How to Avoid Getting Stuck in a Rut at Work & Instead Break Loose and Be More Productive  

As a career coach, I often have to help my clients bridge the gap between the aspirational and the practical.  I find that most either aim too low, and have become stuck in a career rut because they believe that where they presently are is “as good as it gets,” or that they are so fixated on lofty goals that they can never see anything through to completion.

What’s worse is that the tendency to behave in this way is unconscious – so unconscious, in fact, that there are whole patterns of behavior underpinning your career story, patterns that repeat over and over again as a self-fulfilling prophecy.  What is at the root of all of this bad juju: habit.

The Science of Habit
Cognitive research into habit has uncovered something called dual-process theory.  This means that because the brain can’t possibly evaluate every decision in our day with the same level of scrutiny, it forms shortcuts, otherwise known as habits.  Habits are not necessarily a bad thing, just a way to go on autopilot around certain tasks to save brain power.

However, it is precisely this unconscious nature of habits that can get us into trouble in our careers.  The scenario goes something like this: we have deadlines, standards for output, a certain way we interact with co-workers and bosses – and on top of that, we’re busy.  So, our brain helps out by forging neural pathways around groups of tasks, and consequently, we forge automatic responses to help us get the job done.  That’s great if all that matters is getting it done, the same way we always did.

But the very predictability becomes its own comforting trap.  Lulled into competence, we show up day after day until something happens to wake us up.  Maybe a co-worker got promoted instead of us, or a client was unhappy with a proposal. The new state of discontent then wakes us up enough to crave change.

But as anyone who has ever broken a New Year’s resolution knows, change is hard.  Suddenly tasks our brain put on autopilot have to be thought through.  It takes effort and energy – and, also, when we do that, often we’re looking for the end game, not permanent change – i.e. to change just enough to get what we want, then go back to our old ways.

If you want to read more about this process, in her latest book, Better than Before, Gretchen Rubin explores what it takes to change. She discovered that about 40% of our day is spent in habitual behavior, many of those behaviors being the very root of our unhappiness.

Takeaways:

• Habits are the brain’s way of saving energy.  Following a habit is easy, changing it is hard.
• If you need to change a habit, you need to be very clear on your motivation, or the change won’t stick.
• Make sure you have support to keep you reminded of your reasons for change.

Habits and Creativity
Prodding ourselves out of habit is the only way to get to the one surefire career success strategy: creativity.  You don’t have to work in a creative profession for creativity to be an essential skill set.  Rather, being able to look at things differently and ask “why not?” is essential no matter what you do.

That said, aside from the energy it takes to be creative, there’s another stumbling block, called risk. Taking on risk requires motivation, and conscious thinking, meaning that we have to wake up from habit.  And if habit is our brain at rest, creativity is just the opposite, and being in a constantly creative state is exhausting.

Instead, we need to consciously choose which parts of our life can be habitualized, and which parts require our thinking brain. Many artists have a very strict routine to their day to conserve as much energy as possible for creativity. Try mapping out a typical day and building in more routine (instead of feeding the chaos).  In short, make space in your day for creative work, and watch what happens.

Takeaways:

• Creativity is your career differentiator
• Creativity requires conscious thought to unravel habits and expectations
• Leveraging habits to form routines for basic daily activities leaves more energy available for creativity

Habits and Emotion
When we feel trapped in a career, it’s easy to feel like a victim.  Habits come into play here as well, because they embody the rules by which we believe we have to play.  When we see others rewarded for “breaking” said rules, we feel cheated; because we think we did everything right, we assume a lot of things that are as limiting as they are untrue.  Those very emotional triggers are, yes, habits.  To become empowered and get out of victim mode, become conscious of the emotions you are feeling.  Then ask yourself if it’s really true, or just “your story.”

For example, say that your boss walked past you rather briskly and didn’t acknowledge your hello.  You might feel hurt and then afraid, thinking “She must have hated my last report!”  If you allow yourself to stay in this emotional state, your thoughts only continue to spiral downward and you might find yourself thinking, “I didn’t have enough time to write it, she must have been testing me.  I hate being tested, I’m never any good working under pressure, now I’ll never be a client leader because you have to be able to work under pressure and maybe I shouldn’t be at this company at all…”

Wow, that’s some story.  It probably comes from doubts you have about yourself (i.e. your story).  What if instead you can catch yourself at the beginning of the emotional response, before you descend into the “always” or “never” statements that are your indicator of emotional habit?  Look past the fears and at the facts: unless your boss always ignores you before she calls you on the carpet, most likely her behavior resulted from something that she was dealing with, something that may have had nothing to do with you.

If you’re still having doubts, just ask for a quick meeting and pose the question of the quality of your report to her.  Author and sociologist Brené Brown explores the habit of emotion at length and suggests that denying “our stories” only increases their hold on us in her latest book, Rising Strong.  Realizing that the emotional drama we create is just that — a story — frees us from the story. It lets us realize that we played a role, instead of being defined by that role.

Takeaways:

• Pay attention to your emotions, and notice where there are patterns in the way you respond to things.
• Ask yourself if what triggered your emotions is really true about the event — catch yourself in always/never thoughts or statements.
• Nip bad emotional habits in the bud by asking direct questions and dealing with facts instead of fears.

Habits and Change
Habits are not just thoughts, they are embedded in real physical structures in our brains.  The neural pathways of habit are a funny thing.  When we work to create a habit, new neural pathways form.  But when we stop activating them, they atrophy.  By our commitment to the new habit, we can actually rewire our brains. To make a positive change around your creative or emotional habits, remember: Change is a commitment.  It takes energy and effort, a willingness to see and then release your story, to get clarity.

Changing requires the courage to embrace the unknown and the joy of discovery — instead of hunkering down in our well-worn ruts for safety. This is the path to creativity: clarity unencumbered by habits that no longer serve us.