Frozen
Many times I have encountered a web page freezing from nowhere. A frozen state is when the web page appears to have stopped. Nothing on the screen seems to move hence no response. This is a very frustrating situation especially if it happens in the middle of an important action. The situation tends to cause panic due to fear of data loss in certain circumstances. This has happened to most of us many times. The simplest and quickest solution is to click on the refresh button. The webpage is re-loaded and now responsive as if nothing had happened before. As long as you know where the refresh button is on your network browser, no need to panic in case of a frozen webpage.
Similar Instances
A similar situation has been observed in people and companies. What has worked before isn’t working in the current life? Nothing in your life and/or company seems to be responding. The more you continue pushing harder, the more frustrated you become. This may be time to refresh, restart, reset. The choice for the course of action depends on the severity of the current circumstances. Some people have restarted in new careers. We have many engineers in the banking and auditing sector. Companies have completely re-invented themselves into new products and/or services.
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, talks of “refounding the company for a changed world”. Sometimes, all what is required, is refreshing and resetting to cope up. As a geotechnical engineer, this may mean going for postgraduate studies and/or even a refresher course commonly referred to as Continuous Professional Development (CPD) in order to remain relevant in the field of practice. Maybe even a refresher course in leadership and management, construction management or project management as you prepare for resetting into managerial positions but within the engineering field. This is crucial if you do not want to be frustrated especially midway through your career.
Personal Applications
This year I joined the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) mostly for international collaborations and networking. As part of the subscription, there is an offer of free ten CPDs that are mandatory in addition to the many free webinars. I have learnt a lot from these CPDs and webinars. I am refreshed for the next step. This has been very helpful since such CPDs in geotechnical engineering are not offered in Uganda.
Additionally, in January 2022, I started a course in leadership at the Harvest Institute under Worship Harvest Ministries. These blog series are a product. As part of the same training, I will be publishing my first book in November 2022 titled “PRINCIPLES OF PROFESSIONAL GROWTH: How to Rise and Stay at the Peak of your Vocation”. Relatedly, together with my mentor Prof. Denis Kalumba, we are publishing a book titled “A Guide to Practical Geotechnical Engineering in Eastern Africa”. This will be in 2024. If you ever find yourself “frozen” in your career and/or profession, please consider these three: refresh, restart, reset. And better, do not wait to be “frozen”. In the few years to come, if you ever find me in another field, do not be surprised.