Category: Managing Leaders

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Managing Leaders

5 Steps to Overcome a Career Plateau

By Angela Oghenejode

A career is more than just a job, it is what we diligently build with our skills and talents while providing personal fulfillment and a sense of purpose.

The moment you no longer feel fulfilled, recognized, appreciated, and undervalued, a career plateau sets in. This occurs due to several factors, reaching a stage in your career where it feels like progression is no longer possible, lack of job openings for growth, or personal factors that curtail career development. This often leads to feelings of being stagnant in your current role, decreased motivation, frustration, boredom, and dissatisfaction with the work environment or career prospects. Encountering a career plateau should not signal the end of the road, rather it is a time to go back to the drawing board to reassess & reinvent to come back renewed.

Here are five steps to help employees and employers overcome a career plateau.

1. Recognize the Signs

For employees, the first step is to recognize the signs of a career plateau—feeling bored, unchallenged, or stuck in the same position for an extended period. Employers should also be vigilant in identifying these signs among their team members, as it can affect job performance and overall productivity. Conducting a self-assessment helps employees understand their strengths, weaknesses, and career goals, which is essential for determining the root cause of the plateau. Employers can facilitate this process by offering regular performance reviews and feedback sessions.

2. Pursue Skills Development

Employees should actively seek opportunities to upgrade their skills through professional development courses, workshops, or gaining new certifications. This not only prepares you for future roles but also keeps you engaged in their current position. Employers can support this by offering a robust training and development program that includes internal training, online courses, seminars, and even tuition reimbursement for relevant studies. By investing in employees’ growth, companies not only enhance their talent pool but also improve employee satisfaction and retention.

3. Explore New Responsibilities

Employees who feel stuck should look for new challenges within their current roles. This might include taking on additional responsibilities, seeking out job rotation opportunities, or leading new projects. Employers can play a crucial role by identifying and offering these opportunities. Even if there’s no immediate chance for promotion, giving employees more autonomy or new tasks can make their current roles more fulfilling and prevent burnout.

4. Facilitate Networking Opportunities

Networking is vital for career growth. Employees should actively engage with peers, attend industry events, and build connections that might lead to new opportunities or career insights. Employers can foster networking by encouraging participation in professional organizations, hosting company events, and promoting cross-departmental collaboration. A strong network can help employees explore new career paths and gain perspectives that are essential for overcoming a plateau.

5. Seek Mentorship

Mentorship can be a powerful tool in navigating a career plateau. Employees should seek out mentors who can offer guidance, share experiences, and encourage during challenging times. For employers, establishing a formal mentorship program can help employees connect with seasoned professionals who can guide them through their career journey. This not only benefits the employee but also strengthens the organization by building a culture of continuous learning and support.

A career plateau, though difficult, offers a chance for growth for both employees and employers. By identifying the signs, enhancing skills, taking on new challenges, expanding networks, and seeking mentorship, employees can revitalize their careers, while employers can foster a more engaged and energized workforce. When navigating a career plateau, remember Jenny Steve Jobs’ advice: “The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking, don’t settle.” Let the plateau drive you to discover the best opportunities and focus on where you want to be.

About The Author

Angela Oghenejode is a product manager at HumanManager, where she is responsible for system users’ performance and overall business growth. Angela holds an MBA, and she is an Alumna of the Lagos Business School.

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Managing Leaders

How to be a Boss People Admire

There is this saying that “employees do not leave companies; they leave bad bosses”. In a lot of instances, employees have resigned due to the way they were treated by the boss. It is therefore clear that leaders in every organisation play an important role in employee satisfaction or dissatisfaction.

However, no human being is infallible. So, how can any imperfect being who is the boss become worthy of being admired and what characteristics should such a person possess?

A great boss must be a true leader and should not lack these traits:  

1.  Integrity and Honesty

A great boss is one who has a moral compass and great principles by which they abide. S/he has integrity and will always side with the truth, no matter the circumstance. Such a person is big on honesty – their word must be their bond; they are trustworthy and leave no room for others to question their intents. Honesty breeds trust and with trust comes open communication which strengthens the bond between bosses and their subordinates.

2.   Open communication

Communication is the bedrock of any thriving relationship and any boss that is a great communicator will be admirable. As a boss, it is not enough to pass messages to your subordinates without hearing from them. Great communication is a two-way street, not a monologue. You should also listen—not with divided attention—when junior employees speak, bring up ideas or share feedback.

3.   Fairness in all Ramifications

To be admired by employees, a boss has to be fair in all decisions. It might seem difficult because, as humans, we always have our preferences. But knowing that and controlling it is what differentiates a great boss from others. Never let your sentiments get the better of you. Be fair to all parties in all decisions.

4.   High Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ)

This is a must-have. It is the ability to discern, empathise, manage, and understand one’s emotions and those of others in a positive way. With a high emotional intelligence quotient, a great boss can motivate and regulate emotions within themselves and also help employees whenever the need arises. A great boss is able to “read the room” and understand what or what not to say or do and when.

5.   Decisiveness

A great boss is decisive and firm. S/he weighs every decision, reviews the pros and cons of each decision before making them and then sticks to the decision that was made. If a boss makes and rescinds always, it makes them look incompetent and that’s not a good trait for an admirable boss. Such bosses are however smart and courageous enough to rescind any ineffectual decision at the appropriate time.

Put these 5 traits into practice and watch as you become a boss people admire. What more do you think will make one a good boss?

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Managing Leaders

5 Reasons You Must Up-skill

Up-skilling, the process of harnessing additional training to build and enhance one’s proficiencies, can be achieved by a number of means including taking a course, understudying a mentor, and self-directing one’s learning.

Skills, they say, are the new currency. Where your qualifications might not take you, your unique abilities and talents might. It is therefore imperative to take advantage of every opportunity to expand your skillset, whether as a new joiner, one looking to switch careers or roles, or just generally desirous of professional advancement.

If you have never given serious consideration to up-skilling, these five points might be the inspiration you need:

  1. You’ll be relevant: With the global workforce being unpredictable, up-skilling is one way of staying ahead of the curve, ensuring your skillset (and even you yourself) does not get obsolete. Several years ago when everyone was fixated on medicine, banking and engineering, who would have thought that social media influencing and digital marketing would be regarded as professions today?
  2. It’s a way to become more valuable: It is never enough to desire becoming an asset to your organisation; you must be ready to pay the price, growing through the ranks. Of course, the price comes with some benefits including gaining greater visibility and earning more in terms of remuneration. By up-skilling, you’d be more productive, truly considered as a problem solver and positioned to take on more elaborate responsibilities.
  3. You’ll better harness growth paths and opportunities: Up-skilling shoots you out of your current league and makes you benefit from some “extra” — whatever “extra” means in the your field or for your career. It becomes easier to gain a better standing in relevant fields and helps you expand your network. Simply put: it will change your life!
  4. It is journey of self-discovery: As you can already tell from earlier points, up-skilling is a way of ensuring your life never remains the same again — for good. As an opportunity to unlock your potentials, you’ll expand your horizon to things you thought you could never do, never knew existed or thought would not interest you. Imagine what that would do to your confidence level — it would send it miles up! And you will experience holistic growth!
  5. A chance to meet a need: With the world of work ever evolving, up-skilling gives you the opportunity to meet market needs, especially in the knowledge economy. While acquiring a new proficiency, it is crucial that you contextualise it within the reality of problem-solving. Not only is up-skilling necessary, it positions you as a knowledgeable and versatile employee.

Extra: If you do not up-skill, your level of expertise today would likely remain insufficient to sustain you in the future of work.

A Reminder: Until recently, there were no professions like content creation, product management, social media analysis and data engineering. Times have evolved and it’s only necessary that you do too in order not to be left behind.

You can explore these helpful resources below to start:

PS: While most offer free courses, some come at a token.