Career Path Development

I've recently suffered a major career setback. Since I teach about high performance and career growth, I want to share how I am addressing it. One day you will need this recipe yourself! My goal in my current "career" is to reach as many people as I can, and to help them achieve career success and satisfaction. For the last three years, the way to do this has been through LinkedIn. Unfortunately, LinkedIn recently made some unknown changes to their algorithm. Other Top Voices and I have noticed a drop of 70% to 80% in the reach of our posts. Since my goal is to share my knowledge with more people, that means my goal just took an 80% hit. In general, setbacks in performance are either due to: A) Something we did Or B) Something external, outside our direct control Mistakes, poor decisions, and missed deadlines are examples of A. They are in our control. Things like Covid, high interest rates, and reorganizations at work are examples of B, outside our control. LinkedIn's change is also case B, outside my control. When a setback comes from something in your control, you know clearly what you did wrong and what you need to change to restore your performance and progress. Fixing your own issues may take time and be difficult, but you know what to do. When the setback is due to something outside your control, you do not know how to fix the issue. So, how can we react when our performance is shattered and we do not know why? Here is my recipe: 1. Allow yourself a fixed amount of time to grieve (and complain if you wish). Emotions are real, and before you can move on you will need to sit with those emotions. But, do not get stuck in them. Curse your bad luck, pout for a minute, etc. Then, move to the next step. 2. Refocus on your core value. Whatever happened, go back to how you define high performance to ensure it is still relevant. I admit, I slipped into defining my own performance by how many people viewed my LinkedIn posts. This was a mistake. My mission is to help others, so getting views is a proxy, not a result. And, using LinkedIn is just a method for the mission, not the mission itself. 3. Adapt your core value if you must (if its value has decreased). In my case, the value of what I offer hasn't changed, the external delivery system has. 4. Once you adapt and/or increase your value, find new ways to deliver it if necessary. Luckily, I have other options for reaching people: my Substack newsletter, YouTube, etc. Since Substack has been such a good partner recently, I will start there. I have also refocused how I write on LinkedIn to make every post focused on my goal. 5. Test, measure, adapt, repeat! Really, this step is everything. Once you get past the grief, jump into action in this loop. Nothing can stop you if you keep working to refine, deliver, and showcase your core value. Comments? Here's my newsletter, which is my next area of investment: https://lnkd.in/gXh2pdK2

Your career path doesn't always have to be linear. I took a step "backwards" for a 37% salary increase. Sometimes you make lateral moves or seemingly "backwards" moves in order to grow in the direction you want. It's okay if you don't get that lead or director title you want as long as you're moving in a direction where you'll be happy and set yourself up for the future. Here's my career path: Predictive Analytics Intern Data Analytics Intern Data Analyst Senior Analyst Data Analytics Manager Senior Risk Analyst Senior Data Analyst To many, it may look like moving "back" from a manager position was a step back for my career. But for me, it was a big step forward in my personal growth (and salary!). As a manager of a small team at a startup, I realized I wasn't ready to jump to another manager position and give up all of my technical work to be in meetings all day. I chose to go back to an IC role (individual contributor)-- but it was really a huge step forward for me to grow my technical skills and learn new skills at another company. Plus, I got a 37% salary increase without having to manager anyone. Many people believe that you have to climb the management ladder for higher salaries, but becoming a technical expert is extremely valuable as well. IC is where I'm happy now-- who knows where I'll go later on in my career? There may be more lateral and seemingly "backwards" moves in my future. As long as I'm growing my skills and salary, that's what really matters to me! Have you ever taken a lateral or "backwards" move to spring yourself forward?

Over the last few years, we’ve seen the rise of distinct AI roles: Some focus on building models. Some specialize in prompting them. Some orchestrate entire multi-agent ecosystems. But here’s the challenge: Most people dive into AI without a clear path. They juggle multiple tutorials, frameworks, and buzzwords — without direction. And often feel stuck… despite all the learning. That’s why I created this visual roadmap to demystify what it actually takes to build a successful career in AI—whether you’re starting out, switching domains, or upskilling. 𝟰 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽𝘀. 𝟰 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘀. 𝟭 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽 Master LangChain, LangGraph, AutoGen, CrewAI Design decision-making agents with memory, context, and orchestration Build truly autonomous multi-agent systems that reason, act, and collaborate 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽 Learn the foundations of GenAI: transformers, LLMs, embeddings Build applications using OpenAI, Hugging Face, Cohere, and Anthropic Fine-tune models, use vector databases (RAG), and bring GenAI apps to life 𝗠𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽 Go deep into math, stats, algorithms, feature engineering, and modeling Master Python, Scikit-Learn, XGBoost, and model deployment Build solid ML portfolios that showcase real-world impact 𝗔𝗜 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽 (𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗔𝗜) Cover it all: computer vision, NLP, reinforcement learning, AI ethics, model governance Use TensorFlow, PyTorch, and integrate AI into products end-to-end Prepares you for both research-driven and production-focused roles What’s unique about this roadmap? Clear step-by-step milestones Specific tooling and frameworks to focus on Career-aligned structure based on real job roles End-to-end guidance from fundamentals to job search Who is this for? College students entering AI Professionals switching to ML or GenAI roles Engineers looking for clarity in a noisy landscape AI educators mentoring the next wave of practitioners Startups guiding their technical talent in AI-first environments This is the kind of map I wish I had when I started. If this helps you or someone in your network: Repost it to reach more learners

Most people think career success comes from making the perfect decision. It doesn’t. It comes from making timely, values-aligned ones. Especially when the next step feels unclear. One of my clients, a brilliant VP, spent 3 months stuck on a single choice: “Do I speak up about being overlooked, or wait for my work to speak for itself?” She called it strategic patience. But it was really fear disguised as overthinking. We ran it through this framework. She made the call. Six weeks later, her promotion was fast-tracked. She was finally seen, heard, and most importantly, included. Because here’s what I tell every high-achiever I coach: You don’t need more time to decide. You need a better way to decide. Try the 2-Minute Decision Framework™ (Career Edition): 1. QUICK DECISIONS → Handle it NOW For low-stakes tasks that clog your mental bandwidth: → Can you respond to that email in < 2 minutes? → Is the request low risk and easily reversible? → Are you spiraling on something that just needs action? ✅ Do it. Momentum builds trust and confidence. (Your career doesn’t stall in the big moves, it drips away through tiny indecisions.) 2. TEAM DECISIONS → Resolve it TODAY For collaborative work or project bottlenecks: → Who’s recommending this approach? → Who’s doing the work? → Who’s accountable for the final call? ✍️ Assign roles. Align expectations. Move forward. (Most team confusion comes from no one knowing who’s driving.) Use this anytime you’re: – Leading a cross-functional project – Navigating performance reviews – Building team trust through shared clarity 3. CAREER DECISIONS → Make it THIS WEEK For decisions that affect your growth, visibility, and voice: Use the 3–2–1 Method: → 3 options: Brainstorm career paths, scripts, or solutions → 2 perspectives: Ask two mentors, not the whole internet → 1 call: Choose the path aligned with your long game 🎯 Clarity > complexity. Every time. This works for: – Deciding whether to advocate for a raise or promotion – Considering a lateral move for growth – Navigating visibility or speaking up on tough issues The truth is: courageous careers aren’t built on perfect plans. They’re built on small, aligned decisions made with intention. That’s C.H.O.I.C.E.® in action. So here’s your coaching moment: 🔥 Pick one decision you’ve been avoiding. Run it through the framework. Make the call within the next hour. Then ask yourself: What changed when I finally decided? ❓ What’s one career decision you’ve been sitting on too long? Share it below, or DM me, and we’ll run it through together. 🔖 Save this for your next “Should I…?” moment 👥 Tag someone who needs this framework in their toolkit Because alignment isn’t found in overthinking. It’s built through C.H.O.I.C.E.®. ➕ Follow Loren Rosario - Maldonado, PCC for tools that actually work in real life. #CareerCoaching #LeadershipDevelopment

Many athlete-entrepreneurs find problems to solve from their own journey. Jelani Jenkins, a 5-year NFL Veteran, has been vocal on LinkedIn about his challenges transitioning from the pros. In 2021, he started building a solution with Postseason — a social learning app that helps athletes continue their growth, success, and fulfillment beyond sports. Through their research, Postseason identified 3 major hurdles that athletes face post-retirement: - Isolation - Loss of Support - Loss of Competition With a digital hub of educational content, mentors and wellness resources — Postseason is creating a space for athletes to “find purpose, grow, and nurture meaningful relationships beyond sports”. Be sure to check out Jelani's insights on “the athlete transition market” 👏🏽 🌐 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eby9wYcE

Rejecting internal candidates without a clear development plan can be demoralizing and counterproductive. When an internal candidate takes the leap to interview for a new role, it’s not just about the position—they’re showing ambition, drive, and a desire to grow within the company. Let's use this momentum to support their career development. Here’s how we can make a positive impact: 1. Transparent Feedback ↳Provide detailed, constructive feedback. ↳Highlight their strengths and the areas they need to develop to be successful in future opportunities. 2. Personalized Development Plan ↳Collaborate with them to create a tailored development plan. ↳This could include training, mentorship, or project assignments that align with their career goals. 3. Regular Check-ins ↳Schedule periodic meetings to review progress, offer support, and adjust the plan as needed. ↳Celebrate their milestones and achievements along the way. 4. Encourage Continuous Learning ↳Recommend relevant courses, workshops, and resources. ↳Foster a culture of continuous improvement and learning. 5. Mentorship and Networking ↳Connect them with mentors and encourage them to build their network within the company. ↳These relationships can provide guidance, support, and new opportunities. Investing in our internal talent not only boosts morale but also strengthens our team and organization. Let’s commit to turning every "no" into a powerful stepping stone toward future success. By nurturing our internal candidates, we’re not just filling roles—we’re building resilient, engaged, and future-ready leaders. ♻️ Repost this if you agree ➕ Follow Anna Chernyshova for more posts like this

Halfway through college, I saw a fighter jet takeoff up close for the first time. That single moment remapped my entire career path: As a criminal justice major, my sights were set on the FBI, with a four-year military stint simply as a way to help pay for college. But watching those jets roaring ascent spoke to me. It led me to 13 years in the Air Force, piloting the F-16, where I discovered my true calling wasn't just flying and inspiring others. That realization has shaped my journey, teaching me the power of listening to my instincts and embracing unexpected turns. Life's most transformative moments often come when we least expect them. It's about staying open, curious, and ready to pivot. 𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝘂𝘁 - 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲! I'm on version 3.0 of my professional goals :). How about you? Has there been a defining moment that redirected your professional goals? Share your story in the comments! ------------------------ 𝗽.𝘀 Thanks for reading! If you found this helpful, consider reposting ♻️

These are 3 things I did that helped me the most to become a Product Manager 👇 1. Network with Product Managers the right way Understanding what Product Managers do was critical for me to prepare for creating my resume, my LinkedIn Profile, and understand my transferrable skills. Most people fail when networking because they immediately ask for a job or a referral. When connecting with Product Managers, your goal should be to LEARN about the role - referrals will come later. Here's how I increased my chances of getting a response from PMs on LinkedIn. I searched for PMs who met any of these criteria: - Went to my same college - Are from the same country/city - Transitioned from my current role into Product Management - Transitioned from my current/past company into one I'm interested in ⭐️ Your message should be short and concise, be respectful of their time, and ask for advice and not a referral. Your request should be simple: think about "How can I make it easy for them to say yes?". 2. Work on your story Your story will shine through your resume, your LinkedIn profile, and how you introduce yourself on a call. Everyone who becomes a PM, regardless of their background, becomes an expert in 2 things: a. Understanding transferrable skills they have related to Product Management b. Using those transferrable skills on their resume, profile, and story It should be clear on your resume and LinkedIn that you've done the work of a PM even if you didn't have the title (transferrable skills 😉). Transferrable skills are more than keywords like "working cross-functionally". transferrable skills are about how you influenced a cross-functional team to create/implement/change/achieve something that had an impact on the organization and/or customers ⭐️ What if you don't have many PM transferrable skills? It's time to either (a) plan how to exercise them on your job and/or (b) start working on a side project that allows you to build those skills. 💎 Need help with your resume or LinkedIn? Check my comment below! 💎 3. Create a good plan to become a PM Becoming a Product Manager is a marathon, not a sprint. Applying to a PM job and waiting for a call won't work for most people. Create a good transition plan that works for YOU. For example: a. Internal transfers: work with PMs at your company to become on. b. Change jobs, then internal transfers: No PMs at your company? find a job similar to what you do at another company with PMs, then work on an internal transfer. c. Leverage your expertise at a startup: Have X+ years of experience in an industry? Use that to negotiate with startups on getting a PM title and leverage your experience. c. Volunteer: Find non-profits or organizations around you to help them with projects as their PM d. Build your product: Nothing stops you from being a PM of your product! ⭐️ Certifications WILL NOT get you into Product Management, but hard work, networking, and a good plan WILL. #productmanagement

Job seekers are trapped in the "need experience to get a job, but need a job to get experience" cycle. Here is how you can break it: • Gain experience using public datasets: it's not about fancy machine learning projects. Start with cleaning, aggregating, and visualizing data in tools like Excel or Python in Google Colab. Find an interesting datasets from platforms like Kaggle, or US Goverment Open Data (https://data.gov/ ), or data from your city (e.g. Seattle's real-time fire 911 calls https://lnkd.in/gNEdS9Yk). ALWAYS create an artifact—a blog post, a GitHub repository, something to showcase. • Seek opportunities near you: Your uncle is running small business? They might need data insights. Your professor might be eyeing for someone to dissect student performance data. Reach out, offer your skills. Maybe you can collect your own data on your diet or sleep, and analyze it for yourself. (Data science YouTuber Ken Jee analyzed his own health data: https://lnkd.in/gf2SWNDq) No one is offering you a job? Create a job for yourself. • Leverage your current experience: maybe you are just learning data science but you have experience in other industries like marketing, finance, etc. You might not be the best data person, but you could be the person that knows more about the industry than an average data person, and knows more about about data than the average retailer. Leverage your current domain knowledge as a stepping stone, you don't have to start over completely. In the realm of data analytics, the world is your playground. Forget the traditional paths—carve out your own. There are multiple guests on my podcast started their career in non-tech roles. Experience isn't confined to job titles; it's crafted through initiative and passion. I interviewed a career coach who got into Google from non-tech background, learn more from our conversation: Apple: https://lnkd.in/gaM_cWP9 YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gCHTU94N Spotify: https://lnkd.in/g6fGuXzP #Datascience #Career

Gen Z and millennials in our workforce demand meaningful work that aligns with their values. Over 80% of Deloitte’s 330,000-strong team belongs to these generations. They are eager to drive societal change through their roles. This year's survey shows progress in diversity, equity, inclusion, work-life balance, and societal impact, but it also reveals that these employees want more when it comes to embedding purpose into work. They set high standards and make career decisions accordingly. They've turned down roles due to ethical concerns and rejected employers not doing enough in areas like the environment, DEI, and mental health. However, less than half believe business impact on society is generally positive. Studies show that purpose-driven organizations perform better, but these young professionals want more. They wish to actively drive change through their work, and they're more likely to stay when empowered to do so. While they feel confident about influencing societal change through work, they believe they have limited influence. For example, few feel they can impact their organization's sustainability efforts, yet climate change heavily influences career choices. They research environmental policies before accepting roles, and many plan career changes due to climate concerns. To retain their talent and create both financial and social value, organizations must prioritize purpose in corporate priorities and individual roles. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eQzUfHiK #Catalyst #CatalystMovement #changemanagement #changemaker