When you feel stuck at your job

Inna | Jan 21, 2026Jan 21, 2026

LESSON OVERVIEW

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

• engage in talking about work satisfaction and feeling stuck at work;
• exchange opinions and experiences related to career satisfaction;
• watch a video with advice for feeling stuck professionally.

In this lesson, students reflect on reasons for job dissatisfaction, discuss their thoughts on attitudes to work and watch part of a video (to 03:43) about career stagnation. They share their experiences and talk about ways to deal with work challenges. Students can also do an extra vocabulary task where they practise useful phrases for the discussion (e.g. align with my values, achieve my full potential, get mixed messages).

WARM-UP AND DISCUSSION

This lesson begins with a warm-up. Students name reasons why people may be dissatisfied with their jobs and give details. After that, they can do an extra vocabulary activity. Students match phrases for talking about work satisfaction (e.g. be micromanaged, go unnoticed, tap into) with their definitions. They then say which situations would make them dislike their job the most and explain. Moving on, students examine statements about attitudes to work and careers (e.g. feeling stuck is normal; it’s part of any long-term job). They say whether they agree or disagree with them and explain why.

VIDEO AND MORE DISCUSSION

In this part of the lesson, students watch the first part of a video with advice for feeling stuck at work and say what they think about it. Following that, they read questions about job dissatisfaction. Then, students choose questions, identify the reasons behind them and suggest solutions. Afterwards, they predict a list that the speaker makes in the video. Next, students watch the second part of the video and check. They then discuss the video and continue talking about work satisfaction. Moving on, students complete opinions on career growth and job satisfaction (e.g. a regular pay rise can/can’t make the job you hate bearable, but…) by choosing options and adding their own ideas. Finally, they look at pairs of options (e.g. get feedback OR get emotional support). Students choose options to boost job satisfaction and explain why.

WORKSHEETS

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