How To Get Out of a Career Rut? Here's How Self-Reformation Can Help

Feeling stuck in a career rut is a challenging state to be in. It may first start with feeling sluggish and lifeless as you say goodbye to the weekend and welcome a new work week ahead. After a couple of days, it becomes a constant feeling that makes you lose interest in progressing in your career or even life itself. 

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when you’re on the brink of feeling stuck but this lack of motivation doesn’t happen overnight – and getting out of it won’t be either. Being in a career rut is usually the result of overworking that has led to exhaustion or burnout, or simply the lack of prioritising your overall well-being while going after your career goals.

Signs of a Career Rut

1. Every working day feels monotonous and you’re not learning anything new.

You no longer feel excited about what the day holds and you’ve stopped striving to develop your skills or learn new things.

2. You’ve lost the drive you once had for your job.

You’re starting to miss deadlines and you’ve lost confidence in contributing or collaborating with your team.

3. You feel a lack of satisfaction and purpose in your role.

You no longer have the answer to your “why”—Why are you in this company? Why did you pursue this position? 

4. Your health and relationships are getting affected.

Because of the lack of drive and motivation, you might have the tendency to self-sabotage by not eating healthy and being disconnected from friends and family.

5. You no longer feel challenged and you feel unappreciated.

You may have been doing responsibilities and tasks that are not in your job description, sacrificing so much of yourself for your boss or your team but you’re not getting that promotion you hoped for or a raise you deserve, or you’re not compensated enough for all that you have been offering.

Thriving in the workplace goes hand in hand with taking care of yourself to achieve long-term career success. Know when to say no when needed, stand up for yourself and talk to a supervisor if you feel a lack of professional growth, and make time to learn new things and to keep growing. Though it’s not easy, breaking habits and gaining the confidence you need to achieve a healthy work-life balance can be attained with self-reformation. A tweak in your daily lifestyle and how you treat yourself can be your answer. 

Here are steps to improve yourself and your habits to break out of a career rut:

Acknowledge Your Feelings

It is crucial to validate your own emotions, especially negative feelings. Don’t shrug them off or cover them up. If you don’t take time to pause to acknowledge your feelings it might cloud your logical reasoning and affect your decision-making. You might also end up blaming yourself for feeling stuck and being unproductive. 

No, nothing is wrong with you. It’s only natural for employees to feel stuck and unmotivated when they lose a sense of balance. Acknowledging your feelings is one way to regain that balance in your career and personal life. 

Once you take the time to process your emotions, you can establish the cause of your career rut and find ways to address it. Have you been neglecting your personal needs? Are you feeling overworked? Is it something you can discuss with your supervisor? Have you not been delegating tasks? Are you saying yes to more than you can handle? Do you feel like you’re not growing in your current position? Ask yourself why and move forward from there. 

Also read: 6 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Changing Jobs

Distance Yourself From the Situation

Take that much-needed break. In life, you can solve some issues quickly, but some need a few deep breaths before you can get on top of the situation. Give yourself permission to take some downtime. Clear your head, process your emotions, enjoy a delicious cup of coffee or tea without rushing, and plan your next steps. 

A career rut may be your signal to slow down, revisit your goals, and reanalyse your purpose. Consider taking a short break from your routine to enjoy an activity or environment you love out of work and find ways to help yourself during this situation.  

Also read: How to Know When It’s Time to Break Up With Your Job

Invest in yourself

It’s okay to feel stuck, but it’s not okay to stay stuck. Now is the perfect time to aim for self-reformation because you can always be a better version of yourself. The best way? Invest in yourself.

Take care of yourself.

Work hard but don’t lose yourself in the process. Make sure you allot time for yourself and life outside of work. Keep in mind that you won’t be able to function effectively as a professional if you’re not happy or if you constantly neglect your personal needs. Self-care is significant to happiness, and happiness is necessary to your success in life. 

Get that haircut, have your nails done, or buy that dessert. Enjoying things in life can do so much for your mental health and can steer you away from feeling dull and unproductive to feeling accomplished and inspired. 

Be responsible for yourself. If you feel overworked, speak to your supervisor and find ways to create a solution. If you feel like you’re constantly procrastinating which causes you to consistently cancel your plans, take time to follow a routine and practice time management so that your overall well-being doesn’t take a hit. 

Learn new things.

You’re never too old to learn something new – be riding a bike, learning how to bake, or upskilling for your career. Enrol in a new course or take short online classes to boost your confidence. 

You may be in the cooking industry or perhaps working as an admin assistant but don’t stop yourself from learning about social media, doing graphic design, or enrolling in a class on sales and marketing. Whatever it is, try something new and fall in love with learning. 

Feed your passion. 

Find something you enjoy doing and get inspired to take that road be it full-time or part-time. Working on things you are passionate about will give you the drive to keep growing.

Revisit your goals and create new ones.

Our goals, needs, wants, and even ourselves are ever-changing. It’s a great habit to reflect on your goals and identify how you wish to change them or if you want to create new ones according to your current situation or long-term objectives. 

Practise gratitude.

You might be in a rut right now, but know that as long as you choose to keep moving forward you won’t be there for long. Reflect on your old goals and acknowledge your achievements no matter how small. Practising gratitude will help you constantly feel inspired to keep progressing in life and your career. 

Also, read 5 Ways You Can Continue Growing In Your Company

Feeling more inspired and ready for a better you and a better career? #LetsGetToWork! Discover more articles like these on the Career Resources Hub. You can also download the JobStreet app on Google Play and the App Store for easier access.