by Tricia Kidd
Sometimes at work you can feel a bit stuck, and it can be for no obvious reason. You have plenty to do on a variety of projects, but it is as if you have just run out of fuel. It may be that each project has thrown up a little obstacle. On their own the obstacles are something that you would take in your stride. But when added together they present a steady incline, and it is as if your work persona just does not have the resources to keep running up that hill.
You stare at the screen, or worse, start browsing for a new job or a change of career. Deep down inside, you know that you will have the same feelings of getting stuck in any job, but you would like something to break you out of this loss of momentum.
You need to talk through all your tasks with someone, but you would rather have a big moan and cry about them. You do not want to look unprofessional moaning about work. But don’t worry, you do not have to talk them through with someone else, you can get yourself out of this stuck mindset.
But you must play two roles:
One role is to really speak, shout, moan and write about all the things that are causing you every small problem. Don’t smooth over anything. Tell it how it is and write down every thought!
The other role is to be your own positive and kind friend or colleague, who is there to help you to find a way through the problem. What would you say to yourself by way of encouragement? Go through each point in turn and write some suggestions. Remember your stuck person is looking for a way out (not just sympathy).
Be, your firm, fair and professional self and be constructive.
Write out your thoughts and suggestions like a conversation or make a table. You will be surprised how helpful you can be to yourself and how good your suggestions are. You will feel better afterwards.
Set of examples
Here is a small set of examples to start with.
| Problems | Suggestions |
|---|---|
| I have a small task to do, it has been imposed on me and I am not hugely keen on it, but I can see its value. | It is hanging there in your head. Fix a date in your calendar to work on it and get it out of the way. But use the experience to feed into other tasks you have, you will learn something new from doing it. |
| There is a daunting and large 6-month project coming up, there are only two of us working on it. I am scared that it might overwhelm us, but I am also excited about it, when we finish it will be a great achievement. | You just need to get started on this and then you’ll be in your Zone. Setup a weekly time when you focus on that project. Break the project into smaller tasks, create a plan that allows you to move forwards in small steps. You will really need one and you will need to stick to it to get this done. |
| I started an innovative project with a great flourish. I am the only one working on it, but I have not done anything on it in the last few months. It is languishing and it held so much promise. | Be proactive about building on what you have started. Believe in it! When it is complete, it will have more power. Get into rhythm of working on it in small bursts. Set aside a regular time each week to make some progress on it. Small steps are better than no steps. |
| I Find a project uncomfortable; I am involved with it but not leading it. It’s imposing a process that the organisation is not equipped to deal with. It’s causing stress with colleagues and is proceeding in a very inefficient manner. | Understand that it is not your project and you are there to assist where possible. It is not under your control to delete it. Be professional and help where you can, but do not waste too much time thinking about it when you are not working on it. |
| I have almost reached the end of the line of this project from the point of view of my creative input. I’ve put so much into it I’m now worried I’m losing interest in it. | Believe in it! You have possibly been immersed in it too long. Enlist some help! Put some work in to it so that it is ready to show to other people for review. Their comments and help will breathe new life into it. |
| Although it is not officially my responsibility, I feel that we could be doing something more proactive with one of our team’s projects. It keeps bugging me, I do not know why I won’t just let it go. | Discuss with the project owner, if they feel they need a little help to do something with it. The project leader may be encouraged that someone has taken an interest in it or thinks that it is important. However, there may be things happening in the background that you do not know about. Hopefully, they will be grateful that you have taken an interest, but not really need you. Don’t you have enough to do already? |
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