Your Career Is a Mess, and That’s Exactly How It Should Be

There I was, standing in my kitchen at 2 a.m., arguing with a time-traveling ferret. Not just any ferret—this one wore glasses and had the nerve to sit on my leftover pizza while criticizing my life choices.

“You call that a career?” it said, pushing its glasses up. “No wonder you end up like me. By the way, this pizza tastes like regret.”

Before I could respond, the ferret casually hopped onto a supercool bike, revved it up, and zipped off into the future, taking the pizza and my confidence with it. I stood there staring at the empty box, wondering if this was the universe’s way of telling me to get my act together—or if I was just sleep-deprived.

Experimentation Is Messy, But It’s Where Growth Lives

Careers aren’t smooth, straight tarmac roads; they’re more like riding in Mumbai in the summer—full of potholes, traffic, sudden rains, and random rickshaw overtaking you like Niki Lauda. If you think your career should follow a perfect upward trajectory, Congratulations! You’re in delulu!

Experimentation isn’t just a phase; it’s how humans evolved. Our ancestors didn’t survive by staying in their comfort zones—they poked at weird animals, ate questionable berries, and invented things like the wheel. And yeah, they probably fell off their bikes a few times. But hey, they kept going because that’s how growth works.

For me, experimenting meant juggling product design, UX, random freelance gigs, and the occasional “What if I move to mountains?” daydream. Some experiments soared; others crashed harder than our hopes on 19Nov. But every stumble taught me something new, even if it was just, “Never trust a ferret with glasses.”

Chaos is Where the Fun Begins

“Beta Tumse Na Ho Payega?” (Gangs of Wasseypur)

You’re going to hear a lot of people telling you that you are not capable enough, or that it’s too chaotic to figure out life. But listen—chaos is where the magic happens.

Isn’t it weirdly comforting when you realize that your career doesn’t need to be perfect? Life’s just like a Anurag Kashyap movie—full of messy, complex characters that make no sense at first but somehow tie together at the end. We’re all just trying to make sense of it while making it work.

Start Small, Fail Loudly
Think of every new experiment as trying to ride a bike for the first time. You don’t start by riding through Ladakh Valley—you start by falling on your face, scraping your knees, and realizing, “Hey, maybe I should’ve learned how to balance first.”

Take on one new experiment every month—whether it’s a skill, a role, or just a different way of doing something. The key? Fail loudly. Think of failure as your loud, attention-grabbing best friend who’s always telling you when you’re doing something wrong, but in the end, they teach you the best lessons.

Embrace the Weird
Look, the more bizarre your experiments are, the more you’ll grow. No, seriously—embrace the weird. Maybe you’re trying to learn coding on a Tuesday night instead of watching Netflix like a normal person. Or pitching a wild idea to your boss while secretly hoping they don’t revoke your office chair privileges. It’s all part of the process.

The point is, if it’s weird, it’s stretching you. And stretching means growth. Don’t be afraid to do the crazy things, even if they make you feel a little awkward at first. Get weird, get wild. Who knows? Your “weird” might turn into your next big career move.

If you feel stuck or like your career isn’t going anywhere, just remember this: You’re on a journey. It’s okay not to have it all figured out. In fact, it’s probably better that way. Keep experimenting, keep failing, and eventually, you’ll land on something that works.

The Ending: Back to the Future... Sort Of

As I stood there, staring at the pizza box my future-self-ferret had left behind, I realized, the twists, the turns, the weirdness—it’s all part of the adventure.

Maybe one day, I’ll get it all together, or maybe I’ll just end up with a lot of random, chaotic moments. Either way, I’ll take it. After all, I’ve got my time machine ready for the next big experiment.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a few Gangs of Wasseypur-level career twists to work out. Stay tuned, my future-self (and the ferret) will have a lot to say.