The Importance of Re-Energizing a Stagnant Career

When Boredom Leads to Burnout: The Importance of Re-Energizing a Stagnant Career

Work can be uninteresting at times, no matter what job you have — the constant blight of emails and phone calls, predictable demands, unnecessary meetings, and looming deadlines are enough to leave anyone a bit drained. But while feeling some boredom in your career is normal, working hard to power through it should never be confused with overworking at the expense of your well-being, especially when it leads to burnout.

A little-known consequence of boredom, burnout can cause exhaustion, personal and professional dissatisfaction, reduced work performance, and even relationship problems — and if any of this is sounding familiar, chances are you’ve let your stagnant career grow to the point of overwhelming you. And you’re not alone. According to the American Psychology Association’s 2021 Work and Well-being Survey:

• 79% of adult workers reported work-related stress,
• 36% reported cognitive weariness,
• 32% reported emotional exhaustion,
• and 44% reported physical fatigue — a 38% increase since 2019.

But just because you’re stressed doesn’t mean you’re stuck. In fact, with a change of perspective and refreshed purpose, it can mean quite the opposite.

What is Career Stagnation?

Often a precursor to burnout, career stagnation is a lack of engagement in your work, which consequently affects your professional growth and development. Whether stemming from a lack of promotion or challenge, static earnings, no scope for learning, or something else altogether, you’re officially dispassionate about your work — and now it’s up to you to determine what happens next.

Rather than allowing job stagnation to take its toll — as many do — why not view this as an opportunity to re-evaluate your goals and shake things up for the better? By exploring different professional and academic routes, you’ll open yourself up to experiences you never knew you needed — experiences that could help you advance in your current position or transition to a new role that better suits you.

How Do I Overcome Career Stagnation?

While it’s true that job fulfillment can be difficult to achieve in our present circumstances — especially with the disruption to regular working life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and broad talent shortages — there are several routes you can take to get out of your professional rut, from networking and goal setting to asking your supervisor for more challenges. However, there is one often overlooked way to overcome career stagnation: furthering your education.

Re-energizing your thirst for knowledge, updating your skills, and staying competitive in your industry is a great way to reignite your career passion. And if furthering your education is the right path for you, then you’re in luck. Your organization’s partnership with UC Online provides an exciting opportunity for you.

How Can UC Online Work for Me?

Through our business partnership program, we’ve worked with your organization to offer tuition scholarships for more than 100 of our programs. Our balance of educational excellence and real-world experience allows you to create an academic path to pursue an online certificate or degree that will not only help you cultivate in-depth knowledge of your industry but will impart a host of skills you never knew you were missing.

And while returning to the classroom as a working professional can be complicated, your support team of Enrollment Services Advisors and Student Success Coordinators are here to guide you through each step of your educational journey — from admissions and assisting with course selection to answering your questions, and keeping you on track toward graduation.

Are You Ready to Make Work Interesting Again?

Everyone feels bored at some point in their career. It’s simply part of life. But while some feelings of apathy are normal, if you’re finding that you’re never engaged or excited at work, your boredom may be trying to tell you something — that it’s time to make a change before you burn out entirely. And at UC Online, we’re experts at helping our students make work interesting again.

Are you ready to learn more? Contact your HR Representative to discover how you can re-energize your stagnant career with a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati Online.