07/17/2025: Your Career is a Puzzle, Not a Ladder

July 17, 2025

07/17/2025

Can we pull you for a chat? We’re dropping some new bombshells, AKA Impact Job applications, and we think you should explore all of your connections. You don’t want to end the summer with any regrets. Scroll down to make the first move.

Here's what we got on tap for you today

  • Meme of the Week

  • Article of the Week: Stop Trying to Climb the Ladder

  • New Job Opportunities

  • Win of the Week: Bamboo Cleans Up Polluted Land in India

  • Bummer of the Week: How Climate Change Could Impact the World Cup

Meme of the Week

Article of the Week

Your Career is a Puzzle, Not a Ladder

Whattup, job seekers! In days past, getting yourself a grown-up job and developing a career looked a lot like a straight line. Each move was a step higher and higher up a ladder that led to ultimate success, happiness, and retirement nirvana (right??).

Things have changed. Today, people switch jobs more than Love Island contestants switch up their couples. You’re not climbing invisible career ladders anymore; you’re putting together a puzzle.

“But isn’t that…harder?” you ask nervously. Let’s talk about it.

Thinking of your career as a puzzle sounds weird, but it’s actually freeing. Here’s why:

  • You can’t see the full picture at first, but every piece matters and has a place

  • Lateral moves and career shifts aren’t setbacks; they’re part of the bigger picture

  • Freelance work, passion projects, and time off for rest can fit into your puzzle

  • You learn something from every piece, even if it didn’t feel like it advanced your overall career

Most of all, using the puzzle metaphor vs the ladder metaphor can help you get through weird career seasons. There’s no need to panic if your latest move doesn’t look good on paper; you can still get something good out of it (think: new skills, connections, experience, and better work-life balance).

If it helps ya out, use the puzzle metaphor for your career to take some of the pressure off yourself. In your job search, notice which jobs you naturally gravitate towards versus which one feels like the right career move.

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New Job Opportunities

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Win of the Week:

In India, one of the largest coal burning nations, researchers are using bamboo and other native plants to heal lands choked with ash from thermal power plants. The project will restore soil and cleanse air, bringing back vegetation, wildlife, and livelihoods.

Bummer of the Week:

The World Cup is still a year away, but climate scientists warn that climate change will have a drastic impact on the event. Hosting it in the US (along with Mexico and Canada) may endanger players and participants due to extreme heat.