by Caroline Ceniza-Levine
As a recruiter turned career coach, I have seen the arc of many careers, including where careers stumble and the fears that accompany an uncertain future. Maybe you started out on the fast track, but have now hit a plateau, you need to propel yourself forward but you are anxious about your next move. Maybe you started out slow, need to start moving forward and are concerned about when you’ll hit your pace. Or perhaps you are advancing just fine but are unsure about what role, company or industry is right for you, and fear making changes. Depending on which career scenario best describes you, there are various strategies to overcome career paralysis caused by fear and move into action to advance your career and experience success.
If You Are Stuck at a Career Plateau
You know you’ve hit a career plateau when you no longer feel challenged or stretched by your day-to-day role. You might decide that this is okay and prefer to instead focus on interests outside of your career – on family, community, or personal pursuits. If you make a conscious decision to coast on your job, that’s your choice, albeit a risky one. If you stop stretching, you stop growing and soon are faced with obsolescence as a result of other changes occurring around you. A good check against this stagnation is to use your resume as an audit tool. Read the details about how in the current issue.
If You Are Stuck in a Career Rut
You’ll need to make small changes to break out of routine thinking. Such incremental shifts may translate into break-out thinking about your career. Read about how to break the rut in the current issue.
If You Are Anxious About Making Changes to the Status Quo
Learn how to shake up the status quo in the full article in the current issue.
If You are Afraid to Take Action to Advance Your Career
You know you’re longing for advancement when you find yourself constantly wanting more responsibility but not getting it. To get to the next level, you need to have a clear idea of what your next role will be and be able to transition there. Discover which fears may be keeping you back and how to push through them in the Winter 2011 issue.