It turns out your boss might want a version of you that isn’t altogether authentic.
One of the many pieces of career advice that emerged years ago — when the job market was far friendlier for many workers — is the idea that we should bring our whole selves to work.
That’s not aging all that well these days, however, as employers in many industries remain selective in their hiring, and some companies announce layoffs.
“If you love wearing tight little leather outfits that are strapped on, I don’t want to see that,” said Margie Warrell, a leadership consultant and author of the book “The Courage Gap.”
“That’s not appropriate,” she said.
The whole-self idea is only one example of the bumper-sticker wisdom meant to guide us through our careers that often doesn’t hold up.
Here are six pieces of stale work advice — and what you might think about instead.
Follow your passion
The impulse to align what you love with what you do for work makes sense, though it can also bring a ton of pressure. Feeling like you have to “find your passion” can set you up for disappointment.
“That’s probably as vague as it gets,” said Jochen Menges, a professor of human resource management and leadership at the University of Zurich. “It’s not an actionable goal.”
He said that a better approach would be to set goals centered on the emotion you want to feel in your work. Maybe it’s something like pride — even though you might not experience it every day.
“If I align my emotional needs more with what I do — with my career prospects — then I’m a lot better off,” he said. That, in turn, will accelerate your career, Menges said.
Make it a numbers game
When you’re looking for a job, it can be tempting to click “apply” as many times as possible to boost your chances of getting so much as a screening call with HR.
It’s an understandable impulse. It feels good to do something tangible when so much of the search process is out of your control.
The trouble is, it’s often not the best use of your time. In a poll by the hiring software maker Greenhouse, 53% of recruiters said they review fewer than half of the applications they receive. The survey involved more than 600 recruiters and hiring managers.
While the spray-and-pray approach is tempting, networking to make connections inside an employer can often be more effective, recruiters say.
Another thing to consider: If you have a list of places you’re targeting, network before the job gets posted, said Laura Labovich, a career coach. That’s because once a job listing is live, recruiters and hiring managers aren’t likely to do more than point you to it.
Climb the ladder
The idea of ascending a corporate hierarchy has become outdated for some workers, said Christian Tröster, an Academy of Management scholar and a professor of leadership and organizational behavior at Germany’s Kühne Logistics University.
Instead, he said, people might want to consider what he called a “protean” career — one that changes shape over time.
Tröster said that instead of focusing on moving up, a better aim for many workers would be to become “psychologically successful.”
“The ultimate goal of your career is feeling proud and accomplished,” he said.
One reason you might not want to scale the ladder is that a push by some leaders for “flatter” organizational structures — and the elimination of middle management — can mean there aren’t as many rungs for ambitious workers to grab hold of.
“Careers today are no longer linear,” Warrell said. Instead, workers might opt for a lateral move, a side gig, or a so-called portfolio career, where you take on multiple jobs to earn a living while maintaining flexibility.
Warrell said that workers who chart their own paths are often more fulfilled than those who try to grind their way up an org chart.
Don’t job hop
Career advice once often included the suggestion that workers avoid changing jobs for at least a year to avoid appearing uncommitted to an organization.
It’s true that a string of frequent job changes can raise concerns among prospective employers. Yet, Warrell said, axioms around job-hopping have often softened.
She said “smart” job changes — sometimes including those in quick succession — that indicate you’re taking on extra responsibility and developing new skills can add shine, not tarnish, to a résumé.
“It can be seen as a sign of ambition, adaptability — not instability,” Warrell said.
Focus on hard skills
Technical mastery — especially in hot areas like AI — can take you far and, in some cases, leave you with your pick of jobs. Yet it’s not the only route to career success.
AI is already taking on some of what software engineers do, for example. In surveys, employers often say they want to see workers who also possess soft skills, like communication and teamwork.
Menges said one reason soft skills are important is that humans will still be needed to evaluate what AI produces.
To help do that, he said, workers will need to rely in part on emotion for guidance. Menges said that in the 20th century, workers were often told to suppress their feelings at work.
“Now, you’ve got to bring those emotions back, because whatever AI does needs evaluation, and that evaluation comes down to how we feel about what appears on our screens,” he said.
Bring your whole self
While it might have been well-intentioned, critics have long found the idea of showing up at work as the unvarnished version of yourself to be problematic.
Ella F. Washington, a professor of practice at Georgetown University, previously told Business Insider that a better way to think about the idea is to bring your whole professional self to work.
That might mean working with people you might not like. Or, Warrell said, it could mean pushing through a bad mood.
“If one part of your whole self is that you’re short-tempered and grumpy in the morning, don’t bring that self to work,” she said.
An earlier version of this story appeared on March 3, 2025.
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