Page 96 - Free Yourself From

Chapter 5

Making the Break

The next sticky floor, jeopardizing your personal growth and cut-
ting off opportunities by staying in one place too long or being too
loyal, is one of the easiest to fall into, and one of the most difficult to
get off of because it is counterintuitive. Women who get stuck on this
floor usually want to know how it can be so wrong if it feels so right.
So often, I find myself suggesting to these women that it might
be time to move on to another job, in another place, with another
boss and a new team. I can see the look on their faces that says deep
down they know they should, but it seems so much easier to stay. And
it’s easy to see why. Usually, they’ve been in their job for several
years. They are very comfortable and capable in their role, are appre-
ciated by their boss, and feel supported by a great team. They feel
important because they are the go-to person for their organization
for many things. They are also the resident historian and can get
things done quickly.
The problem is these women aren’t advancing, and often there’s no
more room to grow or learn in their job. So they aren’t preparing to
advance either. They aren’t gaining new experience, new skills, or
exposure to new ideas or new people. How can you move up into the
executive suite, or even closer to it, when you stay in one place? More-
over, I often meet women when they realize that they’ve stayed in one

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