Up Is Not the Only Way

Up Is Not the Only Way
Rethinking Career Mobility

Move up or move out. When those two options appear to be the only ones, dissatisfaction grows and engagement suffers. In decades of studying careers around the globe, Beverly Kaye, Lindy Williams, and Lynn Cowart have found that, in fact, there are more options. And rethinking career mobility can lead you to them!

Career mobility isn't just about moving to a new city or country. It's about stretching, learning, and transforming. Whether you're working on your own career or you're a manager, a mentor, or a coach helping others, Up Is Not the Only Way offers you six ways to build successful mobile careers.

Keep the same job but discover multiple ways to learn and grow while staying in the same place. If a new job in the same company is in the cards, experiment and test possibilities. Make a lateral move as a powerful way to develop new skills. If stepping back is the right answer, discover how it can be done without derailing a career. Pursue a promotion when it's the right time and role. And if it's time to step out the door, the authors suggest how to make an elegant exit that maybe leaves open the possibility of a return one day.

The book includes important questions to consider—about interests, skills, values, and timing—when choosing to enrich or make a change. For each option, Up Is Not the Only Way explores how managers, coaches, and employees can have rich career conversations and partner to determine the best courses of action.

Rather than narrowing aspirations to one dream job or role, Kaye, Williams, and Cowart encourage readers to take a “kaleidoscope” view—to be open to ever-shifting patterns of options, opportunities, and possibilities—to build a rewarding career.