Elsa Angel Rose
Zigzagging is when you work across industries, roles, and skill sets. Evidently, it goes against the idea of working in a single industry, role, or skill set, where you develop your expertise in that particular niche. Someone who is an engineer might pivot into journalism or marketing. Someone who started as a model might venture into marketing, brand building, or, at times, even get into culinary arts. Basically, there is no ladder to climb anymore, or so it seems. To be precise, the labour market is evolving. Gone, or at least soon will be gone, are the days when an employee spends over 10 years, or even 5 years, in a company, regardless of whether the company offers growth or not. It has become all about building oneself, not entirely the organisation one associates with. For this very reason, combined with the even bigger reason of Artificial Intelligence (AI) coming in, one has to learn multiple skills across industries and environments to be versatile, to not be expensive (Specialist in one industry with one or two skill set), and end up being easily replaced. “Companies don’t offer 30-year careers anymore, so loyalty to one track stopped paying. When the employer stopped guaranteeing the path, the smart move became building your own. It is only rational for the job seekers. I’ve watched it play out in my own hiring for 13 years. The people who moved sideways to pick up new skills are the ones who survived every downturn. The ones who stayed put got expensive and replaceable at the same time,” shared Juned Khan, founder and CEO, 91HR, Panjim.
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DOES THE TRADITIONAL CAREER PATH STILL HOLD VALUE? Some people are still looking for stability and value linear career growth. This is not to say that it is either ideal or not ideal. It is certainly a personal preference and is subject to one’s own environmental factors. But zigzagging can undoubtedly be considered a long-term trend, not a fad. And it is an option being chosen by many, though not all. “In some places, the government, large PSUs, old family businesses, and a few legacy corporates, the ladder still stands where the structure is rigid, and change is slow. But in most of the private economy, it’s become a lattice, not a ladder,” said Juned. Human resource professionals agree that stability is needed, but today’s professionals attempt to view and attain goals beyond stability. “Stability and career progression will always matter, but today’s professionals also seek purpose, flexibility, and continuous learning. Success is no longer defined by how long you stay in one role, but by the value and impact you create,” explained Shantel Cybil Braganza, a human resource professional from Margao.
WHY SHOULD YOU ZIGZAG? HERE’S WHY
Because AI eats the narrow specialist first. If your entire value is one repeatable skill, that’s exactly the thing a model gets good at. What AI can’t replace easily is someone who connects things: a person who understands sales and data and how a customer actually behaves. Zigzagging builds that range. Every sideways move gives you one more domain the machine can’t fully cover,” observed Juned. Zigzagging is already a reality. Industries like hospitality, technology, marketing, and consulting are already seeing the changes. “From my experience in the human resource field, I have noticed that professionals are increasingly exploring cross-functional roles to build broader capabilities for leadership roles, and they tend to remain relevant in a rapidly changing workplace,” Shantel noted. “Athletics has always been my passion. Initially, changing my career path for me was all about survival. And I had that mindset to manage the tasks that come along with my career. Later on today, my decisions for my career are all about doing what I love and having financial freedom,” shared Sudashree S S, who is currently employed as a senior Sales Executive at a fitness firm. She pursued a bachelor’s degree in microbiology and is currently pursuing an MBA while working as a sales executive and freelancing as a personal coach. “Changing my career path was the best decision I have made because I understood life in greater depth and learned who I was as an individual. In my current job, I manage and oversee operations, sales, and, more importantly, work as a personal fitness coach. Hence, I’m also able to pursue bodybuilding as my passion. This was all possible because of the multiple career shifts I made in the past,” shared Sudashree. She added, “Definitely, zigzagging has made me who I am as an individual today, built strength, discipline and confidence from the inside out.” The greatest advantage of zigzagging is that it brings versatility, which fosters adaptability and continuous learning. “Expertise is built through curiosity, learning, and application, not just tenure. Thoughtful career moves often create the strongest expertise if done within the stipulated time period,” shared Shantel.
WHO CAN REALLY AFFORD TO ZIGZAG? While we praise and advocate for zigzagging as a path to a fruitful career, it’s not an option available to everyone. One has to be privileged enough or have a financial cushion to support them and ensure their basic needs are comfortably met, because trying out different fields and starting as a fresher in each of them, with the hope of becoming the ultimate resourceful and capable professional in the future, doesn’t offer the golden handcuffs that many traditional career paths do in the short term. “A zigzagger needs a runway. If next month’s salary is already spent, you can’t afford a sideways bet that pays off in two years. For instance, people stuck in one narrow, licence-heavy track where the whole value is that single lane, and people with no safety net at all,” said Juned. The category of people who benefit the most from zigzagging is “Young people with nothing tying them down yet. No EMIs, no family depending on the salary, so they can take a sideways move that pays the same today but builds more for later. And the natural generalists, the ones who get bored fast and learn quickly. The ladder era punished them for not focusing. That same restlessness is now an edge,” Juned shared.
