As we close out the month, I want to turn our attention to our careers.  I found a great article, “Feeling Stuck or Stymied?” by Dorie Clark, from the Harvard Business Review September-October 2021 issue.  The focus of this piece is the demoralization that can occur when a person perceives their career progress to be slower than it should be or stalled.  In this case, comparison can certainly be the thief of joy as they might compare themselves to peers and wonder why they aren’t achieving milestones at the same rate.  The author does a great job of helping us understand that rarely is success achieved overnight and the importance of developing “Strategic Patience.”  

Clark illustrates that often our problem is in our expectations of timing.  We think it should take shorter than it actually does. In learning to exercise Strategic Patience, a person will:

• Do the research to determine what it will take to achieve the goal
• Recognize and celebrate the small wins
• Stop comparing and start leveraging relationships
• Appreciate their own progress thus far
• Understand that its okay to pivot, as long as they are moving in the right direction 

This is not to suggest that you wait forever or that you do not actively evaluate your progress and the environment.  You are trying to focus on the opportunities that have legs, let go of the ones that don’t, and exercise patience for those that need time to materialize.  Click the link above to check out this great read.

Dr. Lisa

Our theme song is “The Gambler (You Got to Know When to Hold ‘Em)” by Kenny Rogers.