I first stumbled across the concept of Odyssey Years on TikTok. Sociologists now argue that there are six distinct life phases — childhood, adolescence, odyssey, adulthood, active retirement and old age. Of these, the odyssey years may be the least understood.
Historically speaking, the term was coined in David Brooks' 2011 book, The Social Animal. According to Brooks, "Odyssey is the decade of wandering that occurs between adolescence and adulthood", usually between the ages of 20 and 35. It centres on the idea that exploring is just as important as settling down. That people should use these key years to adventure, try things out, and fail (time and time again). It's about engaging with the world for the first time, learning about other cultures, discovering what skills and interests you have, and experimenting with potential job prospects. In short, it's about discovering yourself.
A quick scroll through social media reveals hundreds of people who are feeling 'stuck', going through career changes, or feeling burnt out. They discuss 'Odyssey Planning'. Odyssey Planning is the concept of brainstorming what your life might look like five or ten years down the track. Stanford Life Design Lab says that it's all about coming up with ideas of how to make your life rich and fulfilling. It's not a set five-year plan, rather it's the act of coming up with multiple ideas to help embrace that transition period of your life. They argue that you can use Odyssey Planning to help you figure out what might be next, especially if you're feeling stuck. Bill Burnett, Director of the Stanford University program argues that "If you plan for nothing, you're going to get nothing."
If Odyssey Years made me feel validated in all those weird, yucky feelings I was having, then Odyssey Planning made me feel like I had to immediately go into problem-solving mode to fix them. But there's little discussion around actually embracing these problems and feelings that we're having. If we're immediately jumping into problem-solving mode, are we really getting to the root cause of our problem? Can a new career really fix that unfulfilling feeling of emptiness inside?
When I was 19, sitting on three unfinished university degrees, I decided to do something radical. I went and studied for a Bachelor of Arts, not because I was hoping for some wild career change, but because I just liked it. The idea of studying something just because you like it isn't a wild concept, but it's also something we're not told to do enough. I accepted that I probably wouldn't get a job and decided that it was worth it. And whilst I did cry myself to sleep, I woke up the next day knowing that there's nothing wrong with me — that it's nice to be alone and it's just another adventure I'm having.
After years of worrying if I was doing life wrong, whether that was my relationships, career, or the fact that I still live with my Mum, some of the most empowering stuff hasn't been in how to plan my life and get out of my situations. It's been recognising that there's an entire generation of people who are going through the exact same crisis as I am. Maybe it's time we embrace that.