The career ladder is simple: see the next promotion. Climb towards it.

But in the latest episode of Shameless Careers, Nadine Gisdon - who went from finance to fintech and now runs a business in the tokenization space - shares a different way to think about building a career: the Career Backpack.

The idea?

Don't optimise JUST for your next title. Optimise for the skills and experiences that compound over time.

Sometimes that means:

- A lateral move instead of an upward one

- Going back to education

- Taking a pay cut to enter a faster-growing industry

Less linear. More uncertain.

The upside?

- More career optionality

- A greater sense of adventure

- A richer, more distinctive set of skills that's far harder to replicate

And the best part is: you don't need a career pivot to start building your Career Backpack.

It can be as simple as worrying less about your next title and putting more energy into getting involved in projects that will strategically grow your skills, network, and perspective.

Because in a world that's changing faster than ever, the most important question might no longer be:

"When is my next promotion?"

It might be:

"What skills and experiences am I adding to my Backpack today to make my career future-proof?"

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✅ Stay connected with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/varia-pechurina/

✅ Stay connected with Nadine: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadine-gisdon-8094338b/

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#CareerPivot #Entrepreneurship #CareerBackpack #CareerChange #StartupCareer #CareerAdvice #CorporateToStartup #CareerDevelopment #FutureOfWork #fintech

⚠️Disclaimer: I do not accept any liability for any loss or damage incurred from you acting or not acting as a result of listening to any of my publications. You acknowledge that you use the information I provide at your own risk. Do your research.

Copyright Notice: This episode and my podcast channel contain dialogue, music, and images that are the property of Shameless Careers. You are authorised to share the episode link and channel and embed this episode in your website or others as long as a link back to my podcast channel is provided.

© Shameless Careers

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I’ve always been curious about what creates the greatest career leverage - both when you're climbing towards a senior leadership role and once you get there.

And I’ve never heard anyone explain it more clearly than Michael Erhard, a senior leader at Amazon, in this episode of the Shameless Careers podcast.

Michael built teams from zero to 50+ people, scaled engineering and automation portfolios from $1M to $3.3B, and was promoted four times in under six years into global leadership roles.

In our conversation, he breaks it down in a super clear and structured way:

🔥What actually gets you promoted to senior leadership (it's simple: there are three things you need to start doing alongside your core responsibilities)

🚀How to multiply your impact as a leader once you get there - without sacrificing your health, family, or personal life

After this conversation, the roadmap will be clear. The only thing left is to put it into action.

What has been the single biggest factor in getting promoted for you? Please share in comments

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✅ Stay connected with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/varia-pechurina/

✅ Stay connected with Michael: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-erhard/

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#GetPromoted #CareerGrowth #Leadership #CareerAdvice #LeadershipDevelopment

⚠️Disclaimer: I do not accept any liability for any loss or damage incurred from you acting or not acting as a result of listening to any of my publications. You acknowledge that you use the information I provide at your own risk. Do your research.

Copyright Notice: This episode and my podcast channel contain dialogue, music, and images that are the property of Shameless Careers. You are authorised to share the episode link and channel and embed this episode in your website or others as long as a link back to my podcast channel is provided.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine you have three more years to live - what would be your next career move?

That’s the question the guest of the latest Shameless Careers episode, Winsie Chen, asked herself after three people she knew unexpectedly passed away.

At the time Winsie had a promising career: 10 years in banking in Singapore, a CFA, a great network, and a clear banking career path.

Deep down, though, she knew finance was no longer fulfilling - and that she still had a dream of moving to London.

So - after asking herself the question above - she bought a one-way ticket to Europe: without a job (or a plan), deciding that she would simply. figure. it. out.

In this conversation we talk about:

✅ What is it really like to give up a decade of investment in your career path

✅ How she realised finance had run its course - and what gives her meaning instead

✅ How Winsie thought that all she could do was “spreadsheets” - until she realised how much value she could bring to early-stage startups

✅ Why standard job applications to startups didn’t work - and what worked instead

✅ The dramatic difference between career and comp trajectories in corporate and early-stage startups

✅ How stand-up comedy made her more comfortable with failure - and bigger life decisions

This episode brings up a question:

What is risk?

Doing the craziest career move possible - just like what Winsie did - or spending your limited time on an autopilot, once you’ve realised your previous career has lost its meaning?

Would love to hear your take on it in comments!

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#CareerChange #Entrepreneurship #StartupLife #TakeTheLeap #PersonalGrowth #FounderStory #WomenInBusiness #CorporateToStartup

⚠️Disclaimer: I do not accept any liability for any loss or damage incurred from you acting or not acting as a result of listening to any of my publications. You acknowledge that you use the information I provide at your own risk. Do your research.

Copyright Notice: This episode and my podcast channel contain dialogue, music, and images that are the property of Shameless Careers. You are authorised to share the episode link and channel and embed this episode in your website or others as long as a link back to my podcast channel is provided.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.