Figuring Out the Future When the World is Upside Down

Being asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” used to be a simple question with a straightforward answer. You pick a career, you study hard, and you get a job. But what happens when the world around you is constantly shifting?

A recent study of Hong Kong university students explores how young people adjust their career and life goals amidst massive disruptions like COVID-19 and socio-political shifts. The study views our hopes for the future as flexible “rhythms” —pieces of life, education, and values that students actively pull together to find stability in a chaotic world.

The constant disruptions of recent years have changed priorities. Many students are rejecting traditional, money-driven “hustle culture.” Instead, they are reorganizing their goals around work-life balance, mental health, and making a positive social impact.
Despite major government pushes for regional economic integration (like the Greater Bay Area initiative), most students remain hesitant. The study found that economic incentives alone don’t shape dreams; top-down policies fail to inspire if they lack emotional and cultural connection. Furthermore, rather than giving up when major plans (like internships or studies abroad) derailed by global events, students demonstrated remarkable adaptability. They creatively regrouped by pursuing new hobbies, acquiring online skills, and engaging in local volunteer work, proving their ability to forge new, realistic paths forward through smaller, manageable steps.

This research challenges the common societal narrative that young people today suffer from “low aspirations” or a lack of ambition. Instead, it proves that their goals are highly adaptable responses to a landscape riddled with unprecedented roadblocks and constraints. By redefining aspirations as relational and evolving processes, the study changes how we understand youth development. For policymakers, educators, and employers, engaging the younger generation requires more than just presenting economic data or pushing them toward lucrative industries. To truly support and inspire youth, leaders must understand their core values, acknowledge their anxieties, and help them find emotional anchors in an unpredictable world.

Read more here (Open Access): Tsao, J. (2026). Aspirations as territorial assemblages: refrains and the future imaginaries of university students in Hong Kong. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2026.2685037