Book Review - The Squiggly Career: Ditch the Ladder, Discover Opportunity, Design Your Career

🧠 What’s It About?

The Squiggly Career offers a fresh take on career development in today’s world, especially relevant for first responders whose paths rarely look “typical.” The authors challenge the outdated idea of climbing a straight ladder toward success and instead introduce a flexible, self-guided approach where growth happens in many directions.

For paramedics and frontline workers, where roles are highly structured and the path to advancement can feel narrow, this book opens up new possibilities. Whether you're on leave, stepping back, stepping sideways, or just feeling stuck, this book reminds you: you're not off-track ... you’re just taking the scenic route.

🔍 Why It Matters for First Responders

Many paramedics feel the tension between wanting more, more balance, more meaning, more progression, and feeling boxed in by rigid systems or expectations. This book shows you how to take control of your career, based on what matters most to you, not the system.

It’s especially useful if:

• You’re returning from time off and asking, “What’s next?”

• You feel ready for change but aren’t sure how to begin

• You’re exploring roles outside the traditional on-road structure

• You want to grow, but not necessarily “move up”

🔑 Key Lessons You Can Apply

1. 💡 Identify Your “Super Strengths”

Instead of focusing on what’s next in title or rank, the authors encourage identifying your core strengths, the skills that energise you and come naturally.

Respondr Tip:
List the things you’re good at that don’t rely on your clinical title. This might be:

• Communicating under pressure

• Teaching new colleagues

• Advocating for patients

• Building trust fast

👉 These strengths can shape your next move ... even in unexpected fields.

2. 🎯 Let Values Be Your Compass

When you hit a turning point, values keep you grounded. The book gives tools to help clarify your top 3 values so you can make aligned choices, not reactive ones.

Respondr Tip:
Ask: What kind of work makes me proud?
Look for patterns. That’s your values at work and your career compass.

3. 🔄 Explore Without Pressure

The authors introduce the concept of “career experiments”, small, low-stakes actions that help you test new directions.

Respondr Tip:
Try one of these this month:

• Shadow someone in a different team

• Volunteer for a non-clinical project

• Take a short course in something non-medical

• Join a conversation with someone who’s stepped off-road

You don’t have to commit to a change to explore it.

4. 🧠 Manage “Career Gremlins” (Your Inner Critics)

One powerful insight from the book is identifying and naming the beliefs that hold you back, like “I’m behind” or “I should stick with what I know.” Once you name them, you can challenge them.

Respondr Tip:
What’s one career belief you’ve been carrying that no longer serves you?
Write it down, then reframe it. (e.g. “I’m starting late” → “I’m starting now, and that’s enough.”)

💬 Reflection Prompts:

• Where in my career do I feel boxed in and how might I explore outside the lines?

• What’s a “squiggly” move I’ve already made that taught me something valuable?

• If I removed all expectations, what would I love to try next?

✅ Final Takeaway: Your Career Doesn’t Have to Be Straight to Be Successful

You’re not lost. You’re exploring.

And in paramedicine, where growth often feels linear and rigid, The Squiggly Career is a reminder that real success is shaped by self-awareness, curiosity, and courage, not titles, ladders, or fixed timelines.

Wherever you’re at .... this is still your path. You get to shape it.

You can access The Squiggly Career: Ditch the Ladder, Discover Opportunity, Design Your Career by Helen Tupper & Sarah Ellis via print, digital or audio format.