06/27/2019 by Kori Burkholder
5 Obstacles Keeping You Stuck and How to Break Free
5 Obstacles Keeping You Stuck and How to Break Free
It happens to the best of us. We’re deep into our chosen careers and businesses, and suddenly, we realize that we’re stuck in a pattern where every day feels like an effort or drudgery. We worked so hard to get here, so what now?
I specialize in working with creative professionals seeking more fulfilling careers. The primary lesson I’ve learned is that we often think we need a whole career change, but once we dive deeper, we find that maybe it’s not the job but something else. Frequently, opportunities for growth and alignment are right at our fingertips.
Melissa, a brilliant, bright, and super-talented copywriter, wanted to work on building her leadership skills, creating more confidence in her abilities, and asking for what she wants and deserves. We got busy crafting her career success stories and building her 5-year career vision. We figured out that Melissa’s big vision is to be a Creative Director, working with a brand that aligns with her vision, values, and purpose while leading a team of copywriters and art directors.
With the big vision carved out, we spotted an opportunity for leadership growth: asking for a title bump from Senior Copywriter to Creative Director. This had been in the back of her mind for months, but due to her own fears and insecurities, she kept putting it off.
When I challenged her to take this on, she became silent. I was curious about the silence, and she shared with me all of the stories she’d heard from co-workers who had done the same and either got denied or listened to the word NO. This had become a big obstacle for her and became an excuse not to do it.
I pointed out that this was their experience and that it should not prevent her from going in and doing it herself. We tapped back into her big vision, how this action step was crucial towards her leadership development, and that it should feel uncomfortable because it is a new growth experience.
We got to work and looked back on the last 12 months, what she contributed, and what she achieved; we got numbers and data together and prepared as much as we could for any possible objections that could come up. She could now clearly see that she was already doing the work of a Creative Director and deserved a title bump! With this new confidence level, she emailed her boss and set up the meeting.
Immediately afterward, she called me and said, "That was just about the easiest thing I’ve ever done!" I asked her if she had to build a case or use any of the prep work we did, and to my surprise, she said no! Her boss already thought she was a Creative Director and immediately changed her title into the computer! See what happens when we get out of our heads and into action?
Can you relate to Melissa’s story? Why are we stuck when pursuing our life, career, and business goals? In my work, here are the five most common obstacles I see:
Lack of a bigger vision, no clear idea
Hey, where are we going when we don’t have a big vision? How do we navigate choices and make the right decisions? Without a big vision, we might miss big opportunities that show up that are in alignment with what we want. Having a big vision is EVERYTHING!
Create "failure" stories about the future
We have big ideas that could really improve our lives, careers, and businesses, but then we start creating elaborate stories of failure, embarrassment, or what could happen in the future, and we talk ourselves out of it before we even begin!
Caught in the Mind Merry-Go-Round and not knowing how to get off
Should I stay in this job or should I go? Should I write the book? If I write it, who the heck will read it? Should I leave the security of my job and turn my side hustle into a business? Yes, no, yes, no, maybe? And we keep going around in circles on the Mind Merry-Go-Round.
Lack of confidence, fear, uncertainty
When we enter uncharted territory, like Melissa – fears will pop up! It’s inevitable, but we can work with the fear. My friend Shane Kulman, a Transformational Guide for the sensitive, always says, "It’s just energy." She’s right! Fear is energy that can either fuel us or freeze us. We used Melissa’s fear as a growth opportunity to get her the title bump, leading her to her next role at a company that aligns with her values and purpose.
Lack of a plan
Once the other ducks are in a row, it’s easier to see the steps towards the big vision. Like Melissa, we knew that to get to the next step, she had to get uncomfortable growing, but we also had to plan for it. The prep work built her confidence to go in and ask for what she deserved.
What’s the big lesson here to overcome these obstacles? TAKE ACTION! An idea is just an idea when it lives in your head. Are you lacking a big vision? Are you stuck on the Mind Merry-Go-Round or stuck in your fears of uncertainty? What failure stories are you currently creating right now?
I invite you to take one action step today, no matter how small, to get you off the Merry-Go-Round and off to the races and post your results in the Purpose Driven Facebook Group.
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