Kick-Start Your Career: 8 Ways to Overcome a Career Plateau

Kick-Start Your Career: 8 Ways to Overcome a Career Plateau

Sometimes our careers plateau because we are not doing what we should to grow and develop. Sometimes, it’s because we’ve lost our way, forgotten our purpose or because we find ourselves at a career crossroads. Sometimes, albeit not as often, it’s because of a global pandemic that has turned our whole world upside down. 
 
Whatever your reason for feeling stuck, bogged down or in a tizzy, know that you’re not alone in feeling this way but you are the only person who can change your situation. 
 
Here are 8 things that you need to do to pick yourself up and kick-start your career: 

1. Prioritising Self-Care

 

 

 

You can only think clearly and perform at your best when you regularly take care of yourself. We’re talking about getting 7-8 hours of good quality sleep every night, eating and drinking what works for your body, exercising often, and switching off to recharge. You need to be putting yourself first. 

2. Make Time for Deep Thinking

Have you ever noticed that you tend to solve your most complex problems when you’re not actively thinking about them? If you’re full-on all the time, you don’t give your brain a chance to switch to subconscious thinking. Try taking a walk, meditating or reading to properly switch off. You’ll find that not stressing about something so much will actually help you figure it out. 

3. Treat Your Career Like Your Number One Client

We are all guilty of putting our clients first and leaving our own career development on the back burner. If you want to move forward, however, you can’t keep doing this. Put yourself in your diary (maybe even as a ‘different’ client) and get your stuff done too. 

4. Write Down Your Values and Your Vision

What makes you, you? What are your values? Where do you see yourself in a few years time? Try reminding yourself of what’s important to you and you’ll find that this will give you a new sense of purpose. Sometimes, going back to these can help you realign yourself on the right track. 

5. Remind Yourself of Your Why

Your sense of purpose is your ‘why.’ Why do you do what you do? What makes you tick? It’s important that you know your ‘why’ because this is what will carry you through the hard times. Go back and reflect on your career journey, has your ‘why’ changed or can you re-ignite this passion? 

6. Use Gratitude to Identify What You Can Change

Write a list of what’s good about your career role and what’s bad. Can you do anything to improve on the bad stuff? Sometimes, all it takes is realising that the positives outweigh the negatives or that you can actually do something to improve the negatives. 

7. Reflect On Your Career Journey

Ask yourself probing questions to find out what’s really important to you. Why did you choose this career path? What did you aspire to be when you first started out? What impact were you going to make and are you making it now? What can you change to get this drive and passion back? When are you happiest and the most fulfilled at work? 

8. Set New Goals and Develop the Right Habits

Once you have done all of the first 7 steps, you should know now what you want and why you want to do it. Now, it’s time to outline how you are going to achieve it. Break down your overall goal into monthly and weekly goals. Then, identify what habits you need to change or add to achieve these. 

Start Moving Forward Again

Remember the quote – “Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.” This will help you to take the driver’s seat once again with your career. 

Picture of Callum Williams

Callum Williams

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