In a commencement address he gave at Stanford University in 2005, the late Apple founder Steve Jobs spoke about how sometimes we can only connect the dots of our lives when looking backward.
In a culture that conditions us to map our our life plan and encourages a master 5- or 10-year plan, his advice — and the idea that you might not be able to plan all your moves in advance — might seem heretical.
When I first heard this wisdom I was 30, and already had enough dots behind me that I could see the truth of what Jobs said. But even then, it was hard to see how the varying twists and turns of my life might lead somewhere.
The thing about living in a “planning culture” is that it can breed guilt and shame in those of us who don’t have a plan mapped out, or even a clear direction in mind.
As I enter my 50s, I can see more clearly how the dots connect, the through line that threads through them.
I’ve also begun to realize that there doesn’t have to be a through-line.
Sometimes we are set our sights on a new destination because life circumstances or experience awaken something within us that pulls us to a new direction.
What comes next doesn’t have to build logically on what came before.
The skills you’ve mastered and the experience you’ve acquired will still help you in your next role, even if the pivot doesn’t seem logical.
The through-line is you.
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