This career strategy helps you stand out without starting over

"People do their best when they feel included, safe, and distinctly valuable. When either side of that equation is neglected, performance and well-being suffer, along with employability. Excessive sameness leads to conformity, disengagement, and muted creativity. Excessive difference leads to isolation, friction, or marginalization. In the middle is optimal distinctiveness: where individuality strengthens the group, rather than competing with it."

"The labor market has shifted, but traditional career strategies haven't. Job growth is uneven and cautious. Early-career workers are being hit hardest, while senior leaders face roles that are broader, less defined, and more fluid than before. In a 2025 Chief x Harris Poll of women leaders, 83% reported that the career success playbook they were handed early in their careers no longer applies to them."

The modern workforce faces unprecedented challenges: hiring slowdowns, widespread layoffs, and AI-driven commoditization have made career advancement unclear and many workers feel invisible or replaceable. Traditional career advice—stand out, pick a lane, follow linear progression—conflicts with how work actually functions today. Optimal distinctiveness theory, introduced by social psychologist Marilynn Brewer, offers a solution by addressing a fundamental human need to belong while maintaining individual value. This theory posits that people perform best when they feel included, safe, and distinctly valuable. Excessive conformity breeds disengagement and stifled creativity, while excessive differentiation causes isolation and marginalization. The optimal middle ground strengthens both individual and group performance. Traditional career strategies have failed to adapt to current market realities, where job growth is uneven, roles are increasingly fluid and undefined, and nonlinear career paths are becoming the norm rather than exceptions.

Read at Fast Company