Feeling Stuck in Your Career? You Might Be Solving the Wrong Problem

One of the most powerful concepts I use in my coaching practice, from the book Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, is the difference between Anchor Problems and Gravity Problems.

Understanding this distinction can completely shift how you approach challenges in your career, business, and life.

So, what’s the difference?

Gravity Problems are the ones you can’t change. They just are.

Think:

• The job market being competitive

• Organisational restructures

• Economic uncertainty

• Other people’s decisions
  

You can spend years trying to “fix” these… and feel stuck, frustrated, and exhausted.

Anchor Problems, on the other hand, are solvable. They’re the problems you can take action on if you’re willing to approach them differently.

Why this matters for your career?

Most people I work with come in feeling stuck in their careers, overwhelmed, or unsure of their next move.

When we start unpacking things, we often realise that they’ve been trying to solve a gravity problem as if it were an anchor problem.

That’s where burnout, overthinking, and self-doubt creep in. And the longer you stay in that space, the harder it becomes to find your way forward, not impossible, but it does take more effort to shift out of it.

But when you shift your mindset, and start approaching your life and career like a designer, not a problem-solver something changes.

You move from:

• “Why is this happening to me?”

  to

• “What can I try next?”
  

That shift opens up new possibilities, new career paths, and new ways forward.

I’m not immune to this either.

As someone building my own coaching and consulting business, one of my biggest challenges has been finding my niche.

When I started Karma Journey Co., I intentionally went broad. I wanted to get the idea out into the world, test it, and start learning as soon as possible.

But over time, I found myself asking:

• What problem am I really trying to solve?

• Who am I best placed to support?

• Does the solution I have in my head actually match what people need?
  

And if I’m honest, ego plays a role here too.

I had a clear vision of what I wanted the business to look like. But is that what my clients want? Or is that just what feels comfortable to me?

That’s been the real work behind the scenes - a reminder that this is work we all have to do.

Letting go. Listening more. Testing ideas. Unlearning what I thought I knew.

This is what design thinking looks like in real life.

It’s not about having the perfect answer.

It’s about:

• Asking better questions

• Talking to people

• Trying small experiments

• Staying curious, even when things feel uncertain
  

This is what I bring into my career coaching and life design work.

Because most career challenges today aren’t simple. They’re what Dave & Bill call “wicked problems” in their book - complex, layered, and constantly changing.

And they can’t be solved with a one-size-fits-all answer.

If you’re feeling stuck in your career…

If you’re lying awake at night thinking about your next move, your purpose, meaning of work and life, or whether you’re on the “right” path - you’re not alone.

And you don’t have to figure it out on your own.

If you’re ready to:

• Gain clarity in your career

• Navigate a career transition

• Design a life and career that actually feels aligned

• Make confident, informed decisions about your future
  

I’d love to work with you.

Let’s have a conversation and start unpacking your challenge together.

_

Dipika Nand Founder & Principal Coach Karma Journey Co.