Are you getting into a rut?

‘Comfortable’ and ‘stable’ can be good but when you enjoy it too much, you start to stagnate and eventually ‘you get stuck in a rut’ sometimes without even realising it. What are the signs that you are ‘in a ‘dry place’?

You are comfortable and on auto pilot: This is ‘comfortable’ that does not do you any good. You feel you’re in your comfort zone, you feel settled to the point that you start to get rusty and have no desire for a higher level achievement. You repeat behaviours unconsciously day in day out.

Things are familiar and undemanding: When you are in a rut you don’t want any ‘hustle’; you are afraid to go into unchartered waters or try new things, you may even find opportunities that could change things for the better for you rather risky. When you have the chance to stretch you dodge it because you think it’ll be too taxing on you.

Everything is uninteresting and a bother: This can result from doing the same thing for so long so much so that you’re not even sure how to begin to try something else. You feel unfulfilled but lethargic and in no mood to shake things or to find ways to put your talents to use. Enthusiasm escapes you.

You feel you have ‘arrived’: Success at a certain level has become your end point. You are motivated and even have a positive mental attitude but you are not channelling this energy towards doing more, reaching out more. Success has become a self gratification rather than of wider benefit to others.

 

So, how do you get out of the rut?

 

Understand why are you stuck: When did you start feeling ‘trapped? What aspirations have ‘disappeared’ and what events can you remember that led to this. How are you able to tell that this is contrary to what you’d like to be? What purpose do you feel is being aborted by your lack of intention 

Avoid linear approach: Learn to draw some order out of chaos, make connections between seemingly unconnected things, experiment with the unfamiliar. Wake up your brain by growing your mind so that it serves you well, helps you analyse, explore logic, inspire inspiration and keep you sane.

Have a vision for your development: Plan your growth upwards and laterally; find alternative routes to developing your career so that you don’t feel helpless when you hit a ‘roadblock’ or things falter. A plan helps you think ahead and can pre-empt some of the things that can derail your progress.

Get purposely creative: Don’t wait for ‘inspiration from above’ to find solutions to your situation. Think of ways you can expand your expertise in different situations. For example as an accountant, you can work as such, teach accountancy in an institution, and provide private tuition. Be proactive,

Now take action: Where are you stagnating in your career? What will you do about it?