Lessons Learned from My Journey: Building Career Capital, Combining Skills, and Embracing Change

1. Build Strong Career Capital

If you want to do work that matters, you have to be great at something. Not just good—great. This is what career capital is all about. Cal Newport talks about it, and I learned it firsthand. You can’t just wish for a successful career. You have to build rare and valuable skills that others find hard to match. It’s about acquiring key abilities that set you apart, skills that make a difference.

Think about a restaurant. A successful restaurateur isn’t just a good cook. They’re skilled at menu design, customer service, management. They’ve mastered the elements that make their business work. And that's exactly what you need to do for your career—figure out what’s required, then go all in.

For me, I started with the basics—LCCI and computer training in 2005, followed by trading plants and goldfish in 2006 while studying medicine. That’s how I started stacking up career capital. I learned the value of skills across disciplines: from IT to personal development to pharmaceuticals. These skills became my secret weapon in adapting to an ever-changing landscape.

2. Become a Combo Specialist

The market rewards those who are different. The more skills you combine, the more unique you become. Eric Sim calls this the "Combo Specialist." Scott Adams calls it stacking talents. Either way, it's about taking seemingly unrelated abilities and putting them together to create something remarkable.

In my own journey, I mixed medicine with accounting, then added personal development with NLP and CBT. By 2010, I’d jumped into tech with MMUC and started importing goods. And yes, I launched Getmebook in 2011—and it failed miserably. But it gave me lessons, connections, and the insight to venture into digital marketing. It’s about the power of combinations. The designer who knows marketing becomes a content creator. The techie who knows finance becomes a fintech expert. The more combinations, the less replaceable you become.

3. Embrace a Squiggly Career Path

The career ladder is dead. It’s been replaced by a squiggly path that takes you in unexpected directions. Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis popularized this idea—and it’s exactly how my career unfolded. I never went in a straight line. I ran a phone shop for eight years, systemized it, ran it for 8 years, and then sold it. I moved from corporate roles to launching businesses, from teaching to tech.

I founded YEC Learning Center in 2015, and that only happened because I was willing to embrace change and experiment. Over 100 corporate training sessions in a year, launching Toe Tet Online Learning in 2019, and growing through the pandemic with Dream Lab and Akyanpay. It wasn’t about climbing up; it was about moving sideways, forward, and sometimes even back. That’s how you grow.

4. Exploration Over Restriction

Instead of worrying about climbing the next rung of the ladder, I learned to explore. Exploration leads to growth, to unexpected opportunities. During my career, I didn’t limit myself to just one field. I took on side quests—studied NLP, dabbled in trading, experimented with digital marketing, and launched products during a pandemic.

Exploration allowed me to find what I’m good at and what fulfills me. Side projects, freelance work, learning new things—all these avenues opened doors I never imagined. Don’t box yourself in. The more you explore, the more you discover your unique place in the world.

5. Utilize Your Strengths and Network

Know what you’re good at, and then use it. In 2021, I launched CIY (Code It Yourself), lost weight, read more books, and started building content. I focused on my strengths—communication, teaching, experimenting—and it paid off. I built an audience. I connected with people who mattered. That’s the magic of focusing on your strengths.

But here’s the thing—your strengths are only useful if others know about them. Your network is your net worth. Every opportunity I’ve had came through my network. LinkedIn, events, sharing knowledge—it all adds up. Collaborate, connect, contribute. When I established New Next University and worked with the ILO, it was because I had invested in my relationships.

Conclusion

A fulfilling career isn’t about following a linear path. It’s about building career capital, combining skills, embracing a squiggly journey, and being willing to explore. From medical school to launching YEC, Dream Lab, and Akyanpay, my journey has shown that the real magic happens when you combine strengths, explore without limits, and keep learning.

So whether you’re on the career path or building your own venture—keep exploring, keep building, and never stop stacking those unique skills.