What is Career Stagnation, and have I fallen victim to it? Career Stagnation is when you no longer find joy in your work. There is a lack of engagement. You feel stuck in your current position. You are not moving forward. There is no longer a challenge. You are no longer receiving salary increases, and ultimately feel like you have hit a wall in your current role. If you are a high performer, this is not a comfortable place to be and can often lead to burnout. Here are some ways to help you counter the feeling of stagnation in your career.
1. Ask for a Challenge. Have an honest conversation with your manager. Let them know you no longer feel challenged with your current duties. Ask if they have any projects or tasks that you can take over that will provide more of a challenge. Create a project. Become the resident expert of the current ERP system. By doing this, you not only enhance your level of knowledge, but you have made yourself a more valuable resource to your organization, and for your next one! Encourage Lunch-n-Learns. Lunch-n-Learn is a good way to spread education over a large employee base. Leading this type of event or agreeing to speak during an event will not only showcase your knowledge but also provide additional exposure for you to stakeholders in the organization.
2. Start to Mentor. Put on Your Leadership Hat. Give back. Take an interest in a junior employee who may be struggling in their current role. This can help you to know if you are truly ready for leadership. Do you have the patience and willingness to take ownership of a team? Start to share your knowledge with others. You do not have to be in the office or face-to-face to make an impact on another employee. You see who asks most of the questions or who your manager spends a lot of time with. Raise your hand to help them instead. In other words, step up.
3. Increase Your Knowledge. Update your skills. You could be left out of the big projects because you lack a specific skill or the willingness to grow. Inquire about the organization sponsoring a professional certification. Not having an education reimbursement plan is never a reason to not even ask the question. Find out if you can shadow your manager when they are performing tasks in areas that interest you. Make yourself a value-add. When an organization has an employee who wants to continue learning and growing, they will help them do just that. Why? Because it benefits the company and because they know the alternative is to lose the employee.
If you are starting to dread Sunday nights, procrastinate on even the smallest tasks, and are not motivated to take on new assignments or enhance your current level of knowledge, you are more than likely stagnant in your career. If the issue is not with the company, then take note of these steps so you can show up as the employee they hired. If the issue is based on external factors like the organization or your direct manager, then maybe it’s time to test the waters. See what else is out there.
The Transform Tuesdays newsletter was created to help professionals in corporate positions navigate the world of corporate America by overcoming the hurdles hindering them from growing to the next level in their careers, including knowing their value, using their voice, and being authentic to themselves.
Sherrika Sanders has been an accountant by trade for over 15 years. During her years as a corporate accountant, Sherrika progressed through various roles from Revenue Accountant to Corporate Controller. She worked to develop consolidated business processes, post-acquisition financial integration, and Fresh Start Accounting upon emergence from Chapter 11 within seven months of initial filing during her time as an Assistant Controller. Sherrika resigned from her role as Corporate Controller to take a leap of faith and start her own company, Transform the GAAP (Goals Assigned Achieving Purpose), where she specializes in helping employees on the accounting teams of Private and PE-backed organizations increase their productivity by identifying errors and inefficiencies in their current processes to meet organizational deadlines and professional goals. If you are seeking one-on-one or group coaching sessions, click on the following link for a complimentary consultation to learn how you can work with Sherrika to Transform the GAAP together. Sherrika believes in a judgment-free zone where all are contributors working towards a common goal. Visit https://www.transformthegaap.com/ to learn more.
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