Career bucket list: My boss, super boss and Gen Z teammates dreamed differently

'Bucket list.' It's a phrase we've all come across countless times. People have travel bucket lists filled with dream destinations, birthday bucket lists packed with once-in-a-lifetime celebrations, and even food bucket lists featuring dishes they hope to try someday.

But have you ever stopped to think about a career bucket list?

Most of us enter the workforce with a mental picture of where we want to go. For some, it's landing a dream job or earning a promotion.

For others, it's leading a team, working abroad, starting a company, speaking at a global conference, or simply finding a career that brings both purpose and peace of mind. These ambitions, big or small, make up a career bucket list.

Unlike a regular to-do list, a career bucket list isn't about ticking off everyday tasks. It's a collection of professional milestones, meaningful experiences, and personal aspirations that you hope to achieve over the course of your working life.

It goes beyond salary hikes and job titles, reflecting what you truly want to learn, contribute, experience, and become.

But here's an interesting question: Does that bucket list stay the same throughout your career?

Do fresh graduates dream differently from those with a decade of experience? Does becoming a manager, a team leader, or a senior executive change what success looks like? As responsibilities grow and priorities shift, do career ambitions evolve too?

To find out, I asked my colleagues, two Gen Zs, my manager, and my super boss. Their answers reveal how career aspirations change over time and what remains on their professional bucket lists.

UNDER 30: THE GEN Zs

Gen Z, 1 year of experience (21-years-old): "I want my work to create an impact, not just pay my bills."

For this early-career professional, success is measured by purpose as much as pay. At the top of the career bucket list is the desire to create meaningful social impact.

"The first thing on my career bucket list is to make an impact through my work. I want to be at a place where I can bring positive change in society," she said.

They also believe that staying in the same organisation for too long can limit both personal and professional growth. Instead, they hope to explore multiple industries, meet people from diverse backgrounds, and build a strong professional network.

Money, however, is very much part of the plan, but not for luxury alone. They dream of earning enough to fund their passion for music by building a personal recording studio and a dedicated dance space.

Travelling the world and immersing themselves in different cultures also features prominently on the list. Looking further ahead, they hope to establish a centre focused on mental well-being for everyone, from corporate employees to labourers and farmers.

Alongside their full-time career, they also want to build a social media presence to share opinions, factual content, and singing videos. "I think that'll become my side hustle, help me gain confidence, and maybe even earn some extra money," she added.

Gen Z, 3 years of experience (28-years-old): "I rescue stories instead of animals now."

Unlike many who dream of climbing the corporate ladder, this young journalist still wonders about the career that got away.

Looking back, they laugh at the timing of their realisation. "I realised embarrassingly late in life that I should've been a vet. Or a wildlife rescuer. Or even a wildlife photographer," she said, joking that even their family might have approved if only they had figured it out sooner.

"The career plot twist arrived fashionably late."

Today, they've made peace with that alternate reality, but not without humour. "That ship has sailed, the horse has bolted, and I wasn't there to treat them," they quip. Instead of rescuing injured animals, they now spend their days chasing stories and writing headlines.

"Now I rescue stories instead of animals, and I hope that counts as saving a species, one headline at a time." Beneath the wit lies a lingering admiration for wildlife and a reminder that career dreams don't always disappear; sometimes, they simply evolve into something different.

ABOVE 30: THE EXPERIENCED ONES

My manager, 22 years of experience (45-years-old): "I just want a job that gives me less stress but keeps my bank account smiling."

After spending 22 years in the media industry, my manager has watched the business reinvent itself time and again. From the golden era of print and the rise and fall of magazines to the digital revolution and now the AI boom, they've witnessed nearly every major shift the industry has gone through.

"Honestly, I feel like I've seen every version of it," she said with a laugh.

Yet despite decades of experience, one item still remains on their career bucket list: finding a role that offers a healthier work-life balance without compromising financial stability. "At 45, I have just one item left on my career bucket list: to find a job that gives me less stress but still keeps my bank account smiling."

Interestingly, that dream has little to do with journalism. For years, they've quietly imagined a second act centred around baking. But the vision goes well beyond opening a neighbourhood bakery.

"I don't want to just bake cakes in one kitchen. I want to travel, bake, curate menus, meet people, and feed them across the world," she said. To them, the perfect job blends food, travel, creativity, and human connection into one unforgettable experience.

There's just one small obstacle, they admit with characteristic humour. "Now all I need to do is become a much better cook." After all, dreaming about baking your way around the world and actually mastering the kitchen, they joke, are "two very different things."

Super boss, with 20 years of experience: “Maybe becoming a CEO”

At the end, I went to ask my super boss. When asked about the one thing still left on her career bucket list, she paused for a moment before breaking into a laugh.

"Honestly, I have no clue," she admitted. After another brief pause, she added, "Maybe... becoming a CEO?"

Whether it was a joke or a hidden ambition, her answer was a fitting end to the conversation. It reflected that no matter how far one has come in their career, there's always room to dream a little bigger.

MY CAREER BUCKET LIST

"Success, for me, is a quiet life in the hills."

With seven years of work experience, I find myself in an interesting place, not a beginner any more, but not quite a veteran either. Somewhere between chasing milestones and rethinking what success really means, my career bucket list has become surprisingly simple.

I don't dream of climbing endlessly up the corporate ladder. Instead, I dream of retiring early, saving enough to be financially secure, leaving behind the chaos of a metropolitan city, and travelling the world at my own pace.

Eventually, I'd love to settle down in a hill station and open a small cafe-cum-bookshop, a place where people can slow down over coffee, homemade cakes, and good books.

More than running a business, I want to experience life and document it. I often imagine welcoming strangers into my cafe, watching them lose themselves in a novel, striking up conversations over a cup of coffee, and capturing those everyday moments through writing and photography.

It's a distant dream, but one I'm quietly working towards: one step, one story, and one pay cheque at a time.

A CAREER BUCKET LIST NEVER REALLY ENDS

If there is one takeaway from these conversations, it is that a career bucket list is never set in stone. It evolves with age, experience, and changing priorities. At the beginning of a career, people dream of making a mark on the world. Years later, many begin dreaming of making more time for themselves.

Whether it's building a mental health initiative, rescuing wildlife, baking around the world, or jokingly aspiring to become a CEO, every aspiration reflects something deeper than a job title; it reflects what people want their work to mean.

Perhaps that's what a career bucket list is really about: not climbing the highest rung of the ladder, but finding a career that lets you live the life you truly want.