Suffering a career slump?
It's hard to pin down why any professional feel stuck in their careers. Different people have different journeys in life, and the triggers may vary. It could be boredom and feeling under-challenged from doing the same work for years, or a misalignment in personal values vs organizational values, or maybe they experienced a major life-changing event that is changing their long-held views about their career.
Whatever the trigger, feeling stuck, unmotivated and questioning the meaning of the work we do is pretty common.
Each of us manages our challenges differently. Some breeze through it, while others stress over it. If you are struggling with feeling stuck in your career, fear not; you are not alone.
Here are three topics you can explore and experiment with to navigate out of this phase:
#1: Life Design
In their new book Designing Your New Work Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans introduced the application of the design thinking framework to manage work life.
Their philosophy is that "YOU are the designer of your life and your job. You can make it much better." The book provides the tools and ideas that would help you thrive at work if you choose to stay on in your career or even start a new venture as a next step in life. It is especially great for people who are going through a life transition.
Design thinking is a powerful method to help you get unstuck no matter your life stage.
#2: Passion Projects
In the past few years, I have been on a quest to find meaning in my work.
Most of us want to do meaningful work by contributing to the greater good. I read several articles that suggested exploring passion projects if you can't find meaning in your job. The intent is not to gain income but to make a positive change and create an impact in the community you want to serve.
For those who are less enthused about the day-to-day tasks they do at work, passion projects can be a way to create meaning, fulfilment and renewed energy to a stale life.
#3: Self-Coaching
I believe there are benefits to learning and implementing coaching tools and techniques to coach yourself.
I am a certified coach, a learning I undertook for my own personal growth, not with the intent of starting a coaching business. I have been experimenting with coaching frameworks and applying them to overcome personal challenges for the past few years. Imagine having the tools available to help you move forward in life at your fingertips. If done right, you may be able to transform your life and those around you for the better.
A great place to start exploring the subject is through David Novak and Jason Goldsmith's book, Take Charge of Your Life: How Self-Coaching Can Transform Your Life And Your Career.
