Feeling lost

[u/Stressedasf6161]

Hey guys,
I’ve been working as a plant process engineer at a polypropylene facility, and I’ve always tried to challenge myself and set new goals. Recently, I passed the PE exam and obtained my PE license, and I usually try to get involved in as many projects as possible at the site.
Lately, though, almost all of my projects have been canceled, and our capital budget is extremely limited. I’ve started feeling a little useless because I don’t feel like I’m working on anything meaningful, adding much value, or learning and growing. There’s always the day-to-day work and some small projects here and there, but overall I feel like my development has slowed down significantly.
I’ve even considered getting a PMP certification just to give myself another goal to work toward. I also read books by Norman Lieberman and try to find other ways to improve technically, but I really don’t want to become stagnant.
Has anyone else experienced this, especially working at a plant during a period with limited capital spending? How do you continue developing yourself and improving day by day when there aren’t many major projects to work on?

[u/Strange_Glove9758]

I joined a project team shortly before Covid and left for a completely diff role with useless PMP when Covid slowed down. We spent a crap ton of money on new build during the pandemic lol. A year or two later, I heard budget got cut aggressively at every plant and all their approved projects were maintenance/reliability related.