OPINION

Do you sometimes question yourself if you are making any progress at work?

You may track your progress by earning achievements, completing goals, and reaching milestones. It takes time to achieve these goals, and they do not come to you regularly.

Let me tell you something: our development is similar to the garden I plant at home. It will not magically transform into a garden of healthy and beautiful leaves overnight. I need to learn to distinguish between good and bad signals, be content when it matures healthily, and figure out how to deal with problems as soon as they arise, such as soggy roots, leaf fungus, and so on. And, I am surprised with my patience.

As a result, if you have not seen your progress in a while, do not be concerned. There are indications of your progress. Realizing them will assist you in remaining pleased and motivated at work.

These are the signs that you are growing silently, even when you are not aware of it.

1. You gain a better understanding of Creativity.

Creativity is a survival skill. It is essential because it aids in the resolution of the majority of our issues. Highly creative people have a variety of methods for preserving and increasing their creativity.

We see the world through our windows, then paint our thoughts on the glass.

The wider your paradigm, the more flourish your creativity will be. The more effective creative methods you have, the more you realize that creativity is not just your whimsical thinking. The wider your paradigm, the more flourish your creativity will be.

It is unquestionably a positive indicator of your progress.

Read more:

2. You are slightly embarrassed looking at your old designs.

I once said:

“I always take pride in my products at any stage of my career. Those are the products that I finalize with all my best at that time.”

However, this does not mean that I don’t feel embarrassed looking back on my deliverables in my early days.

• I was embarrassed because they look so unsightly from cramming.
• I was embarrassed because they are too greedy to solve many problems at once.
• I was embarrassed because I was so naive.

Do you feel the same thing? Congratulations! It does not mean that your old designs are crummy. On the contrary, your level is up.

No critic is judging you as much as you are judging yourself.

Facing the older version of yourself with positive thoughts will motivate us to improve ourselves. Read more:

3. You feel that your design is somehow off, but you do not know where it goes wrong and how to fix it.

It is common because no one can make everything perfect the first time. Alteration can only happen when we feel something amiss, a sense of discontent that prompts us to figure out what does not fit in.

It is not so much asking a question with no response that is frightening as it being unable to find the correct question that urges to query.

Feeling amiss after completing a design is a meaningful perception because I know I can do better and not accept a “fitting” standard.

Feeling amiss shows that you are aiming for a higher standard than your current ability. It will be easier to ask for additional criticism from others and open to receive genuine comments at that point. Read more:

4. You feel like you are slowing down.

Rapid growth is not always a positive thing. Nothing is worse than moving too fast without resting, and you will get burnout before you can make a turn.

Your career path is a marathon, not a sprint. Therefore, you do not have to be in a hurry all the time or be impatient when you see someone overcome.

You may need a short break from time to time.

Sometimes, it is necessary to carefully look back and assess what worked and what did not.

And within these slow paces, you will be able to re-energize for your next milestone.

That is slowing down with proactive purpose, as opposed to slowing down out of fear. Read more:

• It’s Okay If You Have These Fears, Just Don’t Let Them Slow You Down

5. You are doubting about what is going to happen next.

No pre-written perfect script on success is provided to you or anyone else. The ways that Bill Gates and Elon Musk took to become billionaires are vastly different from each other.

Failure, on the other hand, can be so much alike: feeling scared then giving up.

If the upcoming events do not make you feel skeptical, there are only two reasons for it:

• Either it is too safe, the outcome is obvious.
• Or, it is too familiar, and it is easy to complete

Both of the above reasons can lead you to average outcomes, where their values are poor.

To gain something you have never had, you must do things you have never done.

When a bird cannot overcome its fear of jumping out of the branch for the first time, it could not fly. It is also unable to take flight if it does not know how to use the wings.

Being skeptical is a good thing. But, you must learn how to fight the side boredom and know when to let it go.

6. You now know how to set a more explicit goal

“Happiness is a journey, not a destination.”

This point is accurate when you consider that your journey is your life and everyone arrives at the same destination — death. You can say all will return to dust when you reach the end of your path — the experience you get along the way is what matters.

But in the journey of life, there will be a rather long segment called a career. And as I already stated, it is a marathon. You must determine the distance and cut-off time between the checkpoints to allocate energy for the match.

When you begin to know how to set your goals clearly, the skill of measuring is developing silently within you. As a result, achieving your goals also becomes easier.

Final thoughts

My career development journey is divided into three stages:

• First two years: Accumulate experiences — Say yes to everything
• The next four years: Build a foundation — Solidify my knowledge
• The following years: Structure the wisdom — Learn from the best

Sometimes, I feel stuck and didn’t think that I was making progress at work. I became dry or even depressed with results I did not desire. Fortunately, by realizing the above signs, I have more patience with what I am doing, what I want to do, and what I will do.

I hope you can mindfully identify the progress indicators and stop wondering if you find yourself standing still.