Wrong job? 3 Ways to Know

photo credit: sergis blog

Are you in the wrong job?

If you’ve gone through the steps of figuring out what you love to do, trying to do more of what you love, and have become more effective at it, but you still aren’t feeling engaged, motivated, successful, or valued, your best efforts may not be enough.

You have accountability for the state of your career. You make your own opportunities.  You choose where you spend your efforts.  But anyone who has a boss works within someone else’s framework, and sometimes that framework just does not allow for you to be your very best self.

It might be the wrong job if…

• Lack of new projects. Maybe new projects just never come to your department.  Maybe your manager likes to keep them all for himself.  Maybe they just get assigned to everyone except you.  Whatever the situation, if you’re always doing the same old stuff, it’s a challenge to stay engaged even in things that you’re passionate about.
• Lack of autonomy. Maybe you’re not quite ready to run a multi-million dollar project, but I bet you’re perfectly capable of running a staff meeting.  Occasional visible trust in your competency not only signals you’re a valuable part of your organization, it also allows you to stretch your skillsets and feel the emotional payoff that comes with success.  Both are powerful motivators.
• Lack of two-way communication. In order for your organization to help you grow, they need to know in what areas your growth would be most meaningful.  Which means they have to get to know you.  This typically occasionally requires them to listen to you.  If you feel that your thoughts, ideas and feedback routinely fall on deaf ears, especially if you’ve stopped sharing them because of it, I would question how much they know about your strengths and interests.

So what do you do if you’re in the wrong job?

You take control of your career. You ask for more responsibility, you pursue internal opportunities, you seek training outside of work, you seek jobs outside of work. If you’re in the wrong job, the next step is yours. And knowing what the right job is is a good place to start.

Take advantage of resources to figure out what defines the right job for you. If needed, seek help from a career coach or career counselor, who can help you walk through exercises and a process to get very clear on the best use of your skills and talents. But if you’re waiting for someone else to make your wrong job right, you’ll be disappointed. It’s all on you.

Related posts:

1. Job search over 50: Unique challenges, unique opportunities
2. Getting into alignment: Putting passion into your everyday
3. Putting passion into your everyday: Create a project
4. Set your career compass – Step 1: Navel-gazing
5. Where’s the love?: Five ways to show enthusiasm and land the job

Tagged as: Career, Coaching, communication, effectiveness, Human Interest, motivation, passion