July August Chamber Magazine FINAL

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Are You Stuck?
Tips from the Pro
By Lynne Richardson
Most of us work a long, long
time. Whether you’ve been
working for 5 or 45 years, you
may have hit a wall in your current
position. So my question to you is,
ARE YOU STUCK?
You may not even realize you’re
stuck! You’ve been in your current
job so long that it’s easy. You’re on
Dr. Lynne Richardson
auto pilot. Every day is much the
same. But it’s comfortable, safe, provides a steady paycheck,
and life is rolling right along.
Or maybe you know that you’re stuck. You’ve felt for
months (or years—yikes!) that you are in maintenance
mode. You’re going through the motions. The job has not
challenged you in a long time.
So I’m challenging you. Why are you allowing yourself to
be stuck?
Years ago I was talking with a man who ran a factory.
He mentioned that he had a tough time getting people to
take promotions from the factory floor, where they worked
on a line (think conveyor belt) each day. The job was fairly
routine, not requiring a lot of thought.
Why, I asked, would someone not want to be promoted?
His response caused me to pause: “They don’t want to have
to be responsible for anyone other than themselves AND
they don’t want to have to take the job home with them.”
When I asked what the latter meant, he reminded me that
managers have to think about work a lot of the time while
away from work. These folks didn’t want that.
They wanted to go home and coach little league, lead
Scout troops, and spend time on hobbies and with their
families. They didn’t want to have to stay late at work to
deal with a pesky personnel problem or get called back to
the office if there was a mechanical issue.
From my standpoint as a person who needs new
challenges, it was hard for me to understand.
So back to you. Are you stuck? If you know you are
and you’re stuck because you CHOOSE to be (like the
factory folks above), so be it. But what if you want new
opportunities? What’s holding you back?
Is it fear? Do you think you cannot do more? Are you
not talented, experienced, or maybe smart enough? SURE
YOU ARE!
Or perhaps you got into this rut and, until now, didn’t
realize you wanted new tests. Talk with your supervisor. Ask
her to help you grow in new ways.
But whatever you do, please don’t get stuck in a job,
especially if you want new challenges! If it means learning
new skills, returning to school for an additional certification
or degree, or finding a mentor to help you prepare for the
next step in your career, DO IT.
Please don’t hit retirement age and have regrets about
what COULD HAVE BEEN. It’s up to you.
Lynne Richardson is the dean of the University of Mary Washington’s
College of Business and a marketing professor.
JULY/AUGUST 2016 Fredericksburg Regional Business 19