Trapped in a loop living a day to day routine with nothing new and nothing to look forward to? Have you ever walked your way to your office chair asking “why the hell am I here again?” —finding no other answer but “yeah, I need to.” Let me show you how to steer clear of these….

1. Set yourself free from routine
Don’t brew your own formula for a career burnout. If you have a very strict to-do list, rearrange them. Bring new items to light up your desk. Skip your packed lunch and eat out with different people. Talk about new topics. Spice up your day with a little spontaneity.

2. Do something new, do something more!
If you always come home tired and someone asks you how’s work today and all you can say is it’s the same, then you better do something about it. Learn new skills related to your industry. Start something new and productive. Make up for what your boss is not good at. Earn that much deserved recognition.

3. Be a driving force
New innovations sprout like mushrooms these days. Industries have been forced to reinvent themselves to keep up with the times. Be a part of it. Become an expert in your career and keep learning new ideas and trends and help lead your industry a step further to success.

4. Get out there, mingle!
If you always keep things to yourself, stress can easily build up. Don’t be too uptight. Lighten up. Attend company events and seminars. Meet new people. Talk about challenges you encounter in your industry. Who knows you might get new ideas on how to improve your job conditions.

5. Build your network
Expanding your network is always a great idea. This can come in handy whether to get help in your current industry, if you want to climb up the corporate ladder or have finally decided to change jobs. Make new friends and keep a list of those contacts.

6. Keep constant communication
Don’t just be your own critic and lose sight of what’s real. You’re perception of your own conditions may be completely different from the majority of people around you. Keep an open line with friends, family and colleagues. Having someone to listen to you and support you can relieve you of feeling burnt-out in your career.

7. Have a role model
It’s good to have someone you can look up to. It can guide your actions and give you a mindset that’ll help you get headed in the right direction. Gather all the qualities that you found impressive about your role model and use that to gauge your progress.

8. Extend help
If you find someone new in your office who doesn’t seem to have a clue, try to help them. We have all been the new guy at some place in our lives, so be nice. Share your knowledge and expertise. Be a mentor, it’ll make you feel good in the long run.

9. Give yourself a break
Companies give vacation leaves for a reason. Use it. A vacation can easily ease your mind of all your problems and worries or even boredom from your everyday life. And if you take a long vacation, you may find yourself missing work and come back with a renewed perspective.

10. Stay healthy
Being sick and thinking how important it is to go to work for the day can automatically make you hate your work and your life altogether. So, keep yourself healthy. A good amount of exercise, diet and sleep can make you feel ready to face any challenge ahead of you.

11. Don’t be afraid to laugh
Laughing is not only fun, it’s therapeutic, it’s slimming, it’s healthy and it reduces stress. It can release endorphins which acts as natural painkillers and dopamine which can be our body’s natural morphine. Make it a habit to read a joke or two each day. Find an officemate who you can laugh with from time to time.

12. Keep track of your achievements
Work can be such a drag sometimes especially if things aren’t going your way. This is why you need to keep track of your achievements. Look at the accomplishments you’ve attained so far to lift you up when things are looking grim. Furthermore, use this to inspire yourself to do more.

13. Mind your actions
We all contribute to the air of negativity or positivity in our work environment. The feelings we exude can affect everyone around us. Inspire a light working atmosphere by keeping a positive attitude especially when times are tough. Don’t be the one to cause low office morale.

14. Look at yourself in the mirror
Wonder why there are lots of shows about makeovers? It’s because most of us has the tendency to be complacent. Don’t be stagnant. Stand in front of the mirror and assess yourself. Ask, is this the person I want to be? Is this the best I can be?

15. Evaluate yourself
Know yourself. Know what you can and can’t do. Concentrate on the good ones to guide you on what you should pursue. Look back at where you’ve stumbled, then identify and try to overcome those fears or faults by knowing where you need some adjustments. 16. Don’t get stuck being unhappy pursuing something you know you really can’t reach at this time.

16. Set attainable goals
We all dream big and imagine ourselves to be wealthy, famous and powerful at sometime in our lives. As they say, anything’s possible! But get real, you don’t just wake up being all that the next morning by being completely average today. There are steps to take to get there. Make sure you set goals that you can achieve in a certain time period.

17. Challenge yourself
Becoming a better person is a continuous effort. It doesn’t stop at having the money to show for it. Challenge yourself to be well-rounded and improve on every aspect of your life. Improve your relationships not only with family and friends but also with your colleagues and bosses.

18. Move forward
It’s never easy to let go of certain unfortunate events that we often find ourselves drowning in resentment. Know when it’s enough. Don’t let it eat you away. A brand new day offers a brand new chance. You can never change the past so just exert your energy for the future.

19. Get a hobby
Being too much of an expert can get boring too at times. Counter this by getting a hobby. Write your thoughts. Read a novel. Feed your mind. Get into sports or take international cooking lessons. Perhaps, try to venture into arts. Enrich your life with something unrelated to work.

20. Go back to school
Learning something new can be very useful at these changing times. Enroll in further studies or attend trainings to acquire new skills. It’s never too late for anyone to go back to school. This can help you improve your performance at work, improve your marketability in your chosen industry or other industries that intrigues you.

21. Embrace your passion
I’m sure you can dig up an old interest that you can still start at your age. Don’t leave your frustrations as they are. Don’t fill your life with “what if’s. Act now. If your only passion is something completely impossible at this time then find a new one!

22. Pamper yourself
Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Pamper yourself a little to keep yourself motivated to aspire for greater things. Buy that watch you’ve always wanted. Go take a relaxing spa. Indulge in that sinful piece of chocolate bar. Give yourself a gift, you deserve it.

23. Work to live not the other way around
Live, love and eat, as Wolfgang Puck always says in his cooking shows. A person can be many things other than just a worker. Work hard but don’t forget to live! Be a cool parent, a dependable spouse or a trustworthy friend. Never take the most important things in your life for granted. Take time to cherish and nurture all your blessings.

24. Rest your mind
Take a few minutes of your time to do nothing, think about nothing, Gaze at the stars, and appreciate the simplest things around you. This can help jumpstart your brain and clear your head so that you can think better and decide better and see things in a different light.

25. Get a new job
At some point in your career you may inevitably hit a dead-end. Recognize that and act on it. Find out where the grass is greener. Look for places where there’s more room for you to grow. Go where you can shine the brightest!

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 13th, 2010 at 3:07 pm and is filed under Free Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.