1. Is it time to downsize my dreams?

One day, you're the CEO of Me Inc.; the next, you're out on the street with a sandwich board proclaiming, "Have PhD. Will Work for Food." One moment, you're a pioneering CEO wearing khakis to work in Silicon Alley; the next, you're explaining the differences between relaxed-fit and cargo-style khakis to your customers at the Gap.

The ruling narrative of our careers has done an abrupt 180. We've gone from no limits to no options, from boundless growth to brutal rationalization. It seems as if no one is exempt from the compromises, humiliations, and outright rejections that accompany the worst hiring slump in 20 years. All of a sudden, we can't help but think what would have been unthinkable a few short years ago: Must I temper my ambitions? Do I have to settle for less -- and am I lucky to get even that? In other words, is it time to downsize my dreams?

The answer to that question, it turns out, is another question. The shift coloring our collective work psyche is from a clear imperative to make more -- best expressed in that classic Silicon Valley bumper sticker, "Stop for Lunch and You Are Lunch" -- to a searching question that encourages us to make the answer up for ourselves. That question, of course, is the eternal but freshly relevant one recently unleashed into popular conversation by Po Bronson with his book What Should I Do With My Life? (Random House, 2002).

Since its publication last December, the book has topped the best-seller lists, been featured on Oprah and Today, and sparked a grassroots sensation. It has also generated some push back. "One reaction is, How dare you encourage people to pursue their dreams in this brutal environment," says Bronson. "It's a real disconnect to assume that the way to a better life is something that happens only in good times. Actually, the opposite is true. In my conversations with more than 1,300 people who have either found a sustainable solution to the question or are in the midst of wrestling with it, it's when your best-laid plans go awry that you make the first, best steps toward the life that you want to lead -- and the work that lights you up."

Discounting your dreams in the face of external pressures is dangerous. When you hunker down in survival mode to wait out or protect yourself from a tough environment, chances are, you will get stuck there.

It's equally unwise to spin elaborate escape fantasies. When your job, your status, or your relationships aren't secure and satisfying, says Bronson, "what happens is that people pursue the general goal of 'happiness.' People say, 'I could be happy doing this, I could be happy doing that.' But it doesn't help them make any kind of a determined decision about who they are and what they want."

A populist at heart, Bronson sought out stories from people of every age, class, profession, and background -- from truckers and bankers to artists and athletes. What he discovered was that there is no inherently right or objectively wrong answer to the question, What should I do with my life? It turns out that the best way to do something meaningful -- and to recession-proof your livelihood -- is to make it a means of expression rather than merely a means to an end.