Not all parts of our careers can always bring us excitement and growth. When I speak with leaders in my workshops or coaching sessions, there can sometimes be stages of discontent or even boredom. Let’s face it; we all have many routine tasks and responsibilities that need to get done. We often conduct those activities with little thought and more automatic response. The challenge for leaders is to pull themselves through these periods and get to the next more energizing project or opportunity.
One leader I worked with was so disheartened with their daily tasks that they had become reclusive. They stopped connecting with their team members by eating lunch at their desk all alone and rarely leaving their workspace. They felt trapped but not sure what their next steps could be. They stopped looking forward to tackling their assignments, worried how they would get through their days. Something had to change.
To overcome boredom lead with these five strokes:
1. Write Out Your Leadership Story
The first stroke to paint to understand why a leader feels bored or disengaged is to write out your story. Where a resume might list the functional achievements in our career, a leadership story should include feelings at different points in our professional life. Look back on each of your work situations and write down the positives and lessons with each. Those parts of your career are probably the areas you should be focusing. Reflect on tasks, responsibilities and assignments that energized and challenged you to grow. A pattern will emerge and begin to point you towards the next best move.
To overcome boredom in their career, leaders must first identify what parts of their job excite them. Click To Tweet2. Share Your Challenges With Trusted Advisers
A next stroke might be to meet with trusted co-workers, past and present bosses, mentors or professional network colleagues. Look at your support system and reach out for input and feedback. Share your job and responsibility concerns.
- Describe your current lack of momentum.
- Include your leadership story lessons.
- Explain the career trajectory you are most interested in.
- Listen to really understand their generous perspectives.
3. Let Your Curiosity Out To Explore
Identifying what excites us can take many different directions. Using your leadership story and input from your trusted advisers, allow your mind to brainstorm. Think about what truly fascinates you in your current professional life and how you can add that to your job. One individual I coached decided to take a course in an area they wanted to grow. Sometimes new ideas from coursework can help leaders add meaningful responsibilities. Just commit to exploring.
Being curious about different possibilities empowers leaders to direct their next professional moves. Click To Tweet4. Devise Your Plan
This fourth stroke involves a tight action plan that pulls all your hard work together. Remember this is for you and not someone else’s plan.
- Start by clearly stating your goals and why you have chosen them at this point in your career.
- List out steps for each goal using action verbs.
- Make sure to include timeframes of when you will achieve each step.
- Have fun and be creative. That will ensure you becoming more energized.
5. Keep Editing
The final stroke to keep our leadership meaningful is to continuously be self-aware about our jobs and careers. If something feels “off” then delve into why. If we can’t get out of bed in the morning to go to work, then recognize what is happening. Never stop evolving. Don’t accept boredom. Our leadership story should always include what is important to us.
How have you overcome boredom or feeling disengaged in your job or career? What has helped you find your new path?
Thanks for your insight on injecting new excitement into a career!
Thanks Robin! We all hit these roadblocks and can feel as if we aren’t as fulfilled in our jobs as we could be. By being curious and exploring different alternatives, leaders can empower themselves to learn new skills or attempt a stretch project.
There are a lot of people like you’ve described and the boredom shows up in all that they do. Not only do they feel it, but so does their team. Love that you start having people reconnect to their leadership story. I’ve also discovered through my coaching work that sometimes it helps to set small challenges (and some big challenges.) Boredom often shows up thanks to routine and when people break that, they experience things differently.
Appreciate your insights!
Alli
You bring up a great point about our routines taking over our lives. There are good parts of being in a routine as it empowers us to create habits and accomplish the many tasks we have to tackle. And there are challenging pieces of routines that prevent leaders from pursuing new opportunities that may stimulate their creativity. It’s a balance. Being self-aware that we are bored or unfulfilled is a beginning. The next steps involve important actions that begin with our leadership story- where we have been and where we want to go.
Thanks Alli for your important thoughts and tips!
An important article for every leader since we all feel mored and overwhelmed with mundane tasks. Something that has worked for me is to sit down and reflect on the most exciting and rewarding moments in my career. Then backtrack and pinpoint what I experienced before those breakthrough moments. Often, the times that preceded a major breakthrough in my career were ones filled with the discontent I needed for a kick in the butt to move me further down the road. Alas, without those times when I was totally stuck in boring and mundane tasks, I might not have been motivated to put in the extra effort that put me on top.
Fantastic strategy LaRae! It is often the case that before we make a leap we are treading water in a pool of frustration and boredom. So by thinking back to when we were feeling that same way and how we were able to take a risk to move ahead can be enlightening. Reaching out to trusted colleagues or even a coach can also help us restart our engines and refocus.
Thanks for your helpful tips!