The Career Strategy Blog

"Entry level position. Five years of experience required." If you've spent any time on job boards, you've seen this paradox. It's frustrating, demoralizing, and — here's the truth — often misunderstood. What "Entry Level" Actually Means in 2025 The "experience paradox" isn't really a paradox at all. It's a communication gap between how employers write job descriptions and how candidates interpret them. Here's what's actually happening: "Entry level" refers to the role's seniority within the company, not your overall career experience. A company might classify a position as "entry level" because it's the lowest tier in that particular job family — but they still want candidates who have relevant skills and experience from elsewhere. "Five years of experience" is often a wish list, not a requirement. Research shows that women and underrepresented candidates tend to apply only w...

I Spent 10 Years in the Wrong Career. Here's How I Actually Figured Out What I Wanted. I was 34, sitting in a parking garage in downtown Denver, and I couldn't make myself open the car door. It was a Tuesday. I had a spreadsheet due by noon, a boss who communicated exclusively in passive-aggressive CCs, and a 401(k) that was doing better than I was. On paper, I was fine. I was an operations manager at a logistics company. I made $78,000 a year. I had health insurance. But I was also crying in a parking garage at 8:47 AM because the idea of walking into that building felt like drowning. Here's the part nobody tells you: knowing you're unhappy is easy. Knowing what would actually make you happy is the hard part. I spent the next three years figuring it out. Not through vision boards or "finding my passion" — through a process that was way more mechanical and way less mystical than I expected. And it started with understanding something I now call the...