RCA Flag
RCA Flag
Connecting Africa’s Skilled Professionals
RCA Flag

ReConnect Africa is a unique website and online magazine for the African professional in the Diaspora. Packed with essential information about careers, business and jobs, ReConnect Africa keeps you connected to the best of Africa.

img3
Image Dear Career Coach

I have been in the same job for years and I know I have a lot more to offer.  So, how do I get out of my career rut? I would really appreciate your advice. 

 

Career ruts are easy to spot. The signs include feeling unmotivated, unappreciated, unproductive, underutilised or simply finding it harder and harder to get out of bed and go to work. So what can you do about it?

Identify the source of dissatisfaction: Before you can escape the rut, understand what’s behind how you are feeling. Perhaps you are trying to make more of a job that has run its course and time for you to go do something else or maybe your organization has evolved and is no longer a good fit for you. You have to be honest about this diagnosis so that you can pinpoint specifically why you are feeling dissatisfied. Once you know what the problem is you can set about doing something to address it.

Make the necessary changes quickly: Be prepared to do what it takes to get your career back on track. Based on the reasons you’ve identified for feeling stuck, set some clear, specific and measurable goals and an action plan for how you are going to deal with those issues. The changes needed to get back on track might possibly be substantial so don’t expect to just tinker at the edges to get your career back in shape. The actions you take may be an iterative process of experimentation before you arrive at what you feel works. Be aware of everything that might block your progress towards the new goals; identify which of those obstacles you can control, which ones you can mitigate and which ones are outside your control and proceed accordingly.

 

If you have a question for our Career Coach, e-mail us at

careers@ReConnectAfrica.com

 

Speed up your personal value creation: Ask yourself questions about what kind of career situation you are looking for that will challenge, stretch and open the door to the future so that you can develop yourself to attract such opportunities. Explore opportunities to work on new projects, to have new professional experiences, to develop new skills and new positive behaviours. Get networking, retrain, find mentors if you need to so that you speed up your journey to a better career destination. All these take courage, discipline and focus but will create options for you as you work your way with patience and commitment to where you wish to be.

Have an ongoing career refreshing plan: A rut can creep up on you so ensure you are taking stock regularly to confirm that you are ‘’on track’’ in terms of how fulfilled you are and how much progress you are making towards your longer term career and professional goals. Throughout this process gather the lessons, especially what you are learning about yourself and what matters to you so that you steer your decisions and choices appropriately. Be prepared for what tomorrow may require so that you are always ahead of the game so to speak in terms of the competencies that are highly sought after in your industry.

All the best!

Need some help to solve your career dilemma?  Whether you are a recent graduate or a seasoned professional, our experienced careers coaches can work with you – on an individual or group basis – to help you get back on track with your career. 

From online CV checking to face-to-face coaching and presentation skills training to making the right impact at interview, our careers services will help you reach your goals. 

 

This month’s Guest Career Coach is Vera Ng’oma. Vera leads EXCELLICAgroup, an organization dedicated to promoting and developing excellence in leadership, career and people development. Vera works with organizations and individuals to equip them to elevate their performance, achieve their goals and expand their impact.

Contact Verangoma@gmail.com

Contact us now to discuss your needs:

careers@reconnectafrica.com

img4
Welcome to the new, upgraded ReConnect Africa website.
Please help us provide you with information relevant to your needs by completing the fields below (just this once!)