The 4 BIGGEST Career Growth Inhibitors

I mean.... we all are a little bit comfortable in our current positions... Amirite?

Or at least that's the lie we tell ourselves.

I think we all have a FEAR of starting something new sometimes.

But there are at least 17 additional reasons I've identified that hold people back from growing their career.

And as we go through this list, I want you to be honest with yourself. I think every single one of these reasons have held me back at some point in my own career journey. Think about which ones have held you back.

For the ease of remembering, I've broke them down into four categories.

CAREER GROWTH INHIBITOR #1: LACK OF MOTIVATION

If you've been following my newsletters, you know I love exploring definitions. My favorite definition of motivation:

Motivation = The driving force behind human actions

So lets get into some of the reasons why we lack a driving force behind our career growth.

1. Comfort with Status Quo. See... when people are "comfortable" in their current positions, there is no drive or motivation to grow. But, comfort is really just a lie we tell ourselves, covering up our fears. Learning something new is daunting. We love our routines. Check out more in the article I wrote last week, FEAR of starting something new.
2. Negative Past Experiences. This one hurts. Maybe you were passed over for a promotion. Maybe you got criticized for making mistakes. Maybe you were in a toxic work environment. These negative feelings could make it much harder for you to take the first steps down the growth path.
3. Lack of Clear Goals. Goal setting is tough. Especially if we continually set goals and never accomplish them. We lose vision. We might not see "the point". Without goals, we lose direction and motivation. Check out my Article "What does your Success Story Look Like" for some fun ideas here.
4. Fear of Failure. We don't like to Fail. Status Quo is safer! Well... just with rapid technological advancement and economic uncertainty lately... I'm not so Sure Status Quo is safer. My personal go-to quote on the topic of fear is "Do something every day that scares you" by Eleanor Roosevelt. It's a bit daunting at first... but then its actually fun to expand your comfort zone.
5. Low Self-Confidence. The statistic I've probably referenced 85 times now... 85% of adults have low self confidence. It's a real challenge. If we lack belief in our own ability to succeed... our motivation to grow is destroyed. I truly believe small incremental growth DAILY is the low-self confidence slayer. The problem... most of us never even take the first step. We need the right motivation to get started.

CAREER GROWTH INHIBITOR #2: Lack of Support

Support could mean lots of things to different people. In it's simplest form, support means:

SUPPORT = enable to function or act

And quite honestly, we are surrounded by all sorts of systems, people, cultures and environments that DISABLE us to function or act. Let's explore some of them:

1. Inadequate Organizational Culture. The hard truth- many organizations do not prioritize employee development. Many do not have structured programs for career growth, such as mentorships, training, learning paths, career paths, or professional development opportunities. Many organizations prioritize short term performance over long-term employee development. Sometimes Bureaucracy and office politics can block Career development. Unfortunately, in these situations, we need to take care of our own Career Growth and not rely on our organizations.
2. Poor Leadership. Many managers do not take an active role in developing their employees. This is also where the phrase "what if we train them and they leave" comes in. Unfortunately, many "leaders" out there still believe this. One more thing that hurts my heart in this category too. Discrimination. There are still leaders out there at pick favorites... and purposely block others from growing. Unfortunately in these situations, we should seek external Leadership to guide our Career Growth.
3. Lack of Mentorship. Similar to above, maybe there is nobody to show us the ropes. Maybe there isn't any formalized process for career coaching or mentorship within a company. And if there is, maybe the Mentors aren't properly trained and it becomes a toxic experience. This holds us back. Again, if there is no current system that's helpful, its time to seek external mentorship.
4. Unaware of Available Resources. Interestingly enough, maybe there is some programs and resources available to you to help you with your career growth. But maybe nobody has told you about it. Maybe the handbooks are unclear. Maybe your manager doesn't even know potential resources. And because we lack motivation, we just assume that there aren't any resources available. The big lesson here.... ASK for resources!

CAREER GROWTH INHIBITOR #3. Unsure Where to Start

I think many of us don't really know what the exact specific next step to take. Especially the step that will have a biggest impact on our career growth.

Here's some reason why:

1. Undefined Career Vision. Many people don't have a clear idea of what they want their career to look like long term. Without a specific goal or endpoint in mind, it can be difficult to know where to start. My perspective is we need to FIND OUR FIRE... metrics that actually motivate us to grow... from Find increased Self-Worth, increased Creativity, Stress Reduction, Inspiring Others, better Work Arrangements, ability to Mentor or Coach younger people on the same journey your on, higher Compensation, better Community Influence, better Industry Influence, Leave a Legacy, Better Family Role Model, and so more. If we get the right motivational metric, it will open our eyes to what our future Career could look like. It isn't always just a better title. there is so much more to Career Growth.
2. Limited Self Awareness:??? People might not have a good understanding of their own strengths, weaknesses, interests, and values.??? They might not understand how there skillset compares with other people in their field.?? They might have a bit of an ego or sometimes even imposter syndrome because they do not want to admit that they have gaps in their skills. We have to be open to HONESTLY assessing ourselves, so we can find the gaps and areas of potential growth.
3. To Many Options:??Career growth often requires learning new skills, gaining certifications, or taking on new responsibilities. The perceived complexity or difficulty of these tasks can make it hard to know where to begin.??? If there are multiple areas that need attention, such as technical skills, soft skills, or networking, it can be challenging to prioritize and focus on the most critical first step. I am a HUGE FAN of doing your own JOB TASK ANALYSIS. figure out which tasks provide the biggest impact in your career. and become an ABSOLUTE EXPERT at the #1 and #2 task first. ALL the rest can wait.
4. Lack of Guidance:?? We've covered this already above... although it is worth mentioning again. Without role models or mentors or leaders who have navigated similar paths, it can be hard to visualize the steps needed for growth. It is critically important to build a proper support system if you want to grow your career FASST.

CAREER GROWTH INHIBITOR #4. Lack of Time

Honestly, this is my favorite inhibitor. If someone tells me they don't have time to grow, i get excited. I get even more excited when I talk to business leaders and they tell me their employees are TOO BUSY and there isn't time to train.

Why do i get excited?

BECAUSE THAT IS THE REASON YOU NEED TO GROW EVEN MORE. With career growth, we can increase our job time efficiency. We learn ways to be more effective. We can make an even bigger impact in our organizations.

Lets dive into this a bit more, looking specifically at the reasons people don't have time.

1. Busy Work Schedules. Most professionals are already stretched thin with their current responsibilities, leaving little room for additional activities like skill development, networking, or pursuing further education. With that being said, I've proven time and time again that it doesn't take much to grow. Just 5 to 25 minutes a day could have a big impact. Start small.
2. Work-Life Balance.?? Caring for children, elderly parents, or managing a household can consume a significant amount of time, leaving little left for "off the clock" career growth. I've screwed this up alot in my own life. To the point of even getting a divorce. Read more about my lessons and perspective on Work-Life balance in this article... My dad made me write this article on Work-Life Balance... .

Growing professionally will drastically help your personal life, and growing personally will drastically help your professional life. This is the real Work-Life balance we should be seeking. -Dan Clapper"

3. Burnout, Exhaustion, Chronic Stress.??? After a demanding workday, people may feel too tired to engage in activities like networking or learning new skills. We lack the energy or motivation to invest time in our career growth, and end up self-meditating in destructive behaviors if the stress is too much. Only very recently I learned that taking care of your HEALTH and WELLNESS can MASSIVELY improve your life AND YOUR CAREER. Instead of watching TV or endless scrolling, go for a walk or do some yoga or meditation. The more you build in healthy habits, the more you will gain TIME and energy in your life to grow your career.

4. Time Mismanagement:??? People may perceive they lack time due to poor time management skills, such as procrastination and the inability to prioritize or focus on important tasks.???? Distractions, whether from technology, social media, or other sources, can eat into time that could otherwise be used for career growth. I personally love distractions though .

By anchoring a time block of learning to something you are already driven to do every day, you are going to build the habit of learning MUCH quicker than just trying to do it independently. - Dan Clapper

Lots of info here... maybe bookmark this page for reference in the future!

Lets get into some quick action:

ACTION TIME:

1. Go through the above list, and check off which ones have held you back on your own career growth journey.???Honesty is important here! Feel free to share your experiences in the comments below!
2. If you have a team.... which of the above factors is inhibiting them from growing?

As always, thank you for your time with today's article! We as leaders need to inspire growth and learning in the workplace now more than ever... and I will continue to provide fresh, actionable content week after week to empower my subscribers! Much gratitude, I appreciate you!

Your Friend,

Dan