A Financial Planner Debunks This Common 'Dream Job' Myth

Landing a dream job looks different for everyone. For some, it may be a job where they can retire early or a place where they can use a specialized set of skills while, for others, it could be a position that offers better work-life balance. However it's defined, it's understandable that many people want to secure their dream job as early in their careers as possible. However, things don't always work out that way and, despite the myth that not landing your dream job before a certain age sets you up for a lifetime of uninspiring work or financial instability, you might be surprised to learn how many experts believe the opposite.

Many Americans believe that 29 is the magic age at which they should have landed their dream job, according to a 2025 study conducted by Empower. While there are certainly examples of people who were able to find their perfect roles at a young age – Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates, for example — that is often the exception, not the rule. Plus, creating unrealistic expectations for yourself can often do more harm than good. Randy Bruns, a certified financial planner, told USA Today that "Putting a deadline on something so personal risks discouraging the very people who are still on their way." He also added, "Imagine someone telling Colonel Sanders he should've had it all figured out by age 29. He didn't start serving fried chicken until he was 40." 

While landing the dream role early in life may seem like a worthy goal, career experts agree that many workers haven't gained enough experience at that stage of their life to qualify for the roles they ultimately want. Jennifer Jones, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, explained to College Magazine that landing a perfect role is about building skills over time, "If you want to be of use, then it's not going to happen when you're 23, 24. It's going to happen when you're ten years out of college."

For entrepreneurs veering outside of more traditional career paths, finding a path to success often happens later in life as well. For instance, renowned fashion designer Vera Wang was 40 before she found her calling, as was Donald Fisher, who went on to found the Gap stores. Martha Stewart and Julia Child were both in midlife before their success took hold, as were the founders of companies such as Zipcar and Zoom. The bottom line: If you haven't yet found a role that inspires you or allows you to reach your financial peak, there's no reason to lose hope. In many cases, it's simply a matter of building enough experience and contacts — and sometimes waiting for the right opportunity to come along.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) looked at workers born between 1957 and 1964 and found that while job hopping did slow as people got older, a meaningful amount of career movement continued into a worker's 30s — suggesting that many hadn't yet found their perfect fit by age 29. Those surveyed had more than a dozen jobs between the ages of 18 and 56. While a large chunk was concentrated early in their careers — more than 40% between ages 18 and 25 — they held an average of 4.5 jobs between ages 25 and 34 and 2.9 jobs from 35 to 44. The data also found that job-related training ramped up after a worker's 20s — with the greatest percentage happening in their 30s, which could signal a desire to sharpen skills or even learn new ones to better position themselves for their dream job. 

A separate BLS survey analyzed similar trends among a different generation of workers — those born between 1980 and 1984. This survey found similar patterns, with the younger cohort holding an average of nine jobs between the ages of 18 and 36, half of which they held after the age of 23. Because this generation is still in the midst of their working years, it remains to be seen how many more jobs this, or any other younger generations, might have in their lifetime – let alone how many jobs it might take to finally land a dream one.