How To Get Unstuck

Here are a couple of sobering stats: 

Nearly 65 percent of employees feel stuck in their jobs (Glassdoor)

And according to the 2025 Career Gridlock Report,

60% of U.S. workers have stayed in a role longer than they wanted, even though 66% believed that changing careers could improve their happiness

That maps to what I personally hear from corporate leaders every day:

"The peers I got my MBA with are now in executive VP roles, leading divisions, getting industry recognition. And I'm in the exact same role."

"I know I have a tendency to wait too long to take the next step"

"I don't know what my next move it, or what I want to do"

"The worst part is feeling demotivated, stuck"

"I'm seriously lacking direction"

"I've lost what brings me joy"

"How do I scale?"

What's the common denominator?

They're all stuck.

If you've heard any of the above in your head, or if the stats above resonate, you’re not alone. 

If you're ready to get unstuck, this newsletter is for you. Because today I'm giving you the GPS to get unstuck, gain career clarity, and finally start moving toward work that lights you up again.

The Clarity Conundrum

One of the biggest career stallers I see? 

Lack of clarity.

Not the loud, obvious kind where you'd quit your job.

The quiet kind.

The kind where when people ask you how you're doing and you say "fine". On the outside it looks like you're doing well but on the inside it feels like you're going through the motions.

I used to describe it like trying to run through quicksand—you’ve exerting a ton of energy, but getting nowhere.

With no momentum.

Here’s how lack of clarity tends to show up: 

🚩 5 Signs You’re Lacking Career Clarity

1. Job Hopping: You end up changing roles every 12-24 months (either by choice or not), moving from one organization to the next without a coherent plan.
2. Being a Leaf in the Wind: You're doing good work, but taking jobs because colleagues or bosses recruit you. After a period of years, you've got a disparate collection of great jobs but none were really by your choice and none anchored in purpose.
3. People-Pleasing: You find yourself constantly trying to please everyone else—be it your boss, your spouse, or your colleagues—which leads to decision paralysis and a diluted professional identity.
4. No Sense of Fulfillment:  You may be getting promotions, accolates or awards. You're making good money in an enviable role with an impressive title. But the success feels... hollow.
5. Being a Jack of All Trades: You have a laundry list of things you've done. You do everything well, you know you're doing a great job but nothing has a sense of deep purpose or building depth.

The Cost of Staying Stuck

Before we get into the nitty gritty and step-by-step detail of how to get career clarity, it's a worthy place to pause and evaluate why this work is worth your time and effort right now.

Why?

Because there is a high cost to staying stuck.

The average amount of time people tell me that they've been thinking about changing roles is two years.

TWO YEARS!

And when I ask what the impact (aka cost) of staying where they are and not making the change, here's what I hear:

"The gap between what I'm making now and what I should be is probably $100,000"

"I feel trapped, lost, unmotivated"

"My partner is exhaused. All we talk about is my dissatifaction at work"

"I'm not sleeping at night. It's definitely affecting my health."

Multiply the above sentiments by two years.

If you do the math on the financial, emotional and relational cost of being stuck, that makes what I'm about to share with you a very high ROI activity.

So, How Do You Get Unstuck?

If you're one of the 65% who are feeling stuck, or in the 66% who believe that changing careers could improve your happiness...

Keep reading. :)

One of THE most powerful exercises in my coaching toolkit is the one I'm about to share with you.

It's the exact exercise we do with every one of our clients. 

If you know your current role is no longer right but don't know what else to do, if you're worried about being laid off and know you need to figure your next step out now, or you're exhausted from doing work that's utterly draining and are ready to feel excited again, this info is for you.

I call this the career criteria exercise but what it's really about is getting 100% clear on your non-negotiables and what's most important to you in your career.

Ready? Let's go.

Here is the step-by-step process on how to get unstuck and have clarity on what's needed for your ideal next role:

1. List What Matters:
Write down every item (criteria) that is important to you. 

• • Are you looking to make a pivot into a specific industry? If so, Industy is on your list.

  • Do you care deeply about the company culture? If so, Culture is another critiera.

  • Does your manager matter to you? If so, list Manager.

  • There are a handful of must-haves like Responsibilities and Compensation, so list those as well.

  • And there are some potentials like Location, Mission/Purpose, Title, Team, Upper Leadership, Company Size, and Needs. Make sure you think about what you need to thrive in your work. Stability? Strategic Decision Making? Challenge? Growth? Visibility? If yes, list all those applicable for you.

2. Define Each Criteria Specifically:
One of the reasons why people stay stuck or take jobs that end up being a train wreck is because you're not thinking deeply about specifically defining what's important to you. Be sure to swap vagueness for specificity. For example:

❌ Saying "Good pay" is unhelpful

✅ "$200K+ base salary, bonus + equity" is great

❌ "Good manager" is unhelpful

✅ "Manager who knows the business, has integrity, is collaborative and a good communicator, shares the vision of what we're doing" is perfect.

3. Stack Rank the List:
This is the part that's both non traditional and counter intuitive. Follow these steps closely to get a list that integrates both head (what you intellectually want) and heart (what you emotionally need).  

• Get Kinesthetic:
  Write each criterion on a separate sticky note or note card. Most people have between 10-16 different criteria. Now, step away from your laptop and desk. Stack the cards out on the floor and physically arrange them in order of importance. Don't overthink this step. Just make a first pass. Your cards will stack like a train with the most important criteria at the top, the second underneath, and so on.

• Stack Rank + Draw the Line:
  Compare each pair of criteria ask: “Which one is most important to me?” I.e., if you had comp listed #1 and manager #2, here's how this would go.... If you could get exactly the comp you want, but not the manager, would that be okay with you? If comp wins out, keep the order you have. If you realize that having a manager (defined in the way you want) is most important, swap the card order. Continue this process until you’ve ordered them from most to least important. When you're done, review your stack ranked list and determine if anything else needs to be reordered.

• Draw the [Non Negotiable] Line:
  Then, draw your line—your non negotiable line. Non negotiable is a hard no. If it's not included in the job role or job offer, you'd say no. You'll probably have between 10-16 things on your criteria list. But likely not all 16 are non negotiable. Everything above the line is non-negotiable for you. Everything below is important, but negotiable. These are the must-haves that will anchor all your career decisions going forward.
• Apply Your New Clarity:
  Your criteria list, and specifically your non negotiables, become the compass in your career role and/or career growth decisions.

  • In job searches you now know what to filter for

  • During networking you now know what to say when people ask "what do you want to do"

  • For career development discussions you now know what to tell your boss about what kind of career growth opportunities you want
  • In the interview you now know what you're looking for and what questions to ask (make sure all your non negotiables are clear)

  • At the offer stage you 100% know what's a yes and what's a no
    
    

To help you, here's a career criteria worksheet  you can use to work through the above process.

The Bottom Line

I outlined step-by-step what to do so that you can get unstuck and gain clarity on your best next step.

But sometimes you need to know what not to do. 

Don't: Skip the floor and just stack rank on an excel spreadsheet or your computer. In the 7 years I've been doing this exercise with clients, not a single person has kept the same order when they (sometimes reluctantly) redid their stack rank with the 'sticky notes on the floor' approach.

Don't: Let a 'supportive partner' tell you what they think is most important for you. If you let someone else influence what success looks like for you, their version won’t take into account what's most important to you.

Don't: Make your criteria super granular or your non negotiable list longer than 2-6 things. The longer or more granular your requirements are, the harder it will be to find the ideal job.

Don't: Try to be perfect or put this off until you 'have more time'. (See cost of staying stuck, above).

The good news? Being stuck in your career is a puzzle that’s totally solvable. 

The Weekly Edge

This week, I challenge you to make a list of what's most important in your career.

• Think about what truly matters.

• Get clear on what success looks like for you. (If you want some additional guidance, follow the career criteria worksheet.)

• Know your non-negotiables.

When you have this kind of clarity, you’re no longer just reacting to opportunities—you’re making intentional choices that lead to a career that challenges you and fuels your passion and purpose.

Getting unstuck is not about waiting for the perfect moment or searching for the ideal solution. It’s about taking deliberate action, however small, to shift your mindset and step out of the loop that’s keeping you in place.

It’s the willingness to challenge your assumptions, confront your fears, and say, “It's time.”

Define your criteria, set your boundaries, and watch your career unfold with greater intention and fulfillment. 

One decision at a time, one step at a time, you create momentum—and before you know it, you’ll look back and realize you’ve left that old version of yourself behind.

Put the power back in your hands.

You've got this.

-Julie

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