Career Paralysis - Five Reasons Why Our Brains Get Stuck Making Career Decisions

New 2 013Career Paralysis: ver sio n! The Five Reasons Why Our Brains Get ‘Headstuck’ When Making Career Decisions

Is this you?

Got a busy job... a ‘good’ job.

Which you really should be grateful for...

But which you hate.

So you’re looking for anew job!

But not just any job!

You want a job that actually fulfils you.You want meaning .

Something you can look back on with pride.

BUT (Big but)

on’t inspireThe jobs ads d

You don’t want to lose your lifestyle

And you’re worried aboutstepping intothe unknown.

You think to yourself... Should you be taking more of a risk?

If so, how big a risk?

Isn’t it already too late?

Some days youwonder where onearth your life is heading.

You feel like you’re losing touch withwho you really are...

...and even the simplest decisions are starting to seem difficult.

If so, you are not alone...

Nearly 70% of us do not feel engaged at work.Over half of us would start over if we felt we could.

And it’s not our fault......it’s our brains that areto blame. (They can’t cope).

Let me explain...I’m Rob. I’m an Occupational Psychologistspecialising in helping people get out ofcareer paralysis. This is me. I work with people who feel like this at work.

Let me explain...I’m Rob. I’m an Occupational Psychologistspecialising in helping people get out ofcareer paralysis. Sorry - this is me. This presentation explains why ‘career paralysis’ happens, and what you can do about it. So, where do we start?

Professor Dan Gilbert, TED Conference, December 2008 “Our brains evolved for a very different “Our brains evolved for a very different world from today. A world in which world from today. A world in which people lived in very small groups, rarely people lived in very small groups, rarely met anybody different from themselves, met anybody different from themselves, had short lives with few choices and had short lives with few choices andwhere the highest priority was to eat andwhere the highest priority was to eat and mate today.” mate today.”

The point is, the kind of problemsour brains evolved to solve

The point is, the kind of problemsour brains evolved to solve are very different to the kind of problems we face today.

Career choice is a good example:In the Agricultural Age you did whateveryour parents did. Baker, Taylor, Butcher, Smith. In fact, there was no such thing as ‘career choice.’

In the Industrial Age social mobility Top increased.hole! But social mobility still depended on social class and education. So ‘career choice’ was only an issue for nice chaps like William and Rupert here.

In the Information Age our choices expanded rapidly.

Thankfully, computers came along to help. You’d be tested and then scientifically ‘matched’ by computer to... your ideal career!

This approach had two assumptions:a static work environment and a static self.

eal Y o u r Id is : r caree l Denta ist H ygien This approach had two assumptions: a static work environment and a static self.(Mind, you, what would I know? The computer told me I should have been a dental hygienist).

But nothing is static any more. 1. The job market is volatile 2. the job for life almost dead 3. and the portfolio career on the rise. 4. People want meaning at work, not living for the weekend. 5. Jobs are being created in areas not even heard of 2 years ago. 6. More people than ever are starting their own business 7. ...and the financial crisis is accentuating all of these trends.

So the good news is… historically speaking, career opportunities have never been greater. Most of us could be whoever we want to be.

But the bad news is... Our brains are not set up to deal with this new type of career decision.

We’re good at survival thinking

But less good whenwe need to choose between lots of options...

...or think anew about our lives and careers.

What I’ve learned over the last 10 years: Understanding how our minds work is the most important factor in making better career decisions.

Me = square pegDentalHygienist =round hole

The Five Reasons Why Our Brains Get ‘Headstuck’ When MakingCareer Decisions

Too much choice1 overwhelms us

We usually think of choice as a good thing. But Barry Schwartz showed that too much choice actually stresses us out.1

1 It’s the ‘Paradox of Choice’.

The paradox of choice means decision making is more difficult. And when we do make decisions,1 we’re less happy with them.

Result: we feel overwhelmed by the options open to us and scared of the loss that comes with choice. ... And we always wonder what might have been...1

We’re negatively2 biased

We evolved to think negatively. Imagine one of your ancient ancestors sees a dark blob out in the distance... Is it a bear or a blueberry bush?2

We evolved to think negatively. Is it a bear or a blueberry bush? An optimist might have seen a blueberry bush. If she was right she’d eat more of her 5-a-day for lunch than her pessimist friend. But if she was wrong...she’d be lunch! Our minds evolved with one priority: ‘safety first’.2

Evidence: We hate losing twice as much as we love winning (Kahneman & Tversky 1990).Negative thoughts are 3 to 4 times ‘stickier’than positive (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). We need 5 positive comments to every negative for a happy marriage (Gottman, 2008). We are psychologically inflexible. If we try not to think about something unpleasant – we think about it even more. (Hayes, 1990).2

Result: So We’re far more ca u tio aware of our nc re e weaknesses than ps in our strengths.2

We prioritise the short3 term over the long term.

We think we make decisions reflecting our long term values… We think wrong.For example, a massive 90% of people support organ donation, but some countries have far higher organ donation rates than others. Why?It’s because the countries on the right have on ‘opt out’ donation policy, whereas in countries on the left you have to ‘opt in’. So basically, no one bothers.

OK, but what about professional decisions? One experiment asked Doctors what would happen if they read a patient’s case notes on the day of their operation and found...3

...that one important drug had not even been tried! Operation Important drug not even tried What do you think the Doctors did – proceed with the operation, or stop the op to try the drug?3 (drum roll...)

Most stopped the op to try the drug. ...PHEW!3

But what happened in the same scenario except where two different drugs had not been3 tried?

This time, most of the Doctors let the operation go ahead! Yet the only change was that the short term complexity of doing the ‘right’ thing had slightly increased...3

Here’s another example: was offering 3 types of subscription:3

Most people went for the print AND online subscription. 16% 0% And not surprisingly, no Economist reader 84% chose the middle option.3

So what did these rational people do when this option was removed?3

Most changed their minds! 68% 32% Conclusion: we tend to make decisions based on short3 term comparisons, not on what we actually value.

So how does this relate to career decision making? For a start, short terms comparisons mean we are highly influenced by what others do and say. But our short term bias also leads us into a trap...(take a deep breath).3

Motivation works in two directions:1. Move away fromthings that cause us discomfort Eek! Move away from: •Anxiety •Doubt •Insecurity3

Motivation works in two directions: 2. Move towards things we value Woohoo! Move towards: •Meaning •Freedom •Creativity3

Most people say they want to Away from move this way in their career Towards values discomfort3

Eeek! Away from Towards values discomfort Yet when they do what usually shows up first is... discomfort!3

That’s right..!The short term result of moving towards our values is usuallynegative thoughts and uncomfortable emotions. Oh, the humanity! Eeek! So guess what most of us do next?3

We Run Away. Away from Towards values discomfort3

Away from Towards values discomfort Phew! We are motivated to move away from discomfort and when we do this brings us relief.3

But here it gets really messy... Away from discomfort x Towards values If we make it a priority to avoid difficult emotions we avoid the things that make life worthwhile.3

But here it gets really messy... Away from Towards values discomfort ? If we make it a priority to avoid difficult emotions we avoid the things that make life worthwhile. And if we do this consistently we eventually live a life without meaning.3

Result: By prioritising happiness in the short term over things we really value in the long term

Result: By prioritising happiness in the short term over things we really value in the long term we lose control over our lives.

Our brains think in4 linear patterns.

Minds like making sense of things.They love certainty, stories and linear patterns. For example, here we see a triangle where none exists. Harmless enough?4

Psychologist Karl Duncker gaveparticipants a candle, a box of nails,and several other objects. He asked them to attach the candle to the wall. How would you do it?4

Duncker found that participants tried to nailthe candle directly to the wall or glue it to thewall by melting it.Very few of them thought of using theinside of the nail box as a candle-holderand nailing this to the wall. The participants were “fixated” on the box’s normal function of holding nails.4

In decision making, this is called ‘functional fixedness’. So what? Functional fixedness has since been shown to apply to our own identities.4

Result: Linear thinking leads to a feeling or belief that we can only do what we’ve always done.4

We trust our minds to fix5 the problem.

Our minds are incredible... That’s why we’ve left other species far behind. But we’ve seen our minds are far from infallible! Bad with choice Negatively biased Short term Functionally fixed Our minds evolved to scan the horizon for threats and anticipate problems.5 They’re interested in safety – not fulfilment or meaning!

Yet we often seem toforget this. “I know what’s bestInstead, we tend to for you!”automatically believewhat our minds tellus.5

For example, youcome home “I’m tooknackered from work tired to goand you think... for a run”5

Outcome: “I’m too You don’t go for a run. tired to go for a run” Even though staying healthy might be a long term value... Even though tiredness does not physically prevent you from going for a run... You tend to believe your thoughts and behave as if they are ‘true’.5

This is known as cognitive fusion and it affects all “I’m too old areas of our lives. to change career”5

This is known as cognitive fusion and it affects all “There are no areas of our lives. jobs anyway”5

Although this presentation may be light-hearted,there is no doubt the depth of anxiety andconfusion caused by career paralysis.I’ve certainly been there and bought the T-shirt.*We trust our minds to fix theproblem, but when it doesn’t, westart to look for reasons why.We start to think it’s ourfault – there’s somethingwrong with us!We look for a culprit,and often concludethat we need to tryand ‘fix ourselves’before we doanything else. * Disclaimer: I didn’t actually buy a T-shirt.

I used to tell myself: I can’t change career because first I need to feel more... Secure Certain Assertive Confident Motivated Knowledgeable etc....5

So I tried to ‘sort my head out’. Think more positively!

A lot of people think like this:“Once I get rid of these nastythoughts / feelings THEN Ican act”.

But research has shown that trying toavoid negative thoughts and feelings…

…actually increases their intensity

and frequency.

Result: By waiting for our minds to tell us we’re ‘ready’ to change career we get stuck.

The 5 Cognitive Biases That Cause Career Paralysis:1 Too much choice overwhelms us.2 We’re negatively biased.3 We prioritise the short term over the long term.4 We think we can only do what we’ve always done.5 We trust our minds to fix the problem.

Please note! You may have to download this presentation and viewSo what now? in ‘slide show’ mode for the links to work. I’m sorry - I don’t make the rules you know. Read Part 2... Career Paralysis: How to Get Unstuck And Find Your Direction It’s full of practical tips, suggestions and free resources to get out of career paralysis.

Thank you for reading! Rob Archer is an Occupational Psychologist based in London. He offers coaching, training and assessment to help individuals and businesses get unstuck and make meaningful change. Go to part 2 of this presentation. Get in touch: By e-mail Via LinkedIn READ my useful Career Change Blog MARVEL at my Website

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Career Paralysis - Five Reasons Why Our Brains Get Stuck Making Career Decisions

by Rob Archer

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