What if I have no dreams? What if I have no aspirations? What’s left?
I would say one of two states of mind will fill the void: resignation or desperation. You clearly are not happy with the state of your professional life. The question then is what are you going to do about it?
If your answer is “nothing,” then your state of mind is one of resignation. You’ve resigned yourself to the notion that this is it – this is the hand you’ve been dealt – so live with it. If that’s the case, then I wish you the very best. There are often good reasons for taking this course of action… or inaction.
But maybe the status quo is simply unacceptable to you. Maybe you feel so boxed in, so undervalued, so overlooked, that you would be willing to do anything to open up new avenues of opportunity. That’s a state of mind more like desperation and the emotional power of it may drive you to take some risks, looking for ways to change the game.
If you feel a bit desperate, and you’re ready to do something about it, then you need a strategy and an action plan. It’s time to look afresh at the problem, call some new plays, establish some new connections, and give yourself a chance to think through the issues outside of the environment where you feel professionally stymied.
Now, I will tell you that UAB’s IEM Program is very much designed for people who are looking for “something else.” I don’t believe there is another program like it anywhere. In fact, we really think of it as something more like an experience than just a program. I’m serious. So, I’m plugging the program here because it’s worth looking into.
But if it’s not what you’re looking for (perhaps you’re simply not interested in a graduate program), that’s okay, too. My advice would be to engage in the same basic activities that IEMers do: think about what you love to do, come up with creative ideas that allow you to align your personal interests with your professional skills, build a network of like-minded people, get outside your environment periodically so you can think more clearly, broaden your skills, develop the leadership potential within yourself, and seek advice and mentoring from people who want to see you succeed.
I think you’ll be surprised by the results. It will have been worth the effort.
Don Appleby has served since 2004 as an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where he teaches in the Information Engineering and Management Program. He has over three decades of professional experience in the information technology industry. Prof. Appleby is retired from IBM.Thanks to ProfAppleby.com for this article.
Dale Callahan is a contributing writer for the IEM Blog. Dr. Callahan is the IEM Program Director for the Information Engineering and Management Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. His thoughts here represent the types of topics covered in the Entrepreneurial courses he teaches the clients of the IEM Program at UAB. 
