The Decade's 10 Best and Worst Career Moves
Who made proactive moves necessary for success in this volatile decade? Who shot themselves in the foot? And what can we learn from them both? The Daily Beast picks the winners and losers, career-wise.
By definition, having a career means having career setbacks, and the recession has only increased the ranks of those wallowing in self-pity. That moment presents two choices: Embrace the opportunity that comes with turmoil, or let failure define you.
“People who have bounced back often say it’s better the second time around,” Mickey Drexler, J. Crew’s CEO—fired by The Gap earlier in the decade—tells The Daily Beast. “In my case, that’s true.”
To gain some perspective, The Daily Beast has selected 10 people who made the decade’s most fateful, successful career decisions. Some were nationally momentous: Hillary Clinton’s audacious move to run for a Senate seat from New York in 2000, positioning herself an independent power broker comes to mind. Others were more whimsical: Jennifer Hudson choosing to subjugate her ego and attend an open cattle call for Dreamgirls. All, however, are instructive.
Click to View Our Gallery of Best Career Moves
“Don’t listen to friends who tell you to take your lumps and move on with your life,” says Yale Professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, co-author of Firing Back: How Great Leaders Rebound After Career Disasters. The common thread in comebacks: a willingness to get back in the saddle.
Sometimes, that’s not possible. We’ve also highlighted the 10 worst career moves of decade. This too offers lessons—though hopefully not many you need to internalize.
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Click to View Our Gallery of Worst Career Moves
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