A galaxy far, far, away…and the same career planning mistakes we make with kids today

Awhile back I was watching the Star Wars series Skeleton Crew with my husband (translation: he was watching the show and I happened to be sitting in the same room while reading a book or scrolling my phone). The show got the rest of my diverted attention, however, during a scene in the school where the headmistress informs the students that they will be taking a career assessment that charts the course of the rest of their lives. These kids can’t be more than 10. I think about what i knew about the world (and even how different the world was) when I was 10, and i can’t imagine having one test chart the course of my whole life and doing so successfully. I mean maybe this test was going to show them a common a common thread that would connect various parts of their life journey, like a focus on nature or writing, but the way the class was talking it sure seemed like the life course charting was centered around job titles. How does one become an AI engineer if that career doesn’t exist at the time you take the assessment? (Ok let’s be real, something resembling an AI engineer career probably has existed in the Star Wars universe for a long time, but you get the point.)

In our own galaxy not so far away, we may not be quite as dramatic about it, but we tend to do the same thing. We push encourage students into career paths at an early age, and often based on outside assessments telling them what they would be good at. We do this while they are still getting to know themselves, and we focus on careers and job titles rather than broader interests and abilities that could be applied in many different ways. That focus can lead to what Adam Grant describes as “tunnel vision” in Think Again, which can lead students to focus on checking the boxes while missing out on experiencing and exploring possibilities. For the college-bound, that can also lead to major changes, dropped/failed classes, and credits lost to transfer in search of a better fit, all of which can have major cost impacts. Add on constant headlines about all the entry-level jobs being replaced by AI, and honestly, being young person today sounds exhausting. We could do so much better by our younger generations.

We know that life can be both short and long, and the pace of change is fast, so what do any of us have to gain by pushing young people to chart the course of the rest of our lives before they are old enough to vote, have a beer, or even rent a car? I think we’d all be far better off encouraging our kids to look inward and better understand themselves so that when the time comes, they have confidence in their ability to identify careers that align with their skills, interests, and values. Those careers might also look different over time: you don’t have to commit to working construction or sitting at a desk wrangling spreadsheets for 40 years straight. (Also, technology has fried our attention spans, so can anyone really fathom doing any one thing for 40 years straight anymore?) There are so many roads, and so many different types of scenery to enjoy, so rather than telling young people they need to pick a path before they graduate, let’s encourage them to explore different routes and maybe even let them know it’s okay to get lost once in awhile. Sometimes it really is as much about the journey as the destination.

Also, no disrespect to Master Yoda, but when it comes to work and careers I have to disagree about the whole “do or do not; there is no try” thing. There should be lots of try, because that’s how we learn about ourselves and how we can best make an impact in the world.