intelligence through effort, learning, and persistence. Such a mindset allows one to see challenges as opportunities to learn, grow, and master new areas of expertise. Compared to a fixed mindset, which assumes one’s potential is limited, a growth mindset will give you the confidence to take on new challenges and significant goals and go for gold. 

Take on the perspective of “not yet.” When there is an intimidating required course, instead of thinking you may not do well, adopt the mindset that you can learn the material and do well with hard work and focus. When you want to pursue a field of work that seems daunting, instead of thinking it is unattainable, take on the perspective that you can methodically learn and grow to develop the career you want. When you experience setbacks, get back on track by practicing self-care, leaning into your social connections (i.e., your professional development board of directors), and try again. 

I am excited about your future and the fantastic things you will accomplish. But why wait until after college to lay the foundation for a successful and fulfilling career? Start now by clarifying your compass, building your social connections, creating your personal brand on LinkedIn, and developing a growth mindset. I will be cheering you on.

This article was originally titled “The Compass for Tomorrow” in the April 2025 issue of Peer.