Experiencing a Quarter-Life Crisis? Think Like a Startup

By Paul Johnson

Someone once told me that entrepreneurship is a game of attrition. And I think the fact that 90% of startups eventually fail says there is some truth to that. It’s not necessarily about how viable the idea is or whether or not a person has the skills, it’s about grit and stamina.

Now, of course no one ever “fails” at their career journey, but the fact that so many 20 somethings are experiencing a quarter-life crisis (75% of 25-33 year olds to be exact) means that a lot of folks are feeling like a failure or, at best, directionless. The most common question tugging at the minds of young professionals is: “What should I do next in my career?” I think what makes this feel like a crisis— rather than an opportunity—is that a lot of folks feel like they should have the answer and if it doesn't come easily then they begin to panic. 

I think this frequently happens with entrepreneurs. They want to figure out that one product or service that will explode onto the scene and create rapid growth. If that doesn’t happen right away, many get frustrated or discouraged and give up completely. For us, that “product or service” is our career; what we want to be when we grow up. Just like any successful idea, it doesn’t just appear out of thin air. It’s developed and honed throughout years of experimentation and exploration.

Many people may experience a quarter-life crisis because the area of interest they studied in college isn’t interesting anymore (“I thought I wanted to be an accountant but now I find it really boring”). Other folks may get restless because they’re feeling like they are not making a meaningful contribution to the world (Do you have a Bullshit Job?). Others wonder if the traditional 9-5 job is right for them (Are you an entrepreneur?). At the core, it’s this really uncomfortable thought of “I thought I knew but now I’m not sure!”

I was that person in my late twenties. My career path felt like a typical trip to the Grand Ole Creamery; taste testing a dozen different flavors of jobs until one spoke to me. At the time, the whole thing felt random and haphazard. Now I realize that my approach—albeit unintentional—mirrored that of a startup. It was the reason I found my sweet spot...15 years later. Now, it makes sense, because right out of college we are startups. We’re untested but high potential individuals dead set on making an impact in the world. 

So, how to think like a startup? Here are three strategies that startups use that you can apply to your career journey: testing, customer feedback, and pivoting.

Testing

At their earliest stages, startups experiment. They tinker, they take risks, they think outside the box. They take a curious, nonjudgmental mindset. They do this because feedback is essential  to finding the solution. They know that if they go out into the world thinking they have the right answer, they won’t be open to learning. It’s sort of like testing a theory. In a way, we go into our careers with a theory. For many of us, our theory is based on the degrees we chose in college. Just like all theories, it’s based on a hunch — an inexplicable feeling that this just might be it. Ask me when I was 20 why I chose psychology as my degree, I would’ve said: “I dunno, I just like it.” When my future career is on the line, that didn’t instill a lot of confidence. But that’s just the truth of who we are at that time; we don’t know for sure what we want to be when we grow up.

Rather than straining to nail down the perfect career as soon as possible, try adopting the mindset of a startup. Take opportunities as they come and try them out without any predetermined end result.  Do things outside of your job description. Shadow co-workers in completely different roles. Apply for a job that doesn’t fit your traditional target but catches your eye. Take risks and try new things at this stage, because, like startups, once you get farther down the road there may not be the same room for experimentation. It could turn out that your theory was completely wrong and that may end up being the best thing to happen to you.

Customer Feedback

All startups are customer obsessed. Successful startups are obsessed with their customers not because they want their money but because they want their feedback. Especially in the early stages, customer feedback is more valuable than money.  They conduct interviews, send surveys, and even observe their customers in their daily lives. They invest a ton of time and money in getting feedback because they know the key to unlocking their full potential lies in the hands of their customers.

One regret I have is that I wish I would’ve solicited more feedback from people along the way. I was so busy pretending like I knew what I was doing and had it all figured out that I just assumed I didn’t need it. If I could do it all over again, I would’ve treated every person I worked with as a customer: bosses, CEOs, clients, co-workers. Rather than waiting around to receive feedback, I would’ve sought it out myself. Because in a traditional work setting, we usually only get feedback from our boss, typically in a high stress situation (i.e. a performance review). Getting feedback from only one person will never give us the full picture of what our strengths, areas of opportunity, and full potential are. Successful startups gather feedback from multiple people to gain multiple perspectives. The more people you hear from, the more you’re able to spot patterns and trends which enable you to draw conclusions about who you are and what type of work is the right fit for you. That could mean staying the course or you may need to pivot.

Pivoting

In the startup world, a pivot happens when a company breaks with its core focus and changes direction in a fundamental way. Many successful companies were originally headed in a completely different direction until they pivoted. Instagram was a location-based check-in service before they pivoted. Just like startups, those experiencing a quarter-life crisis are at the point in their lives where it will be a lot easier to make a course correction. 

Achieving success as a startup is all about agility and humility. You need the courage to say “I swear this was the answer, but this just isn’t working” and then have the resilience to swallow your pride and try something different. I think that’s also true for a career journey. Sometimes one of the hardest things to do is admit to ourselves that we just don’t have the skills, the interest, or the passion for the role we are in. It's easy to fall prey to the sunk-cost fallacy, a common pitfall that prevents a lot of startups from pivoting and eventually leading to their demise. The sunk-cost fallacy is this idea that because we’ve already started something and invested a ton of energy and time into it, we should just keep going mainly on principle.

For many, it can feel like a failure to leave a job or like a waste of money to end up in a role that has nothing to do with our college degree. What I like about a pivot is that you can pivot in stride. It’s one fluid movement that integrates every step you’ve made up to this point. And pivoting may be more common than you think; more than one-third (36%) of 20 and 30 year olds have switched to new roles and new industries, and 23 percent have taken a career break in order to reevaluate what they want to do.  Leaving a job that you’ve been in for 3-5 years might feel like it was all a waste, but in reality all of that time and experience may have led you to make a meaningful pivot. A lot of people say that it’s risky to take a new role or change industries. Well, it’s also risky to stay put. We all take risks whether we like it or not; startups, however, see risks as learning opportunities and an essential part of the process.

You are a startup. You are a brilliant idea that has the potential to change the world. As a person in their 20s or 30s, now is the time to test that idea by getting curious, experimenting, and taking risks. Be open to surprises and sudden changes in direction. Enjoy the journey and treat every step of the way as an opportunity to discover your true potential.

- Paul Johnson -