Starting to work in a new place, for a while you are in euphoria. Every morning, you jump out of bed with a sense of gratitude to your new employer for this wonderful opportunity to work for him. You want to know everything about this company and cannot postpone the start of new projects for a second. Every day brings new brilliant opportunities.
But after a couple of months or years, the initial enthusiasm diminishes. You are tired of working on tasks of the same type and seem to have stalled in your development. Now in the morning you can hardly crawl out of bed, hoping that the working day will pass quickly. Colleagues are annoying, and work is boring. What happened? Chances are, you have outgrown your position, and something may suggest that the time has come for a change.
Here are five signs that you've outgrown your job, and what you can do about it. Also look at Article 11 Signs That Your Current Job Is Not Right for You.
1. You constantly look at the clock
Have you gotten to the point where it seems like the end of the day will never come? Constantly staring at your watch before your lunch break? If you no longer feel part of your company's mission, you are not alone. According to a public opinion poll, only 32% of workers say they are engrossed in work.
Most (about 50.8%) are not keen on their activities, while the remaining 17.2% are frankly dissatisfied with it. If you keep glancing at your watch, it’s obvious that you are not getting the job satisfaction you used to be. Life is too short to be wasted on what you are not interested in.
Don't wait for your boss's initiative
What can be done?
Take personal responsibility for your activities. If the work is not exciting, do not expect support and encouragement from bosses or colleagues, take your own actions. David Singer, founder of the Employee Network, offers a fresh perspective on work. Try to feel like not just an employee, but a partner of the company.
Employees can and should benefit from being passionate about their work. When people feel personally responsible for their own activities, they feel much less victimized at work. There are bad bosses and toxic jobs, but if we let external factors rule us, we will never succeed.
2. You are doing work that is not part of your job responsibilities
It can sometimes be flattering if the boss asks you to complete a task usually reserved for higher-level employees. But if work outside of your job responsibilities has become permanent, it's time to talk about it. If you continue in the same spirit, you will simply be used. Instead of doing significantly more work for less money, talk to your boss about it.
Getting promoted is real, but we have to talk about it.
What can be done?
Make an appointment with your boss and discuss the possibility of your promotion at the company. If you consistently do more work and complexity than you should, and do it well, you should be promoted and paid. However, you shouldn't just make demands at the meeting.
The best way to achieve what you want is to first find out what responsibilities employees in similar positions are performing (and remember to take education, experience, and location into account). Also provide examples of successful projects you have completed. You won’t know if you’ll get a raise if you don’t at least try.
3. There is no room for promotion
You may find yourself in the opposite situation, where you are constantly being promoted and promoted. You are a great employee and have received several promotions already. But the problem is that you have nowhere else to grow. You have reached the top of the career ladder in your activity and do not know what to do next. You're stuck doing the same job year after year for the same paycheck.
Volunteering can boost your career
What can be done?
If you enjoy working for this organization and would prefer to stay, ask the employer to give you a try in a different role. Try to create new opportunities for yourself. One way to do this is to volunteer on a project outside of your primary responsibilities.
Each company has projects that combine different areas of activity, hierarchical levels and specializations. Find out what they are and, perhaps more importantly, who is doing it. Getting experience in such cross-industry projects is much better than further improving your skills where you have already reached the ceiling. New skills, great prospects, working with new people and developing ideas for promoting these projects are worth the investment of time and effort.
4. You are bored
When you get a new job, you first worry about whether you can handle it with dignity. You stay late in the office and carefully double-check the results of your work. Now you can carry out your duties with your eyes closed. Everything has become too easy for you.
If you find yourself getting bored too often, then you have too few responsibilities or the job is too simple for your skill level. In that case, instead of relaxing and enjoying this boring comfort, use this opportunity to improve your professional skills.
Do not stop there, develop
What can be done?
Instead of complaining and wasting work time, be proactive in finding a solution... There can be several reasons for boredom at work. The good news is there are plenty of solutions (and no, that doesn't include hanging out on the roof during office hours).
Ask for more challenging assignments. If the problem is that you do not have enough workload to fill all the working hours, talk with your boss about the workflow. Ask for more meaningful tasks, the complexity of which will take you an appropriate amount of time.
Lend a helping hand... If you have extra time at your disposal, you can ask colleagues if they need help. Being part of a team will not only help combat boredom, but also provide a chance to learn new skills.
Evolve... Keep growing and learning with refresher courses, book reading, and attending networking events in your profile. If you don't learn new things and grow professionally, you risk losing your qualifications. Overly comfortable conditions can ruin your career. Use all available opportunities for your own development. If you happen to be fired or laid off, and you have not improved in your field of work, it can be difficult to find a new job.
5. You can't concentrate
Finding it difficult to concentrate on work? Are you not as interested in tasks as before? Lack of attention and interest in what you are doing can make your work day very unpleasant. You want to get the job done and do it well, but you just can't motivate yourself to do it. It will be difficult to keep working in the same place if you are not interested anymore.
Maybe it's time for a big change
What can be done?
If you’re already in a state where the work is not the slightest interest, and the motivation is barely enough to send an email, do not force things. In that case, it looks like it's time to move on and do something new elsewhere. Depending on the situation, you may already want to change jobs yourself. But before making such an important decision, try to find out the reasons for your exhaustion.
A business coach can help you understand what needs to be done to become a productive team member again. Quite possibly the real problem is burnout. When was the last time you were on vacation? Find the answers you need and your career will sparkle with new colors.
We recommend watching:
On the Smart Business channel, businessman Oleg Karnaukh talked about how not to stay in one place and move up the career ladder if it seems to you that you have already "grown" out of your position.
