Do you ever get this feeling:
Is this it? Have I maxxed out?
Am I destined to work like this for someone else till retirement?
Will I ever achieve more?
Just doing your job isn't going to cut it anymore. But "flooring the pedal" on the job is a mirage.
It's hard to climb higher. It's hard to come up with something that will improve someone else's project, product or metrics you don't even care about.
And even if you did, you won't be compensated as much as you'd like to, if at all.
It may as well be not appreciated, it may even be unnoticed, or not welcome.
After all, it's not your company. You don't own it. You don't have a majority stake in it.
Yet, you spend a third of your life on it.
What happens if you get bored, fired or replaced with AI?
You start over. Hunting for another 'same same but different' job, trapped in a new corporate jar.
Meanwhile, your spirit atrophies. You become stagnant, frustrated, and cynical.
This isn't a career; it's a slow-rolling professional death.
The alternative is to build something for yourself.
Your own development cannot be limited to your job.
In fact it shouldn't ever be limited, period. Your job is only a part of your life.
Progress happens when you diversify your identity.
This isn't just a career strategy; it's a biological imperative.
We are wired to expand, to create, to conquer new territory.
Most people don't improve on the job even a bit for years.
They simply repeat their tasks, slowly eroding their own potential.
In your free time, try new things and pursue what you like.
I suggest three levers which you can pull right now:
Start Lifting.
Look, the health benefits are obvious. But the real point is what it does for your mindset.
It’s a direct feedback loop between effort and result. It teaches discipline in a way even your job can't.
You might just discover you love it enough to become a coach.
At the very least, you'll have built a stronger, more resilient version of yourself.
Start Writing.
Opens a ton of opportunities, but it's not just "writing".
Sure, Large Language Models can *write*, and let's even imagine that they'll replace all sorts of writers someday.
Writing is thinking first and foremost, you shouldn't outsource it and you should do more of it on your own.
Start A Side Gig.
It's your own Art Project. It's not only the tangible output of your skills and thinking, but the place to experiment and improve perpetually.
It could be a website, an app, community, service or all of the above. It's your own business.
If you're stuck and truly want to get to the next stage in life you have to do something new right now.