Beyond the Brochure - Finding Your Niche After Boards

5/25/2025

Okay, CBSE results are out. The official chapter is closed, and the "unofficial, what the heck do I do with my life?" chapter just began. You're probably drowning in brochures and online ads promising the "best" path. But let's be real, do any of them feel truly you?

We're told to pick a stream, get a degree, get a job. But the world's changing faster than the syllabus ever did. That "generic certification" might look good on paper, but will it actually make you stand out when everyone else has it too?

Maybe the real advantage lies in the niche, the slightly unusual, the thing you're genuinely curious about even if it doesn't have a clear career box yet. Remember that random project you wanted to start? That obscure competition? The skill that feels less like studying and more like playing?

This whole confusion led me down a rabbit hole, trying to figure out a better way to map out options based on what someone actually cares about, not just what the crowd is doing. It's still a work in progress (like most of us!), but the idea is to find YOUR unique trajectory. I started tinkering with a side project:https://careeroadmap.com. It’s an AI tool that’s supposed to act like a personal career GPS, figuring out your skills, interests, and goals, then pointing you to the workshops, competitions, or skills that actually matter. I’m not saying it’s the answer (yet – it’s rough around the edges!), but it’s born from the same frustration you’ve probably felt. Imagine if we had something that said, “Hey, skip that generic cert; this niche competition will get you noticed instead.” Wouldn’t that change the game?

Here’s the meta part: I’m not trying to pitch you a polished product. It’s early, and I’d rather build it with people like you than pretend I’ve got it all figured out. It’s still rough, but it’s already saved some users from chasing every shiny new badge just because it's popular.