What do you do when you have a project you need to make progress on but you don’t know how to “solve” part of it, and you are stuck.
From stuck it’s a quick trip to procrastination land.
For Instance:
- Let’s say you’re writing a story and you don’t know where to take the characters because you don’t know what the final outcome is. So you put it off until you can figure it out or feel divinely inspired with the solution.
- Or let’s say you have a proposal to write for a client and you’ve been procrastinating on taking action on it because you don’t know how to package or price it yet.
- Or maybe, you have a new program you want to offer but you don’t know what to include in it or how it will all fit together. So you feel like you can’t get started.
The Good News & Not So Good News
All that wondering is good fodder, actually. It means your brain is turning over the problem and looking for a solution.
That’s the good news.
The less good news is that without some kind of concerted effort on your part, actually getting to that answer will likely remain evasive.
Here’s What You Can Do Instead
Sit down, take out the Thing (whatever it is) and get to work on it.
- Write out as much of it as you know.
- Or, start with a rough draft or a previous similar project that you can base it on.
- Or, get out a blank sheet of paper and doodle down everything you can think of.
Start giving it form and going through the steps of designing it even if you don’t know what the final outcome will be.
Commit to the Exploration
And very often, the answer to that missing piece or missing pieces will emerge, simply as a result of committing to the exploration and getting as far as you can.
No Dice? Get Help
If the answer does not come, ask this question, “Who or what can help me answer this question?”
And then ask for that help.
Your Turn
I’d love to hear from you about this subject:
- How do you get yourself unstuck?
- Let’s save stories about you never get stuck for another day. :)
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Jenna, I saw this retweeted on twitter before it landed in my inbox.
this might sound basic, but I just start doing it in a grossly imperfect way. I had a neat boss who used to just look at our confused faces and say, “Just do it.” I’m not sure she knew what to do either, but that process of just diving in got the ball rolling somewhere. And that’s the biggest problem I noticed in colleagues prior to that job and after that job – people have been made to get ready and get ready and get ready that starting becomes a big scary thing. They are so worried about doing in wrong – and who knows what that means anyway – that they terrify themselves into a state of inertia. I’m not much of a planner. It can magnify the scary factor.
G.
Nice, G, Thanks! “Grossly imperfect” sounds like the perfect way to go about it!
I do this and it seems to work. Until you label the folder, paper or document any ideas that come to me don’t have a place to go. I always do at least that first step – then the next one is easy.
Nice. Reminds me of what one of my coaches used to always say, and that now I say to my clients, “The first step is always illuminated.”
There are two very different kinds of stuckness that I encounter regularly. There’s the slogging through molasses sort of stuckness that usually comes just before a major breakthrough, increased awareness or big lesson. When I encounter this sort of stuckness, I try and remember to back off and not try so hard, then double-check that I’m caring for myself well enough. My self-care regimen requires that I take time to get centered and grounded, do yoga, meditate, and get outside. I usually find that I haven’t left myself enough space to just be, that I’d been trying to force the process. The other kind of stuckness I encounter is more like what you’re describing here — the not starting sort. Here I find it helpful to share my story of stuckness, including my fears, with a trusted friend, mentor or coach — someone who is a terrific listener who can reflect back the pieces of my story that help me to see that I actually do have a plan and know quite a bit. This helps me to get clearer on what I want to manifest and to trust that there are tangible steps already in place. Once I am reminded of the clear points of my vision, I can commit myself to take the action of starting. At that point I can access the inertia behind the thing that’s waiting to be created and I am free to begin.
Yes i totally aggree: great article. ) Not forcing the solution and being gentle with ourselves and the muse is the best way. A nice distraction like a walk or a cup of herbal tea and having faith in our ability:) I loved reading everyones input;)