Feeling Stuck in Your Career?
Feeling stuck rarely means you have hit your limit. More often, it means you got comfortable just short of it, and the next step feels riskier than staying put.
If you feel stuck in your career, figure out what kind of stuck it is: not learning, not being noticed, not being paid fairly, or no longer caring about the work. Then take one specific step: have a career conversation with your manager, learn one new skill, take on a stretch project, build relationships outside your team or explore a move. Stuck usually breaks with action, not more thinking.
Most people who feel stuck are not failing. They are doing fine. They are good at their jobs, reasonably comfortable and quietly restless. I know that feeling. There was a stretch of my life that looked good from the outside while an honest voice inside kept saying I was capable of more. Doing fine was holding me back. I wrote about that in Tiny Buddha.
In a survey for my book, 92% of people said they are capable of more than they are doing today. Many of them are not stuck because of their abilities. They are stuck because staying is easier than moving.
What kind of stuck are you?
Four common kinds of career stuck
- Not learning. You have mastered the role and the days feel the same.
- Not being noticed. You do good work, but nobody seems to see it or talk with you about what is next.
- Not paid fairly. The work has grown and the pay has not.
- Not caring anymore. The work no longer connects to anything you care about.
Each kind needs a different move. Not learning calls for a stretch assignment or new skill. Not being noticed calls for a direct conversation. Unfair pay calls for an honest discussion backed by evidence. Not caring may call for reconnecting with purpose, or for a bigger change.
Take one specific step
Ways to get unstuck this month
- Ask for a career conversation. Tell your manager where you want to go and ask what it would take.
- Learn one new skill. Pick something that makes you more valuable and start this week.
- Volunteer for a stretch project. Visible, uncomfortable work is where growth happens.
- Build relationships outside your team. Opportunities often come from people who know your work.
- Explore quietly. Talk to people in roles you are curious about. Information reduces fear.
- Set a decision date. If nothing changes by a certain point, you will make a bigger move.
Every move in my career came from someone noticing
Early in my career, while I was managing restaurants, a manager from a distributor who took our weekly bar order recruited me into sales. That led to another company and then to a sales and marketing director role at a brewery. Every one of those early moves came from being recruited by someone outside my immediate role who noticed my work. Relationships and visible effort open doors that a job description never will.
Breaking through the point where most people stop is the heart of my signature keynote, You Are Capable of More. See also The Comfort Ceiling, How to Bet on Yourself and Tiny Buddha: Doing Fine Was Holding Me Back.
Feeling stuck usually means you got comfortable just short of your limit. Name the kind of stuck you are in, then take one specific step: a career conversation, a new skill, a stretch project, new relationships or a decision date.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do if I feel stuck in my career?
Why do people feel stuck at work?
How do I ask my manager about career growth?
Is feeling stuck a sign I should quit?
You Are Capable of More
A No-Excuses Guide to Becoming Your Best Self. The bestselling book behind Chris’s keynotes and the 2026 Paris Book Festival winner in the How-To category. Many teams hand a copy to every seller at their kickoff.
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All Personal Growth Articles · In Tiny Buddha: Doing Fine Was Holding Me Back · In Forbes: You’re Capable of More: Here’s What’s Actually Stopping You
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