We all experience psychological impasse. This feeling of uncertainty about your next moves in life might come at predictable moments: the loss of a job, the end of a romance, an empty nest as your child heads for college, or the death of someone who has long helped you feel recognized, loved, and appreciated. It might also come at unpredictable moments: when the career of a lifetime somehow loses its juice, when you ache for intimacy but can't seem to find the right partner, when you find yourself longing to renew a sense of life's adventure. Predictable or not, psychological impasse brings with it the sense of being stuck or paralyzed. At the office, you feel stale or unchallenged. In your personal life, you feel agitated, deflated, or downright bored. You know that something must change - and you're desperate to contribute at work, find a reinvigorated role in your family, and dive back into the current of your own life. Though uncomfortable, impasse is necessary. It's the only place from which you can define a new vision for your life. Now business psychologist and researcher Timothy Butler leverages more than 20 years of research to offer strategies for finding your way from impasse to renewed meaning - at work, at home, with colleagues, and with family. He shows you how to: Recognize the state of psychological impasse and use it as a springboard to real change Participate in exercises that activate your new life vision Identify the activities, rewards, types of people, work cultures, and communities that will most likely satisfy you Make choices that transform your new vision into reality Drawing on a wealth of stories about individuals who have successfully transitioned out of impasses, Getting Unstuck provides a practical, authoritative road map for moving past your immediate impasse and defining a meaningful path forward.
Download and start listening now!
"This was nice to read because it helped set parameters for changing careers in mid life. I also had an aha moment when I read about the different personality types and realized that I was more of a creative than I had ever given myself credit for before. "
— Kristin (4 out of 5 stars)
" This book really helped me hone in on where I wanted to be and how I might get there. Invaluable for anyone who thinks something may be missing in their career. "
— Diane, 12/26/2012" An enlightening self-help recommended to Kellogg MBA students. I went the whole 9 yards through every exercise and story to complete my map. Can't say the core answers are near but the map is cool! "
— Chris, 3/15/2010" Decent book, more applicable for working out career decisions and job searches. Some of the exercises are interesting, however if you already have a good idea about your wants/ambitions/desires, they can be repetitive. "
— Elizabeth, 3/17/2009" I found this to be a good guide to reflect on career and life choices. "
— Jim, 6/25/2008
Timothy Butler is a senior fellow and director of Career Development Programs at Harvard Business School. He teaches career coaching and consults to organizations worldwide on career development issues. He has published articles and papers in periodicals such as Fortune, Fast Company, and the Harvard Business Review and is the author of Discovering Your Career in Business, The Twelve Bad Habits That Hold Good People Back, and Getting Unstuck: How Dead Ends Become New Paths.
Erik Synnestvedt has recorded nearly two hundred audiobooks for trade publishers as well as for the Library of Congress Talking Books for the Blind program. They include The Day We Found the Universe by Marcia Bartusiak, A Game as Old as Empire edited by Steven Hiatt, and Twitter Power by Joel Comm.