Why Do People Want to Reevaluate Their Careers?
What makes sense at twenty-five may lose its meaning by thirty-five. What’s important in one’s thirties may give way to other priorities in one’s forties. This change is inevitable—but if left unnoticed, a person may continue down a path that once held meaning but no longer does.
Daniel Levinson studied adult development through long-term research and found that each decade brings its own unique psychological needs, questions, and priorities (The Seasons of a Man’s Life, 1978). These periods are psychological, not biological; yet they are powerful and predictable.
A career review conducted every ten years turns these natural transitional periods into opportunities.
The Unique Question of Each Decade
Twenties: Who do I want to be? What skills and identities will I explore? This is a period of experimentation and identity-building. At this stage, a career assessment is less about setting a specific direction and more about keeping options open and prioritizing learning.
Thirties: Is what I’ve built really what I want? While continuing with the momentum of the first career phase, it’s time to pause and ask, “Is this the right path for me?” Levinson defines this period as the “questioning of the young adult structure.”
Forties: How do I want to spend the rest of my life? Carl Jung’s “second half” framework comes into play here. External achievements have been accumulated; now their inner meaning is being questioned. This period is when the most significant career reorientations occur.
Fifties and Beyond: What do I want to leave as my legacy? Erik Erikson’s concept of “generativity”—contributing to the next generation, passing on experience, and leaving a legacy—comes to the fore during this period.
Are Edgar Schein’s Career Anchors Changing?
Edgar Schein’s research on career anchors (Career Anchors, 1990) shows that people’s core values and motivations remain relatively stable throughout their careers. But it is also true that these anchors manifest differently at various stages of life.
Someone driven by the “technical expertise” anchor in their twenties may choose to live out that same anchor through mentoring and knowledge transfer in their forties. The anchor remains the same; the way it’s expressed changes. Recognizing this shift is one of the most valuable outcomes of a career review.
Practice: A Three-Dimensional Review
A ten-year career assessment is conducted across three dimensions:
Looking Back: What has been gained over the past ten years? What skills, relationships, and experiences have been built? What has been left behind—voluntarily or otherwise? Are there any decisions you regret, and if so, what did you learn from them?
Current Situation: How well aligned are your values, strengths, and current job today? Where does your energy come from, and where does it go? Which elements bring satisfaction, and which ones drain you?
The next ten years: What questions stand out? In which direction is there energy and curiosity? Looking back at the end of this period, what do you want to see?
These questions aren’t answers; they provide direction. Expecting definitive answers paralyzes this process.
When Should a Review Be Conducted?
It doesn’t matter if it’s done at age 40 or 42. The ten-year mark is symbolic, a trigger. What really matters is conducting this assessment before major career decisions, during significant life transitions, or during those periods when “something feels off but I don’t know what it is.”
It can be done alone. But when done with an outside perspective—with a coach or a trusted person—it often yields much deeper and more honest results.
“A career isn’t static; it’s a living thing. Reviewing it every ten years is about building a genuine relationship with it.” > Adapted from Daniel Levinson, The Seasons of a Man’s Life, 1978
Cevvela’s Perspective
- Each ten-year period brings different psychological needs; if this change goes unnoticed, a sense of disharmony builds up (Levinson, 1978).
- Career anchors remain relatively stable, but the ways they are expressed change with the period (Schein, 1990).
- Reflection on the past, analysis of the present situation, and intentions for the next decade: a three-dimensional review provides the clearest framework.
- Questions, not answers, are important; this assessment provides direction, not definitive answers.
- Coaching can be used in this process to structure the ten-year assessment, make implicit patterns visible, and create clarity for the coming period.
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