Some families are not worried their kid is behind. They can already see energy and ability; what is missing is a next step small enough to test. That uncertainty does not require choosing university, vocational training, employment or entrepreneurship today.
The US early-career market is genuinely challenging: about 5.7% unemployment and 41.5% underemployment for recent US college graduates in early 2026 — Federal Reserve Bank of New York. But those figures are not an Australian forecast, do not establish AI as the cause and cannot decide the right path for one teenager.
Use a project as a learning probe, not a verdict. Pick something bounded that another person could try, record what the teen directed and changed, then ask what held their attention and where they needed help. That evidence strengthens the next decision without pretending to settle the whole future.
The next step, if you want it: a free family assessment — about 3 minutes, one named profile, every source linked.