Why do I feel stuck in my career?

There are many reasons for feeling lost in life. Life changes can bring with it many conflicting feelings and as you move through your life, one of the biggest feelings which often comes up is feeling lost in your career path.

There are many reasons for this. Today, more than ever, there are so many outside influences affecting your life.

Social media, advertisers, influencers and celebrities can all seem to have perfect lives with no problems.

Doing their dream jobs, in their seemingly perfect worlds. It can leave you feeling lost and in search of something else.

For anyone who has been in the same career for many years, this feeling can be even stronger.

You can begin to question if it is what you want to do anymore or if there is something else more worthwhile in the world for you to be doing.

Is it normal to feel lost in a job?

It is perfectly normal to feel lost in your job. It can seem somewhat strange to feel lost in the career path you have chosen or the job you do.

After all, you are the one who chose to do a particular career and may have studied for a long time to achieve the required qualifications and experience.

That doesn’t mean to say there isn’t going to be a point in your life where you start to question what you are doing and why you are doing it and start to wonder if it is still the right career for you.

As you grow and change, you can begin to look at your life and your situation differently. If your career role doesn’t change with you, then you can end up feeling lost.

The world is moving very quickly these days and you can often get the feeling you are being left behind. As new technology arrives, a new way of working appears, and younger work colleagues start making their way through the company, your perception of your workplace and your role within it can begin to change and you can feel unsettled and lost.

Finding new direction when feeling lost in your career

It isn’t a hopeless situation to be in though. There are many things you can do to find a new direction when you are feeling lost in your career. Coaching is an excellent way to discover where you want to be going in your life and what you need to do to get there.

It could be just the push you need to try something new and explore other avenues.

There could be plenty of time to change careers entirely, become self-employed or do something completely different that you have always wanted to do but never had the chance to do before, or weren’t brave enough to try.

This could be your time, you could end up doing something far more fulfilling and rewarding, you could discover the role you were always meant to do and it could reinvigorate your entire life.

See these feelings you are experiencing now as your chance to start investigating further the direction you would like to be going in.

Continue reading to discover 15 tips to help you move through these feelings positively.

15 Helpful Tips

1. Accept the feelings as normal

Firstly, accept the way you are feeling is perfectly normal and nothing to be ashamed about. Many people will get to a certain stage in their lives and start to question the choices they have made or the position they are in.

This is all a perfectly normal part of growing and maturing. Even if it feels like a negative emotion at the moment, it could be the kick-start you need to make a change in your life.

2. Take some time out to understand yourself

Take some time to understand yourself. It could be that since you started down your career path, your attitudes and views have changed.

You may have grown or developed in ways which are no longer congruent to your role.

Getting to fully understand your core values and beliefs in your position now, will be a crucial factor to you moving forward.

When you fully know and understand yourself the direction you want and need to be taking will become clear.

If you have any difficulties learning to fully understand yourself, working with a life coach can be helpful and rewarding.

3. Consider why you have these feelings

You will never experience a feeling without first having a thought. Therefore if you are feeling lost, consider the thoughts you are having and what is causing these thoughts.

Self-reflection and understanding need to be done for you to appreciate your feelings.

4. Talk to someone you trust

Talking to someone you trust can help you to work through the way you are feeling.

You may be confused, upset, scared or unmotivated in your life at the moment and the career path you have chosen therefore talking to someone else can help to clarify your thoughts and give you another opinion.

5. Develop a positive mindset

Is your current job making you think negatively? Or is it something else going on in your life that you are transferring onto your job? Are you even fully aware of the thoughts you are having that are causing you to feel this way?

Many people can be unaware of the negative mindset they have so make sure you develop a positive mindset. Be conscious of the thoughts you are having and try to change any negative thought patterns as soon as you are aware of them.

6. Introduce a daily regimen of self-care

Do you look after yourself? Eat a healthy balanced diet, get enough sleep, stay well-hydrated and exercise. Self-care is so important to feeling emotionally positive. If you are lacking in a self-care routine, then introduce one into your day immediately.

Follow a healthy eating plan, get out into the fresh air each day, make sure you sleep well and drink plenty of water. Enjoy your life and everything in it. Live in the moment and take better care of yourself.

7. Develop a new interest or focus to be passionate about

Start a new hobby or interest which can become a life passion. Life isn’t all about work, you need to have outside interests to keep you motivated and happy.

It could be you have become so overtaken by your career that you have lost a passion for life itself.

When you embark on a new hobby, your mindset will start to change and this could spill over into your career as well.

You could re-discover a past hobby which you had stopped doing or could develop a completely new one. As long as you are doing something to take your mind off your work situation, that is what matters.

8. Start the practice of gratitude to change your thought processes

When you practice daily gratitude it is difficult to have negative thoughts. The more grateful you are for all you have in your life, the happier you will be.

Our world today is based so much on consumerism and “having it all”, it can be difficult to find happiness when viewed through this lens.

The truth is though you will have so much in your life and are probably not even aware of it as you take it for granted, You could have developed a career you feel lost in because of the money but may not need a big salary.

Look at your life and everything in it and you will start to see a change in your perspective.

9. Stretch yourself and escape your comfort zone

Feeling lost in your career can be because you are no longer stretching yourself and are stuck in a comfort zone.

Your role could be too easy for you, not motivating you enough and has left you bored and feeling the way you do.

Look at personal development, new courses, and taking your career in a different direction.

It may seem scary now but that is a good thing. It will mean you are beginning to push yourself and move on to more exciting things.

10. Examine all the opportunities that are available to you

You are only ever stuck if you believe yourself to be stuck. There could be many opportunities available to you that you haven’t even thought about.

LinkedIn and other social groups can offer many opportunities for connecting with people and changing your direction.

Join the online networking world and see where it takes you.

11. Ask yourself what inspires me in life

Life would have seemed easier when you were younger as you would have worked more

As you grow, imagination, dreams and desires are laid aside for more practical matters.

Go back to looking at what inspires you and change your direction from there.

Start to ask yourself more probing informative questions to get the answers you need.

12. Face your fears and decide to redesign your life

Are you stuck in your career feeling lost because you are too afraid to make the change? You need to face your fears and begin to make changes in your life.

If you never get the courage to make the change your life will be the same forever and you will always feel like this.

Only you can decide to make the change. It is up to you as the writer Susan Jeffers says” Feel the Fear and do it Anyway.”

13. Keep your mind open to trying something new

The only way to grow is by keeping an open mind to changes and trying something new. Think of all of the things you love in your life, you didn’t know you loved them until you tried them, did you?

An open mind will present many opportunities for you.

You could have a whole new exciting career just around d the corner by keeping an open mind and trying something new.

14. Networking event to develop new contacts and explore new opportunities

Feeling lost in your career can be overridden by developing some new connections and exciting opportunities. Start attending networking events which will help you to meet new people and present you with new situations.

15. Design a plan with a qualified coach to explore a new career path

Hiring a qualified professional life coach can help you to get moving in the direction you want to be heading in.

A life coach can give you the tools and templates to start implementing change in your career.

They can ask you the questions you may be unsure of asking yourself and they can give you the accountability and support needed.

A life coach is there to have your back, offer guidance without judgement and celebrate your wins.

With the right coach by your side, you can kick-start your career and get going to where you want to be.

Final Thoughts

If you have been asking yourself “Why do I feel lost in my career path?” you will hopefully be able to answer that question now.

Instead of looking at this situation from a position of negativity, thinking of the positives of the situation and taking it as a sign to re-evaluate your life and bring in positive change can deliver you to a very strong outcome.

Embrace change and the thought of doing something new, start to move from your comfort zone and open yourself up to new possibilities.

Invest in the expertise of a life coach and imagine where you could be in a could be in a few years and the life you could be living.

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