At some point in your career, you are likely to be stuck at your job. Being stuck at your job is one of the reasons why the job economy isn’t getting better.
To improve the job economy and prevent you from being stuck at some point in your career journey, you must invest in yourself like never before, take a few classes, look for new opportunities, challenge yourself, discover the skills you enjoy doing the most, and learn how to apply them efficiently to your work.
Here are various reasons why you are stuck at your job and what you can do about it.
1. You Don’t Have a Career Road Map.
A career road map acts as a compass for an employee towards attaining their goals moving forward in their career and prevents them from being stuck in their job.
Studies by SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, show that only 49 per cent of employees in the United States of America have a career road map, which is even lower in other countries. As a result, various employees who do not have a career roadmap become stuck at their job.
A career road map is vital for your career growth; it creates a growth environment for you, helps you manage your career direction, and provides motivation.
Here are a few other reasons why you need a career roadmap;
- Achieve your career end goals.
- Growth in career level.
- Provides directions for advancement in your career.
- Determine your strengths and weaknesses.
- Become a manageable and retainable employee.
- It identifies gaps you need to fill.
For your career roadmap to be effective, it has to have a clear direction, an end goal, detailed steps, be accurately measured, and be easy to understand.
Start creating your roadmap today, and don’t forget the vital points mentioned above.
2. You Are Not Doing Meaningful Work.
According to State of the American Workplace, a new report by Gallup Inc., only 30 per cent of the U.S. workforce is engaged in their work. In other words, only 30 per cent of the workforce are passionate about their job and are committed to their companies. The other 70 per cent are either “not engaged” or “actively disengaged” in their work (Gallup, 2013).
Gallup describes the unengaged workers as those who are “checked out,” putting in time but without much energy or zeal. Actively disengaged workers are unhappy, not committed, and sometimes remain stuck in the job and don’t accomplish great things.
This disengagement has a negative effect on both you and your employer; your employer loses money while you don’t move up your career level.
However, there are ways to solve this problem. The American Psychological Association provides various solutions. Some are;
- You can derive meaning not from the job itself but from the fact that it allows you to provide for yourself and your family and pursue non-work activities that you enjoy.
- Decide that the work you are doing has some purpose, no matter how little it is.
- Believe that your work somehow benefits the greater good.
- You can make your meaning.
3. You Avoid Career Growth And Change.
One of the reasons why you are stuck in your job is that you avoid growth and change. This can be in the form of a change in career level, the addition of professional certificates for your career, advancement of your job role, learning other skills, etc.
You avoid career growth and development due to a lack of confidence, laziness, low self-esteem, feeling incompetent, loss of job security, the fear of the unknown, your predisposition toward change, and a few other reasons. However, there are ways to solve this.
According to research by Forbes, there are a few proven methods that will help you accept growth and development in your career, they are;
- Ask yourself what it is you’re avoiding.
- Realise you don’t fear change, you fear loss.
- Learn for the future.
- Adopt a learning mindset.
- Consider the upsides of change.
- Consult a mentor or coach. Momentum by WayMaker digital provides mentoring programs.
- Choose to believe change serves you.
- Ask yourself what changes you would like to change and work on them.
Try these methods today and start seeing positive results in our career growth.
4. You Lack Knowledge
Lack of knowledge is one of the common reasons employees stay stuck at their jobs. When you lack knowledge that will help you grow in your career, you won’t be able to move up your career level and, in turn, stay stuck in your job level.
There are various ways you can gain knowledge for career growth. A few are;
- Certifications.
- Learn vital hard and soft skills.
- Research.
- Online and offline classes.
- A professional degree.
- Learn from mentors and coaches.
- Learn from industry professionals.
- Advanced Work experience.
- Join a community with people with similar job roles.
- Networking.
According to the latest research by the World Financial Review, the 5 top skills to acquire in 2021 are Information Technology and Cybersecurity, Foreign Languages and Translation, Video and Audio Production, Extended Reality – Virtual and Augmented, and Data Analysis.
Momentum by WayMaker Digital provides access to the various ways by which you can gain knowledge for your career growth.
The Momentum program covers private mentoring, on the job coaching, licencing for toolkits, work resources, and training portal access across six technology-related disciplines which are: Agile Project Management, Product Management, User Experience Research, Business Analysis, Data Analysis, and Reporting and Web Application Development.
Click on the link here to start and gain the knowledge you need for career growth.
5. You Are Getting Too Comfortable in Your Career Position.
Getting too comfortable in your job position hinders both your career growth and personal growth. It puts you in a situation where you’re doing the same thing day after day, and you cut yourself off from opportunities to learn and experiences. You need to continue learning, improving your skillset, being current with various changes in your job industry, adapting, being flexible, making positive changes in your career, joining professional organisations, attending seminars, and networking.
Conclusion
To discover if you are comfortable in your job position, here are a few signs to take note of;
- You’re okay with the bare minimum.
- You stop contributing your ideas and plans.
- You do not take interest in new opportunities.
- Change frightens you.
- Completed work no longer fulfils you.
- Classes and Certifications no longer interest you.
- You have not updated your skills to industry standards.
- Your career growth is no longer of interest to you.
There are a few other ones as well, but these are the vital ones. Don’t get too comfortable at your job, and keep on learning and growing.
About the Author: Esther Ilori
Esther Ilori has been a content writer since 2017 and she currently works as a Content Writer. She brings her years of experience to her current role where she is dedicated to educating and inspiring the world on how to effectively use content writing and digital marketing in various companies, careers and to achieve various goals. Links to her published articles can be found here. You can find Esther on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.
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