{"id":287432,"date":"2025-11-16T20:28:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T20:28:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/287432\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T20:28:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T20:28:18","slug":"why-professionals-are-stepping-down-the-career-ladder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/287432\/","title":{"rendered":"Why professionals are stepping down the career ladder"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is the weekly Work Life newsletter. If you are interested in more careers-related content, sign up<\/a> to receive it in your inbox.<\/p>\n

Have you ever stared at your inbox on a Monday morning and thought, \u2018What if I just quit my corporate job and became a barista?\u2019 Turns out, you\u2019re not alone.<\/p>\n

A new survey<\/a> of 600 U.S. professionals commissioned by TopResume shows that more than 65 per cent of workers say they\u2019re willing to apply for a role below their current experience level and 70 per cent are open to stepping down in seniority. <\/p>\n

According to Amanda Augustine, TopResume\u2019s resident career expert and a certified professional career coach, this shift is being driven by both practical realities and emotional fatigue.<\/p>\n

\u201cProfessionals are feeling pressure from a cooling job market,\u201d Ms. Augustine says. \u201cMany have applied for roles at their current level and haven\u2019t heard back, so they\u2019re widening their search in hopes of landing something sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not just about job security. After years of pandemic-driven burnout and the pressure to always be \u201con,\u201d some workers are now prioritizing balance over ambition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re betting that a lower-level role might bring more predictability, less stress and greater work-life balance, even if it means trading title or pay for greater peace of mind,\u201d Ms. Augustine says.<\/p>\n

Executives, in particular, are leaning into this trend. Ms. Augustine says that competition at the top is fierce as a single senior role can attract hundreds of applicants. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat scarcity alone can push seasoned professionals to explore mid-level opportunities, especially if they\u2019ve been out of work for a while,\u201d she says. \u201cAdditionally, many executives are simply reassessing what they want from work. After managing non-stop crises and major transformations in recent years, some are ready to scale back responsibility and stress.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, a strategic step down doesn\u2019t have to look like a career setback. Ms. Augustine advises job seekers to tailor their resumes to emphasize relevant specializations rather than years of experience. <\/p>\n

\u201cLead with a concise summary that frames your experience as depth, not hierarchy,\u201d she says. And in interviews, \u201cexplain your move as intentional, rather than reactive.\u201d<\/p>\n

For those facing a potential pay cut, Ms. Augustine recommends negotiating beyond salary. <\/p>\n

\u201cCome to the table with a short list of benefits that improve your overall compensation package or help you grow long-term,\u201d she says, pointing to options such as flexible schedules, tuition reimbursement or professional development stipends.<\/p>\n

This data challenges the traditional notion of career success and may be early signs of a shift. <\/p>\n

\u201cFor years, success meant continually moving up the ladder,\u201d Ms. Augustine says. \u201cBut this research shows that many professionals are redefining what progress looks like. Stability, flexibility and well-being are increasingly replacing title and salary as the markers of success.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fast factReplaced workers<\/p>\n

2 per cent<\/p>\n

That\u2019s how many roles are being fully replaced by AI, according to the Canada 2026 Hays Salary & Hiring Trends Guide. <\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Career guidanceSparking creativity <\/p>\n

Creative thinking fuels innovation, problem-solving and adaptability, but it can be harder to come by, especially in a world where AI is increasingly relied upon for some of that heavy lifting. <\/p>\n

According to Dara Treseder, chief marketing officer at software company Autodesk, leaders need to encourage and challenge people to pursue \u201cnever-been-done-before\u201d ideas and then provide the psychological safety to let them take the risks that lead to better, more creative outcomes. <\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

QuotedApplication overload <\/p>\n

\u201cBusinesses call us all the time after they\u2019ve put up a posting on their own, got hundreds of applications in 24 hours and said, \u2018None of these people have what we\u2019re looking for.\u2019 We have seen an uptick in applicants but, regrettably speaking, it\u2019s not the quality that\u2019s upticking,\u201d says Cristina Schultz, a recruitment manager with Calgary\u2019s About Staffing. <\/p>\n

This article looks at some of the struggles hiring managers and recruiters are facing as more people, who are often not qualified, submit AI-generated job applications. <\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

On our radarBuying Canadian <\/p>\n

Canadian AI minister Evan Solomon says the federal government is considering expanding its Buy Canadian policies to include technology infrastructure. This means that firms receiving public funding would have to spend domestically on AI and digital services wherever possible. <\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This is the weekly Work Life newsletter. If you are interested in more careers-related content, sign up to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":287433,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45,49,48,2924,22463,22464,22460,22459,1663,22465,124,1412,2922,22462,18940,22461],"class_list":{"0":"post-287432","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-career-advice","12":"tag-career-leadership","13":"tag-careers-globe-and-mail","14":"tag-careers-newsletter","15":"tag-careersnewsletter","16":"tag-future-of-work","17":"tag-globe-and-mail-newsletter","18":"tag-jobs","19":"tag-newsletter","20":"tag-noastack","21":"tag-thought-leadership","22":"tag-workplace-culture","23":"tag-your-life-at-work"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=287432"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287432\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/287433"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=287432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=287432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=287432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}