If you’ve ever wondered how you’ll ever be able to decide on one specific career path, you’re not alone. Between internships, part-time jobs, freelance projects, side hustles, and personal creative endeavors, figuring out what your professional future is supposed to look like can feel a little overwhelming. But honestly, who said you have to choose just one thing?
For a lot of Gen Z professionals, the traditional idea of working one job, climbing the corporate ladder, and sticking to a single goal isn’t realistic. Maybe you have a full-time job but run a small business on the side. Maybe you’re freelancing while building a career as a content creator. Or maybe you’re doing a bunch of odd jobs to save money while you figure out your next steps. If any of these situations sounds like yours, there’s a name for it: a portfolio career.
To better understand what a portfolio career actually looks like, how Gen Z is embracing this trend, and tips for showcasing multiple professional identities without making your resume look like a random hodgepodge, Her Campus spoke with Judy Nam, LinkedIn’s VP of Marketing, Small Business, who shared some valuable insights.
So, What Exactly is A Portfolio Career?
Think of a portfolio career as having more than one professional lane. Instead of identifying with a single job title or employer, you’re building a career around different roles, projects, and income streams that reflect your interests and skills. “A portfolio career highlights the ways professionals (and we see this a lot with Gen Z in particular) have multiple income streams and roles,” Nam tells Her Campus.
This isn’t a completely new concept. However, social media, the creator economy, and the growing accessibility of digital tools have made it easier than ever to explore different professional opportunities without committing to just one.
“Over the past few years, we’ve seen more and more professionals lean into being multi-hyphenates — in fact, 80% of LinkedIn creators have another job,” Nam says. “Rather than choosing one traditional career path, they’re designing careers that include multiple side incomes, streams of income, and possibilities.”
Nam explains that this approach is particularly appealing to Gen Z, who often want the stability of a traditional job while still having the flexibility to explore their passions. And with AI making it easier to experiment with business ideas and turn creative interests into opportunities, there are even more ways to build something outside of a traditional 9-to-5.
This also means that you don’t necessarily have to figure out your forever career right now. You can build experience in different areas and see where those opportunities take you — a concept that’s especially appealing to young people just starting out and finding their footing in the professional world.
You Don’t Have To Be A Creative To Have A Portfolio Career
When you hear the term “portfolio career,” your mind might immediately go to influencers, artists, or entrepreneurs. And while these are certainly examples of a portfolio career, you don’t have to work in a traditionally creative industry to build one.
Nam says portfolio careers exist across pretty much every field, even including sectors like finance and engineering. Nam also points out that portfolio careers can look different depending on your needs and availability: “A portfolio career doesn’t always mean multiple full-time jobs, but rather, side hustles that turn into real income and real opportunity, even if not pursued full time every day.”
One example Nam points to is Hunter Mikles, who was recently featured in LinkedIn’s new Career, by Design series. “He holds a day job in tech sales and corporate events, but at night, is a dancer in Wicked on Broadway,” Nam says. “Additionally, he has turned many of his side passions — photography for instance, or writing a book — into income streams as well.”
This is a pretty good reminder that your professional identity doesn’t have to fit neatly into one box: Maybe you’re a finance major who spends your weekends photographing weddings, an engineer who runs a small online business, or a communications student who freelances as a social media manager. These interests might seem unrelated at first, but they can all contribute to your professional experience. And if you’re currently working a job to pay the bills while pursuing something you’re passionate about, that counts, too. So, if you’re currently working an internship, picking up freelance projects, or building outside of school or work, don’t discount those experiences. They could be part of a much bigger professional picture.
How Do You Showcase Multiple Careers Without Looking Unfocused?
Of course, having multiple interests is one thing. Figuring out how to communicate all of them to potential employers is another. If you’ve ever worried that your resume looks a little all over the place because you’ve worked in three different industries or have several unrelated side projects, you’re probably familiar with this dilemma. You want employers to see that you’re well-rounded, not that you have absolutely no idea what you want to do. “For hiring managers, what’s important is understanding what someone can actually do,” Nam says.
The key is presenting your interests and areas of expertise clearly. LinkedIn, for example, has introduced tools that make it easier for professionals to highlight different parts of their careers. “We’ve launched a number of tools that help you showcase what you do in a clear way,” Nam says. “For example, you can now reflect multiple roles at the top of your LinkedIn profile to illustrate all current jobs. Tools like a custom call-to-action button on your profile for Premium subscribers are also great ways to have your audience connect with your work in a way that meets your business goals, like ‘get advice from me’ to share your expertise and earn money.”
How Your Different Career Interests Can Work Together
Beyond the tools themselves, it’s important to think about how your different roles connect. If you’re a full-time marketer who also creates lifestyle content or runs a small business, think about the skills that overlap those experiences, whether it’s storytelling, branding, or audience engagement. Those connections can help tell a more cohesive story about what you bring to the table.
Nam explains that hiring managers are increasingly interested in what candidates can actually do, and that experience doesn’t always have to come from a traditional full-time position. “A portfolio career can be a great way to demonstrate your skills, adaptability, and the different ways you’ve put your expertise to work,” she says.
At the end of the day, having multiple interests doesn’t mean you lack direction. You don’t have to limit yourself to one title to build a successful career, and sometimes, the different things you’re passionate about can work together in ways you hadn’t expected.