Tiedeman (1919-2004) designed the blueprint for equipping and building career construction theory. After making significant contributions to the statistical analysis of occupational behavior, he shifted to a constructivist epistemology for comprehending careers as the imposition of direction on vocational behavior. The cornerstones of his theoretical edifice unite the concepts that career emerges from self-organization, purposeful action bridges discontinuity, and decisions evolve through differentiation and integration. His counseling methods help clients reorganize self to better pursue purpose at work and in leisure. Tiedeman's model and methods remain instructive and inspiring to the contemporary theory and practice of career construction.