How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work

by Jodi Kantor

Jodi Kantor’s groundbreaking reporting has toppled media magnates and sparked justice in the workplace worldwide. But before all of this, Kantor was kicked off her college newspaper. Society expects perfection, but Kantor knows those first professional steps are often rocky. She also knows that today’s graduates are facing a new and frightening playing field.   In a post-pandemic world rife with political upheaval, the unknowns of AI, and the general uncertainty of coming-of-age, Kantor casts aside platitudes and false hope to offer something tangible. There is a difference between realism and cynicism, she says. Work is how we spend much of our time. It’s our engine of how vaccines are made, political campaigns won, television crafted for our pleasure. Instead of letting cynicism win, Kantor rolls up her sleeves and identifies three principles to help young people discover their life’s craft, need, and money. Powerful and provocative, How to Start is a statement of faith for young people to keep in their back pocket as they make their way through uncertain times. To face the challenges ahead, Kantor offers inspired wisdom, strategy, and a set of aspirations to launch their careers and last their whole lives.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Education, Essays, Personal Development, Audiobook, Personal Growth

112 pages, Hardcover

First published April 21, 2026

About the author

Jodi Kantor has covered the world of Barack and Michelle Obama since the beginning of 2007, also writing about Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Sarah Palin, Richard Holbrooke, Eric Holder and many others along the way.

Ms. Kantor graduated from Columbia and attended Harvard Law School. But soon after she arrived, she caught the journalism bug, took time off to work at Slate.com, and never looked back. She joined The New York Times in 2003 as Arts & Leisure editor, revamping the section and helping lead a makeover of the culture report.

The recipient of a Columbia Young Alumni Achievement Award, Ms. Kantor has also been named by Crain's New York Business magazine as one of "40 Under 40." She appears regularly on television, including The Today Show and Charlie Rose.

Though she is a Washington correspondent, she lives in Brooklyn with her husband and daughter.

Reviews

[Tab · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am the exact target audience for this book (about to graduate, struggling to find my purpose, and generally feeling hopeless at the state of the world and the job market) and unfortunately I found it to be pretty unhelpful

I really respect Jodi and the journalistic work she’s done but I kept looking for specificity or tangible advice in this book and didn’t get much

The book has this central idea of following craft and need but does little in the way of guiding people who don’t know their ‘higher purpose’

I know there’s no magic answer to the huge problems in the job market but I wish there was something a little less nebulous to learn

[Cameron Lipp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Word for word what your friend’s mom who went to Yale says to you after one glass of wine at dinner

[CatReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jodi Kantor is an American investigative journalist perhaps best known for breaking the Harvey Weinstein scandal in the New York Times alongside her colleague Meghan Twohey (see their book She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement). Kantor's 2026 short book How to Start isn't investigative journalism but rather Kantor's career advice to young people entering the workforce today, inspired by several commencement speeches she was asked to give at her undergraduate alma mater Columbia University and various other venues (and probably Kantor's own fears as her own college-aged kids are preparing to enter the workforce). I think Kantor writes with good intention here, though she's mostly advising young people to follow her career pattern or those similar to hers where passion was sparked and cultivated early, chosen despite difficulty and potential social stigma (for Kantor, this involved dropping out of Harvard Law to pursue reporting instead), and persevered upon until it became profitable.

I get a bit frustrated with this book genre because it often assumes that young people today have it harder than young people a decade ago or a century ago, and therefore they must be prevailed upon by folks older and wiser (who are not in young people's exact shoes) to correct their paths. This is both true and false. I personally love hearing career stories of people both inside and outside my field, but not because I'm looking for an exact copy-paste template for my own path. Instead, I find these valuable for the life lessons that resulted - the jobs that looked amazing on paper but didn't work out, the quiet intuition listened to (or not) that resulted in satisfaction (or grief). Kantor's story is full of those moments, which was my favorite thing about the book. But from the standpoint of a new college grad, I can see how this book would come across as preachy and therefore not helpful.

Further reading: other career memoirs/advice books I've found helpful:
Unapologetically Ambitious: Take Risks, Break Barriers, and Create Success on Your Own Terms by Shellye Archambeau
Strategize to Win: The New Way to Start Out, Step Up, or Start Over in Your Career by Carla Harris
Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career by Kristi Coulter

My statistics:
Book 113 for 2026
Book 2419 cumulatively

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

In "How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work," accomplished journalist Jodi Kantor offers advice to new college graduates. Kantor endeavors to be simultaneously hopeful and realistic, and she mostly pulls it off. I work in public higher education and I'm a parent of two college students. This crop of graduates is facing a number of big challenges all at once, and I think Kantor delivers a few worthwhile messages, especially about focusing on your craft and thinking about what brings you satisfaction, not just where you can earn the biggest paycheck. This is a slim book that's easy to read, and I think it will hold up for the next year or two as a nice college graduation gift.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book incredibly relevant. The reasons she discusses why people are discouraged by their career prospects are the VERY same and SPECIFIC things that I have seen recently in the workplace. Despite the sense of hopelessness about career prospects she does bring in the light. She does this by telling her and a few other peoples career stories that are not straight lines to success. I really enjoyed the way she wrote these, it wasn’t throw away examples, it was peoples stories that I really connected with. She then outlines how you should approach discovering your craft and what need it can solve.

It is marketed to new graduates but I would argue it’s for anyone who is job searching, thinking about switching a career, or a stay at home mom who will be re-entering the workforce. I appreciated that it is shorter. What she does write packs a punch and is not drawn out. I highlighted so many quotes to go back to.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company for the ARC.

[Jamie Gabel · Rating 2 out of 5]

My aunt got this for me and I made it my rainy day activity. Not so much tangible career advice. I guess I should find a needed career😄I guess I should choose a career not for the money😄

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

As an accomplished investigative journalist, the author brings a strong voice and perspective to her work. However, the career guidance here feels less grounded in a broad range of lived experiences and more aspirational than practical for many readers.
The core advice—“find your craft,” specialize early, and build around it—sounds compelling, but it feels more aspirational than grounded in the reality of how many careers actually unfold.
What if there isn’t one perfect plan? What if the real goal is simply finding something sustainable?
Many careers nowadays are shaped by industry shifts, layoffs, and evolving roles, not a clean, linear path toward specialization. The framework doesn’t offer much practical guidance. It seems largely based on a narrow set of trajectories rather than a broad, representative range of outcomes.

[Bookbubble · Rating 2 out of 5]

How to Start delivers what it promises: a statement of faith. It is mostly philosophy, not a practical guide on how to find work as a college grad. The title is mostly metaphorical. You start by thinking about your career. I would not recommend this for college grads trying to figure out where to go from here. It's better if your college grad doesn't know where to start with a career in terms of "what do I want to do." It's not very helpful to find a job, but it may give you ideas on non-traditional jobs you might, possibly be able to get one day if a boomer dies and leaves the position open.

The single most important thing she thinks workers should do is learn communication and listening skills and network to find work. That it's more impactful than submitting 500 online job ads. In addition, get out of the house. Don't work remotely so you can collect skills and contacts from other coworkers. That's very 1970s advice coming from someone who's trying to help people see how they work the best and in some cases that's at home away from other people. I'm neurospicy and I absolutely hate working around other people. Did I take jobs because they sounded interesting and paid poorly? Yes. Did I learn what I didn't want to do? Yes. But I didn't have a choice because at the time working from home was not an option for anyone.

The short of it is that she's basically saying you find your life's work in something you can do (skill) and where someone else has a need and can pay for a solution. That's literally how any business starts.

Her advice is almost entirely focused on working for someone else. She doesn't apply her philosophy to people who want to start their own business or work in the trades.

She's coming from the journalism industry that she got into before its entire collapse under the internet. She still made a career in it because she's tenacious and a go getter. When you're already feeling lousy about your options, it's hard to stay optimistic. That's why she wrote the book. But there's not much practical advice in it.

Young adults just starting their careers in this dystopian environment are justifiably pessimistic because the numbers and reality back it up. This book can help you focus your work interests, and if you haven't decided yet, ideas to broaden them, such as taking random jobs that allow you to try different things.

I think this book is helpful if you need a "pick me up" to keep looking for work, rather than a "how to find a job in this nightmare market." She loads up the book with examples from people she's interviewed, but its best service is to illustrate how someone with a passion for dance and may never make a living at it could be the executive director of a performing arts program. The problem that she glazes over is that many of these high paying jobs she points out are few and far between so shooting your shot has to be aggressive and networking heavy.

[Ryan Elsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this in a couple days after graduation, how timely! To me the message was more uplifting than practical but also expanded further on advice we’ve all heard before. I appreciated the author’s anecdotes though times have also changed 🫪 regardless, I plan to come back to this in the future! Thanks Mom for the book.

[gwen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I attended Jodi's speaking event at the library last week, and her warmth shines through her writing as it did on stage. Unfortunately, this book felt braggy and most of the examples of success felt like exceptions rather than the norm. But, I am a cynic by nature. Her main thesis is that at the intersection of craft and need we can develop our life's work. She suggests that we can learn our craft by noticing what roles we fill in our social lives. I thought this was interesting, so if anyone has any ideas of what role I fill in your life as a friend drop it in the comments. My search for self help from a book continues.

[Sasha Hurowitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jodi Kantor really is that girl

[Jules · Rating 1 out of 5]

A longer version of the commencement speech she gave at a university, the book leans into platitudes around 'if you turn every experience into a learning opportunity, everything will come together and things will work out. So don't worry if it's bleak right now.'

[Madeline · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is super random but it did bring tears to my eyes

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

capitalist slop imo

[Jake Dann]

I've been feeling anxious about my career, on some level, since 2024. I think this little book helped me feel like that's ok - it's important to do what you think is important, or at least try. I still feel very lost sometimes, and I don't think any number of books like this will solve that, but I liked how sympathetic this one was, and its ideas for finding one's own way.

[Liv Fox · Rating 3 out of 5]

More philosophical than practical, this book contains stories of how Jodi’s friends found their purpose, work wise, but gives only a few points of advice for readers. Interesting nonetheless.

[Julia Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and sweet and reassuring. Not full of steps, which I honestly appreciated, but ideas and belief in this generation. And empathy. Thanks Jodi!

[Zayda Slabbekoorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful! Recommend for anyone flailing around in their early career.

[Lucy Marques · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the writing and it was inspirational but not in a practical way at all

[Mikayla Schwartz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this more than I thought, thanks Nanny! Was helpful in my current career crisis.

[Hana Wali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated her perspective and the feelings of excitement instead of dread it gave me, but I wish she had more concrete tips or suggestions

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who couldn’t use a good pep talk and some practical ideas for finding your path in the world? A quick, engaging and thought-provoking read.

[Sage · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is an expansion of a Columbia commencement address for undergrads who are understandably cynical about entering adulthood during this horrible zeitgeist. As an adult who never really "got started" in a chosen dream field due to (gesturing vaguely) Problems in my 20s and looking to restart after a major debilitating surgery, Kantor's approach was not helpful for me. She frequently says ominous things like "act before it's too late." Too late when and for what? A motivational speaker tapping their watch would not have uplifted me when I was a kid either, but now the sentiment is plain goofy.

The best advice Kantor offers encourages readers to hone their craft over time. I love the idea of everybody getting good at their Stuff despite AI and other cultural shifts trumpeting mediocrity. Another piece of good advice is finding a boss worthy of mutual respect... but Kantor chooses this part of the book to encourage women to prioritize romantic relationships over career because it worked out for her. It reminds me of the commencement speech David Brooks gave to my graduating class about how important marriage is and how we all should jump into it as soon as possible. The journalists... they are still worried about our sacred institutions...

Kantor offers similar advice as What Color is Your Parachute but with all the pluck and verve of a corporate aunt. Sorry, "The New York Times is counterculture"? I love the idea of the fourth estate too, but this is a ridiculous claim given NYT's stance on trans issues, American imperialism, and so on. Also, in the chapter about money she's like, (I am paraphrasing) "Y'all, art does make money! Did you know the head of a Houston-based art museum makes a million kajillion dollars a year?" She does not mention the oil money that inevitably funds such a position. Money pooling around corrupt industries is one of the things the Youth are mad about, so this was also goofy to read.

For more focused career advice, I would start with What Color is Your Parachute. It's a genuinely good resource, even with all the God talk.

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this book up as a gift for some young folks in my life at the beginning of their working lives and after hearing a spirited interview of Kantor about the book by Tim Miller on The Bulwark podcast. The book reads like a bit of a reboot for our times of classics like What Color Is Your Parachute? and Do What You Love (the Money will Follow), with less of the specific workbook tasks of the former. Even if you haven't read those books, the message is pretty clear from the titles: don't settle for pre-defined career paths; find what will be the most fulfilling thing to do with your life; take a proactive role in creating the ideal job you want, not just the openings that are advertised; be open to the often frustrating and terrifying messiness of life, since the answer often lies down a road you only stumbled upon by accident. Kantor echoes all of this timely, perennial advice with slight updates for our digital, post-pandemic, AI-dawning, Trump impoverished world. The one thing this book cannot be accused of is being is cynical--but if I were a more cynical reader, I would say this slim, quick, aphoristic volume was timed perfectly for graduation gift season. But Kantor, after all, who is one of the Pulitzer Prize winning journalists who blew the whistle on Harvey Weinstein and basically lit the MeToo rocket, is probably not in the business of gaming the publishing system. I guess what I'm saying is that this a fine quick read for a graduating college student (who might even actually read it), but for hardcore practical advice about charting your own course, I think the What Color book probably still stands up pretty well.

[Anna Kefalas · Rating 4 out of 5]

“An important moment in your life is approaching. You do not know exactly when it will arrive. None of us do. Maybe it will come more than once, but you can’t be sure. The moment, the question, will be about whether you bet on yourself and your future happiness. Xxaria could have taken the solid job in psychology that did not offer any opportunity for research. In a cratering job market, that would have made plenty of sense. Paola could have stuck with nursing. Arjav and Tracy could have followed the recipe and opened a perfectly nice fine-dining restaurant. I could have stayed in law school and resisted the call of journalism. My parents would have been relieved and the entire global MeToo uprising might not have happened. That moment is going to mean everything for you too. You’ll have to know when to refuse to settle. To insist on something better for yourself. To take yourself seriously and take on some risk. The decision is yours to make. Choose wisely. Brace yourself for some people to misunderstand or disapprove. Go find that room of yours. For your own sake, certainly, and for ours too.’”

summer reading challenge going strong! this is my third book of the challenge (category: a really short or a really long book). i opted for a really short book bc this one has been on my mind since i spotted it in a bookstore on the cape a few weeks ago (and promptly returned to that same bookstore to sit on the floor and read this book, which is how i finished it in one day). as the target audience for this book, i thought it was very insightful and would have loved to see the commencement speech it grew out of.

[Abby Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find myself in a bit of a purgatory right now. I’m moved out of my apartment in all but my set of keys, I’m living with my parents in their new home as I recover from a tonsillectomy, and I’m unemployed — but only for a few more weeks as I map out what my life might look like working for a small newspaper in rural Montana.

Frankly, I’m in the throes of trying to figure out how the fuck to start. And the thing I’ve been most intimidated and challenged by over this past year is having agency over my life.

I thought I’d graduate and stay in Arizona for awhile. I spent the year telling everyone how much I loved the Southwest. That’s true. But I also only know the Southwest. And I’m very capable of finding new things to love.

When I got this job offer, I went into a complete tailspin about how my life would change. I spent one night crying and wailing to my mom for hours. It was really annoying of me. But I needed to do it.

Again and again she told me: Abigail, this is your decision. I will not make it for you.

At the time, just a few weeks ago, I was pissed. I wanted my mom to make the decision for me, damnit! But really, I’m grateful to be surrounded by people that believe in my ability to create a beautiful life for myself.

This all leads me to this quote that concludes the book that sums up the mindset I want to empower me as I enter this new chapter: “You’ll have to know when to refuse to settle. To insist on something better for yourself. To take yourself seriously and take on some risk. The decision is yours to make.”

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jodi Kantor, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist best known for her investigative work, turns her attention in this slim volume to one of life's most daunting transitions: stepping out of school and into the working world. The result is a warm, practical, and quietly reassuring guide for young people who feel overwhelmed by the prospect.

What distinguishes this book from the typical career manual is Kantor's genuine empathy. She does not lecture or condescend. She acknowledges plainly that finding a foothold in today's economy is harder than it once was, and that much of the cultural noise surrounding young people right now skews toward fear and cynicism. But she pushes back against that mood with conviction, arguing that rewarding work is still abundant to those willing to look carefully.

She encourages graduates to observe their own friend groups, noticing which roles they naturally fall into, since those patterns often reveal genuine strengths. She asks readers to pay attention to what they are already known for, what tasks they find themselves enjoying on an ordinary day, and what gaps or unmet needs they notice in their communities. These are not abstract exercises but entry points into discovering where one's values and capabilities can meet real demand.

Kantor frames work not as a grind to be endured but as a privilege. She describes it as one of the foundational legs of a good life, society's "engine of progress," something each new generation has the opportunity to help drive forward. Her advice is to master a craft, build genuine connections, prioritize personal values over prestige, and learn from early failures without being crushed by them.

How to Start will not solve every anxiety a new graduate carries, but it will almost certainly quiet a few of them. Kantor writes with the care of someone who takes young people seriously, and that alone makes the book worth their time.

[Megan Wojciechowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a Gen-Z member 4 years into their engineering career, this book hit HARD. I read the whole thing in about an hour and a half while tanning under the sun. It is extremely hard to find mentors in the professional world due to the levels of stress and the lack of awareness of the future. My generation is floundering to find a job, afford to live, pay off student loans, and expand our resume, all while being ripped apart on the internet by older individuals who simply claim we don't want to work. How can you work without being given the chance to learn? How can you learn when no one wants to teach you? How can you learn on your own when you don't have the funds to purchase extra courses? Hearing from a woman who sees us and hears us is refreshing. This isn't a book that commiserates, but one that broadens the perspective of people of all ages to be more optimistic about young professionals. I even added my new favorite quote to the back of my giant CAD laptop at work so everyone in meetings with me can read, "As you're starting out, the point is not to already possess a craft; it's to find a road to mastering one." Nothing rings more true than that.

[Meg Silta · Rating 3 out of 5]

I respect Jodi as a journalist but this book felt out of touch. There was definitely some good advice that I’ll keep in my back pocket, but what stuck with me most was the message that it’s grim for a 4.0 Columbia grad with purpose, craft, a need for her expertise, and if she can do it, you—a weird average schmuck with mediocre (at best) crafts and flailing purpose—can make $1.5 million a year 30 years down the line.

She says “… I recommend aiming to join the category of people who enjoy their work, contribute something to society, and make a good living.” Right now, it feels like us recent grads and entry-levelers are lucky to get a job we’re overqualified for, underpaid and overworked, and have little passion for.

She advises to take the most interesting job you can get when you’re just starting out. That feels unrealistic when it’s this hard to get hired at Trader Joe’s and we have rent to pay.

I’m glad I read it. I don’t think it’s going to lead me to my career. I still don’t know what my craft is.

[Pam Cipkowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick--before your child or niece or nephew loses their soul and decides to become a business or finance major, gift them this book! I found it to be both practical and inspiring. 

The key is to focus on both craft and need: find something you are good at and enjoy doing, match it to people's needs, and look for a career that fills those needs. It may not make you a six-figure salary, but you will be happier than if you take a soul-sucking job just for the pay. If you have an interest in the arts or botany, books or reptiles, or cooking or bicycling, you can still make a decent living: it just may take being a little more creative in how you go about doing it. Sometimes you have to look a little further beyond the obvious. Serendipity is a wondrous thing! It can turn part-time jobs, internships, conversations with people, and short-term gigs into surprising opportunities. 

Everyone may not have the opportunity to pursue their dreams as they would like, but this book can open your mind to the idea that there are ways to do what you love and still find success in life.