"Being, Appearing, and Pig: The Career Triangle and the Path to Real Success"

Recently, I found myself in a conversation with a mentee. She was wrestling with the usual “How do I move up?” question, frustrated by what she called “corporate games” and curious to understand what it really takes to thrive in today’s work environment. It’s one of those talks every career-minded person has eventually: is there a formula to success, or is it just about who you know? This is how we ended up discussing the “career triangle,” my own slightly tongue-in-cheek model of career growth made up of three cornerstones: Being, Appearing, and… yes, Pig. You read that right. While it’s usually good to rely on talent or visibility, occasionally a bit of luck sneaks in to sweeten the deal.

But just like there’s a triangle of Being, Appearing, and Pig, there’s another critical axis of career success that’s even more fundamental: choosing a track aligned with skills, passion, and context. Because while you might be able to climb with the first three, genuine fulfillment, performance, and long-term stability come from getting these latter pieces right.

Starting with the original triangle, Being is about your actual competence. It’s the part of you that has the skills, does the work, and delivers results. While it may sound mundane, Being is essential because it’s where the true value lies. However, without a healthy dose of Appearing—being visible and making sure people know about your impact—it’s easy for your work to go unnoticed. Appearing is all about staying top-of-mind in an organization, making sure that your name is associated with competence and contribution. Finally, there’s Pig, the wild card representing luck and timing. Some might call it networking, some call it a knack for chance encounters; regardless, there’s no denying that occasionally success requires just being in the right place at the right time.

But even with this career triangle firmly in mind, there’s one thing we can’t overlook: a career path should be as much about choosing the right path as it is about mastering the climb. This is where the values of skills, passion, and context come into play. Choosing a path that aligns with your skills, fires up your passion, and suits the context of your life and workplace will sustain you through the challenges of growing a career and make for true fulfillment.

When it comes to skills, it’s essential to pursue roles where you’re genuinely capable of delivering results and growing. Chasing positions that only look glamorous—or that might be achievable solely with the help of “Pig” or “Appearing”—may lead to fast wins but will often leave you overextended or underqualified. Moreover, having the skills for a role doesn’t mean you stop growing; a role that challenges you to stretch further but still plays to your strengths is ideal.

Passion is the second pillar. Without passion, even the most talented individual will struggle to go above and beyond, and that can eventually drag down performance. Work that connects with your values or excites you on a personal level provides a reservoir of motivation and resilience that no amount of skill alone can replace. A career where you’re driven by something other than external rewards or optics is more sustainable, rewarding, and fun. The day-to-day becomes not just bearable but engaging, and suddenly you’re learning, improving, and contributing without it feeling like a slog.

Then there’s context, which is about finding the right environment for your unique blend of skills and passion. Context is often what people overlook, assuming that if they’re good and motivated, that should be enough. But every organization has its quirks, its unwritten rules, and its own culture, and choosing the right environment can make or break a career. If the culture heavily favors “Appearing,” for example, and visibility isn’t your strong suit, you might end up frustrated even if you excel at your job. In “Pig”-centric workplaces, if you don’t naturally gravitate toward networking or luck-finding, it might feel exhausting just to stay afloat.

And that brings us to the dangers of a “flexible morality,” a trap that some fall into when they try too hard to ride on “Pig” alone. Relying on luck and chance connections, without a foundation of skill or genuine passion, often leads to short-lived successes. If the landscape shifts or support wanes, those who relied on sheer timing are often left with little to fall back on. Even worse, flexible morals can have unintended consequences—once you gain a reputation for sidestepping rules or cozying up to people purely for gain, trust erodes, and you may find that the goodwill of your colleagues dries up just when you need it most.

The key takeaway is that while every career needs a bit of Being, Appearing, and the occasional Pig, the real success comes from choosing a track aligned with your skills, passion, and context. This axis not only brings stability and satisfaction but keeps you grounded even when the triangle’s dynamics feel unpredictable. After all, if you’re in the right role, leveraging the right strengths, and genuinely excited by the work, the rest will feel like a natural extension of who you are—and success is likely to follow in a way that’s far more sustainable, enjoyable, and free of corporate guesswork. So next time you’re strategizing your career, remember that mastering the triangle is only part of the journey; finding the right track is where true fulfillment lies.