For many years, I would watch people leave one job for another, only to see them do exactly the same thing a few years later.

New organisation. New role. New opportunity.

Then, a few years down the line, they were off again.

And the cycle continued.

There is nothing inherently wrong with moving jobs. In fact, in today’s workplace, changing organisations is probably more common than it was when I started my career. People move for better opportunities, more money, greater responsibility, a different culture or simply because they feel they have outgrown their current role.

But it does make me wonder: what exactly are we chasing?

Is it money? Power? Status? Recognition? Perhaps even popularity or the feeling that we are important to other people?

There is nothing wrong with wanting any of these things. Ambition is a good thing. Wanting to progress, earn more, take on greater responsibility or build a successful career can be incredibly motivating.

But there is another question that is perhaps less frequently asked.

Are you actually enjoying the journey?

Because it is very easy to become focused on the next promotion, the next salary increase, the next job title or the next organisation. We convince ourselves that when we get there, things will be better.

When I get the promotion, I’ll be happier.

When I earn more, I’ll feel successful.

When I become a director, I’ll finally feel like I’ve made it.

When I move to that organisation, things will be different.

And sometimes they are.

But sometimes they aren’t.

You can change the organisation, the job title and even the salary, but still take yourself with you. If the underlying issue is that you don’t feel fulfilled, another job may only provide a temporary lift before the same feeling eventually returns.

That is where the journeyman routine can begin.

You move because you think the next opportunity will give you what you are looking for. It works for a while, but eventually something is missing again. So you start looking for the next move.

And then the next one.

Before long, you can spend a significant part of your career moving towards something without ever really stopping to ask what that something actually is.

So, what is fulfilment?

There probably isn’t one universal answer.

For some people, fulfilment will come from financial success. For others, it might be responsibility, influence, recognition or building something significant. It could be developing people, solving difficult problems, improving an organisation or simply becoming exceptionally good at what you do.

You could have all the money you need, plus plenty more, and still not feel fulfilled.

You could have an impressive job title but feel completely disconnected from the person you wanted to become.

And you could have a hugely successful career on paper, but look back and wonder what impact you actually had.

Perhaps the better question isn’t simply “What do I want?”

Perhaps it is:

“What is important to me?”

That takes us into something much deeper: our values.

What do you actually care about?

What sort of leader do you want to be?

What do you want people to say about working with you?

What do you want to be proud of when you look back at your career?

What kind of contribution do you want to make?

Those questions can change the way we think about career progression.

Because ambition without fulfilment can become an endless pursuit. You can keep raising the bar, achieving more and moving forward, yet still feel as though you are standing still.

And there is nothing wrong with wanting more.

But perhaps we should be equally interested in whether we are enjoying what we already have.

Your career is a journey, not simply a series of destinations.

So, are you moving because the next opportunity genuinely aligns with what you want from your career and your life?

Or are you simply moving because you hope the next job will finally make you feel different?

There is a big difference.

And if you don’t know what fulfilment looks like for you, you could be looking for it for a very, very long time.