I Used ChatGPT to Plan a Career Pivot, and Found It Empowering

CNET

10-06-2025

The future of work, and the very concept of a career, is on shaky ground. While technologists and business leaders prophesize over the most likely economic impact of AI, workers are left wondering where their place and purpose will be in the decade ahead.
With a tough job market, the cost of living, the rise of AI and global uncertainty, it's a good time to contemplate your career. You can do this with the help of an AI chatbot, which can talk through your options and come up with a plan.
If you can't handle another week of Sunday scaries, you're experiencing a career calling in another direction or simply want a backup plan if robots take over, use ChatGPT as a brainstorming buddy. You can also chat through how to negotiate a raise, write a cover letter and resume, find a new job and use it as a career coach.
Career change, here I come
This exercise isn't for a role shift or moving around within the same industry. Rather, it's to help guide your thinking if you're considering a complete career change.
Quick caveat: Don't make any important life decisions using only AI. Sit with the chatbot's suggestions, talk to the people in your life, do your own research and ponder on what a new profession might look like.
While I'm happy with my job as a freelance writer (yes, even in the age of AI), I'll use myself as an example of how to walk through the process.
According to the World Economic Forum, there will be 92 million displaced jobs, but 170 million new jobs in the next decade. Meaning the next era will be more about career changes than job losses. I downloaded the 290-page document so I could upload it into ChatGPT to interpret and use in its career shift suggestions. You want to pick lucrative career paths that are on the rise, not in decline.
Log into ChatGPT so it has all the context about you from any previous times you've used it for questions or advice. You might need to feed it more information about your interests, goals and life vision, though. If you tried the "dream day in the life" trend, this is good information to use.
You likely have more of an idea about what you want to do with your life now than you did when you were 18. Use your life experiences and learnings to guide ChatGPT. If you have an idea of the area you'd like to move into next, tell ChatGPT.
If not, start here: "I'm currently a [role] at [company] and have been working in [industry] for [number of years]. I'm interested in [X], [Y], [Z]. What are some different career paths and industries that could be suitable? Use everything you know about me, as well as this attached report to identify lucrative career options."
For me, ChatGPT provided some writer-adjacent career options, like a communications director, policy writer, workshop facilitator or marketing manager. These were still within the communications realm, so I had to specify in my second prompt that I was looking for a complete career change.
But I didn't love what it suggested:
ChatGPT/Screenshot by CNET
I told ChatGPT that I'd be willing to upskill and get another degree.
It came up with a behavioral scientist, human-centered AI ethicist, a role in urban design and policy, and a mental health innovator. All of these roles were still very "techy" and not really what I'd be into.
I gave that feedback to ChatGPT.
While the non-tech, high-demand job suggestions were a little closer, nothing excited me. ChatGPT kept trying to push me into sustainability and education. Two noble paths, but neither light me up.
New career suggestions
This time, I told ChatGPT that I have a growing interest in women's health and fertility, after going through IVF. I asked: What are some lucrative, fast-growing career paths in this sector?
ChatGPT/Screenshot by CNET
ChatGPT laid out a few possible paths, with training options and earning potential. For example, a fertility coach, patient advocate, policy advocate, head of content for a fertility brand, editorial director for a women's health publication or founder for a women's health venture.
ChatGPT/Screenshot by CNET
Now we're talking!
Next, I said I'd slowly transition into this field over the next five years and would be happy to do more study, then asked for more recommendations and a timeline to work toward.
Here's the suggested roadmap:
ChatGPT/Screenshot by CNET
ChatGPT/Screenshot by CNET
I asked ChatGPT to tweak the timeline, based on a few changes, and it gave me another updated five-year transition plan. While the plan wasn't perfect, it was 80% there. ChatGPT gave me ideas I hadn't thought of and provided some pretty convincing stats, like what the fastest-growing job categories will be, predicted employment rates, wage potential and median salary.
This was an empowering exercise that everyone should do. It's always good to have a plan B in place. Remember you'll probably have to hold the AI chatbot's hand before it will reach the right path for you -- and then it'll be able to give you ideas and information on what you need to do to get the rest of the way there. Just make sure you also talk to some real people before committing to anything.