Career Mentor Series: Got Stuck up!

Dear Ma'am, I got stuck up for about last 7 years. Not able to grow vertically or horizontally. Also not able to change organization. Need serious mentoring, to get rid of form this deadlock situation. Need your support to identify my weakness and how to improve the same.

Dear Reader, 

Thanks for trusting me and the #Careermentor platform to help Professionals such as yourself. 

Here is my response- 

Hitting a Career Roadblock is not uncommon for many professionals. The number of roles available dwindle as you rise up the hierarchy. Having said that, being stuck in the same Role for 7 years requires some deep Reflecting-

- When did you start believing you have hit a ceiling? Normally 3-4 years at Mid to Senior levels calls for a movement even if horizontally for new exposures. 

- who did you Ask/ Speak with to understand the reason for this Roadblock? 

- How was your Performance through this period- you can certainly not expect the Organization to promote or invest in your development if you were not performing well?! 

- I have often come across Professionals who said they did nothing to help themselves when they knew they were stuck?! For years sometimes...

- You must ask yourself some tough questions around 

*Possible Learned helplessness- Pessimism and perhaps lacking in Aspiration/ Hope to improve your own situation 

*Your Locus of control- why should it be External - giving your Employer the controls to pace your Career at their will?! 

* Confrontation with Self- with the Management to understand what you needed to change/ improve/ develop to qualify for next roles or to demand new exposures?!! It’s one thing to aspire for success and another thing to work for it? Do you believe you have hit this Roadblock despite having delivered all it takes to be considered leadership material- however your Organization may define that. 

Now here is what you can do having invested in these deep tough Questions you must ask Yourself, even if others don’t-

1. Take stock of your strengths in the context of your aspirations and figure what you can do particularly during the downtime to develop yourself- take new courses that are relevant, seek professional Coaching on Executive Presence, Impactful Communication etc. all these areas are developable- so please look at how you are going to use this time to create a Version 2 of yourself that is getting ready to take on bigger roles whether in the current or another company. 

Your investment in yourself ought to be a continuous process- that’s how your preparedness shines through when opportunity strikes!!

2. The Lockdown May give you and your Leader the much needed quiet time to have this important conversation. Considering you have spent 7 years waiting - your Boss owes you this 1 hour Conversation. 

Tell him you need to Speak about a few pressing matters that have been bothering you for a long time and that you need a 1 hour/ 90 Minutes conversation. 

Confront him on the Roadblocks you experience in your career, ask for Direct and Honest Feedback on your Performance and why you have not been considered for next Roles. 

Do not be impatient or defensive. Bring in deliberate Calm and Listen actively to enable him to feel comfortable to share his/ her Perspectives- many of which may be unpalatable, discordant but are eye openers...

3. Consider the feedback- it’s not common to be stuck in the same Role for 7 Years unless the company is small and not growing. In most cases it’s an indication of the individual having hit their ceiling in terms of Capabilities to contribute beyond those levels. 

Such people are often Solid Citizens doing a great job at the level at which they are so you could easily be someone who is a Performer demonstrating low Potential to grow- in the evaluation of the organization. 

4. But the world is an incredibly large place and the current crisis can offer everyone the opportunity to reinvent and reassess what you Really want from your Career? what are your Real strengths? What would you Really need to build if you want to meet your aspirations? What are you Really Passionate about and also good at? 

Set about creating a plan and Action around how you will revive your Career whether in the current Organization or otherwise. 

Self Awareness is Key. Identify sources of increasing your Self Awareness through Feedback and Coaching. 

5. Word of caution is that this may not be the best market in which to drop your current assignment and expect to find the Job of your dreams at this time. 

Having said that, you can begin the search and wait while you Build and Prepare Yourself. 

I wish you luck on your journey of Reflection and Self discovery...

All the best! 

Dr Sujaya Banerjee