Reese Witherspoon’s Brutal Career Advice for Gen-Z: ‘Don’t Follow Your Dreams’ |
Reese Witherspoon’s Brutal Career Advice for Gen Z: ‘Don’t Follow Your Dreams’
The ‘Legally Blonde’ actress and founder of Hello Sunshine gave blunt career advice on social media.
BY KAYLA WEBSTER, STAFF EDITOR
Reese Witherspoon. Photo: Getty Images
Reese Witherspoon has brutal career advice for young people: Don’t follow your dreams. Yes, Elle Woods said that.
You’d think Witherspoon’s career would be a testament to the cliche “follow your heart” advice—she’s an Oscar winning actress, founder of a production company and book club, with a net worth upwards of $400 million. But when a young woman recently asked her for career advice, the 49-year-old told her to be honest with herself about what she’s good at.
“Chase your talents, not your dreams,” Witherspoon said in an Instagram reel directed at Gen Z.
In the viral video that amassed more than 245,000 likes and thousands of comments, Witherspoon said a young woman who was unhappy in her current job approached her for advice on making a pivot. When Witherspoon responded by asking her what her talents were, the actress said there was a long pause. The young woman couldn’t name anything she is good at, which Witherspoon says is a major red flag.
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“This is very, very important. You don’t chase your dreams, you chase your talents. Everybody has dreams,” Witherspoon said. “It doesn’t mean you’re gonna be that thing. You are supposed to do what you’re talented at.”
Some might say it’s a brutal reality check—Witherspoon argued it doesn’t mean settling for a career you don’t like. Figuring out how your unique skills can turn into a passion that pays well is a smart strategy, the actress said. But you do need to be realistic about what those passions are, she said.
“It’s your job in life to figure out what your specific unique talents are and go chase them,” Witherspoon said.
For many young professionals, but especially women, identifying their unique talents is challenging, if not impossible, Silicon Valley career coach Kyle Elliott told Fortune. The good news is, he said, your friends, family, and colleagues likely already know what your talents are. So, don’t be shy about asking the people in your life about what they think you’d be good at, he says.
“Don’t feel like you need to know your talents on your own,” Elliot said. “Ask them for examples of your strengths and notice what themes emerge. You might be surprised by the talents others notice in you that you haven’t recognized in yourself.”
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