More Labyrinthine than Linear: On Crafting Learning and Career Journeys

Mar 6, 2026

In 2026, I am thinking, writing, crafting, and consulting with a purpose in mind: that of the educator. To me, the educator spans the wide range of work that I do, both formally and informally, in and outside of postsecondary institutions, workplaces, conferences, professional development sessions, and on/through social media.

Earlier this week, I travelled to speak on a career panel for students in sociology and anthropology in a subterranean basement classroom that too was more labyrinthine than linear to find. 😊

It seemed fortuitous, for at least a number of reasons. These include:

1. Both subjects figure heavily on my own academic disciplinary formation and connect to what and how I teach and construct new forms of knowledge, in and outside of the university. I was eager to convey how the social sciences offer a treasure trove of perspectives to understand oneself and the world around us, but also a rich repository to fall back to guide our actions and decisions in our personal and professional lives.

2. The accelerating disruptions of career trajectories by AI has compelled the re-evaluation of human skills by the labour market. I was eager to foreground the importance of skills such as creativity and collaboration as well as interpersonal communication and social intelligence that they are developing by studying the social sciences.

3. Despite this re-evaluation by the workplace, social sciences (and the liberal arts more generally) continue to be devalued by university administrators and their funders, at least in the Anglosphere and by students themselves, who are looking for relatively safe anchors and job prospects in era of great job volatility and uncertainty.

Since being invited a few weeks ago, I wondered whether I really should share anecdotes from my own career trajectories, which have been circuitous, more labyrinthine than linear. Despite our cultural inclinations to create and want linear educational and career pathways, for me the reality has been anything but.

I had planned to be succinct, and yet, against the different vignettes and counsel of my co-panelists, I decided to amplify the following:

1. Following inspiration and curiosity, such as cold-calling advertising agencies in New York who were hiring anthropologists

2. Learning from failure from being fired from a job in consumer research

3. Stumbling into teaching police leadership and deciding to pursue credentials and certification in adult training and development and learning how to teach

4. Speaking to people outside of one’s disciplines (“speak to the engineers”; “speak to artists and musicians”) to expand your network

5. Being prepared to work and grow and the edges of one’s discipline by exploring jobs to apply social science frameworks in ways that your professors may know little, such as user experience and social impact assessments.

6. Investigating labour market data and see where there are opportunities and be prepared to move

7. Being active and not passive in taking advantage of opportunities to learn and engage with others and build leadership skills while at university

On my way back, I reflected on my enthusiasm to impart my “kernels of wisdom,” to students who came up to asked for more advice and the cacophony of suggestions that I unleashed. I can be indeed too enthusiastic.

And yet, I also realize that if we are serious in rethinking and remapping curricula and refurbishing the purpose of higher education, we might consider embedding curiosity, agility, resilience and leadership – all highly valuable human-centric skills that resist automation – and encouraging students to embrace the labyrinth of possibilities.

Labyrinth of learning and career journeys