If you’re bored at work, there may be a variety of reasons. Your interest may no longer align with your work. You might not be fully using your capabilities. There could be little opportunity for growth and learning. Perhaps you have no clear goals. Ignoring your boredom can make things worse. Increased stress, poor mental health, and low productivity often result. You might develop bad habits such as indulging in unhealthy food or behaving in an unprofessional manner. As a result, you need to take action to alleviate your boredom.

Here are four things to do if you’re bored at work.

1. Talk with Your Manager

Arrange a time to sit down with your manager. Let them know you’re not feeling engaged in your work. Share exactly what you do in a typical day. Include an estimate of how many hours a week you’re engaged in meaningful work. Ask if you can take on more challenging tasks that fit your interests. Perhaps you can expand your knowledge and skillset with additional training. Maybe you feel it’s time for a promotion. Find out what you need to do to move up in the organization.

2. Cross-Train

Ask your manager if you can learn a job in another department or accounting function. You’ll add more value to the organization by being able to cover when a coworker is sick or on vacation. You might even be able to move to the department if a position opens up.

3. Focus on Professional Development

Look for opportunities to develop professionally. Catch up on magazine articles and blog posts in your field. Browse industry news online. Interact with other professionals in forums. Search for seminars, conferences, or industry networking events to attend. Find webinars on current topics in your field. Join a professional group in your industry.

4. Find a New Job

If you’ve exhausted all of your options, it may be time to look for a new job. As you become more proficient at your job, you build skills and abilities that make your job easier. For this reason, your interests and capabilities change. What once was challenging and interesting becomes easy and straightforward. The problem is that your workplace challenges typically don’t increase at the same rate. As a result, it’s easy to mentally check out. When your work doesn’t fully capture your attention, your mind wanders off to something that will. This tells you it’s time to move forward in your career.

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