A few years into what once seemed the perfect career, subtle signs begin to signal trouble in the workplace. You notice a coolness on the part of co-workers. Your opinions are disregarded. Your annual evaluations and salary remain static. In short, your career is stalled.

    "The tip-off is that you realize you are out of the circle of communication," says Paul Bouzan president of The Executive Group, a career management firm. "You are on the periphery," and perhaps eventually excluded completely, from meetings that include top company personnel in policy-making situations. Or if you are included in meetings, your contributions are not taken seriously.

    Another sign of trouble is a gradual cooling of inter-office relationships. Co-workers tend to become distant, then somewhat formal, and possibly even hostile, Bouzan says. An example: Your suggestions to a co-worker are met with a remote thanks and a promise to give them consideration. As the relationships worsen, suggestions may be greeted with a formal acknowledgment then disregarded, and finally they may be met with an angry admonition to "mind your own business."

    Another warning emerges in lukewarm annual reviews that hold no promise of advancement, no praise for outstanding job performance and insignificant salary increases. "By that time," Bouzan suggests, "your career is in jeopardy." How to proceed depends largely on one's determination to retain a position. Career counseling may be beneficial if preliminary steps prove unfruitful, if not helping to maintain that job, perhaps pointing toward other career opportunities.

    Bouzan cites many reasons career paths grow cold, prominent among them the failure to keep current with the industry, especially in high tech fields. "The most successful person," Bouzan says, "is the one who knows the most not the prettiest and not the handsomest but the one who knows the most."

    Another career-staller is having poor people skills. "People won’t take abuse anymore from hip-shooters," says Bouzan, describing an outdated style of management. Conversely, the worker who is too reticent, who never expresses an opinion or initiates an exchange, may find the career path blocked.

    The first step in resolving the dilemma, Bouzan advises, is to "go directly to your supervisor and try to get that person to lay it on the table. Don't get defensive." Taking responsibility this way usually results in an honest response from the supervisor. On the rare occasion when a supervisor demurs, the employee must counter it with specific examples of what is wrong. "You have to draw up a problem or you can’t solve it," Bouzan says.

    When one San Diego executive, a vice president of a major retail company, noticed preliminary signs of career trouble, he tried to work it out on his own. His relationship with a newly appointed president started badly. He was left out of meetings and felt ineffective. His job performance declined, and, not knowing exactly how to mend bridges, he decided to leave the company.

     Instead, on the advice of a friend, he sought career counseling, even though at first "I was embarrassed to go to someone for help," says Steve, who asked that his full name not be used because he has continued in his job. It was the best decision, he says, because "I got reconnected to my past and my career. I started to re-establish a positive self-image." He learned that he liked his job and wanted to keep it. He wanted to stay in San Diego, where he had moved from Chicago.

    Steve took Bouzan's advice and confronted his new boss. "I did it in a non-threatening way. I put the onus on myself and told him I was not doing as well as I wanted to do in the job." His boss just stared at him, he recalls, for perhaps a full min-ute. Then his response was, "You really want to stay here, don’t you?" They continued their talk informally, and the outcome was positive.

    "I found we had a lot in common, and I learned that the new man had some skills I hadn't recognized and I could learn a lot from him." He also recognized that the new president would probably want to move on in time, and that could create an opportunity for Steve to advance. What began as an adversarial relationship became a cooperative effort.

    "Anyone can modify behavior," Bouzan says. How that is done depends upon the career stumbling block. An executive who is required to write memos but has poor grammar skills may help his career by taking a short course in memo-writing at a community college or adult school. A job candidate with all the right credentials who repeatedly interviews unsuccessfully may need to learn new ways to answer traditional questions.

    Steve credits career counseling with his success. He learned to be a better organized person and a better listener; he learned how to market himself within the company and how to break unproductive habits. He learned how to set and seek a goal and how to develop a contingency plan. But mainly, he got to know himself, and that may be one of the most important requirements for moving a stalled career.