If you travel enough by plane, you’ve probably at least once found yourself stuck in an airport waiting hours for your next flight. To kill time, you walk around and check out Cinnabon or Auntie Anne or the nearest Hudson News and bookstore until you’re bloated, doubled-over or two chapters deep into a shallow mass-market novel. After giving up on those adventures, you post up at a gate with an interesting view so you can people-watch.
Your thoughts wander aimlessly while the folks gliding on the moving walkway pull you into a deep trance that has you feeling like you’re in a bowl of cold gelatin. We all experience this feeling at least once in life. The world is moving, but we are stuck.
There’s no promise of progress when the moving walkway is not an airport convenience, but life passing us by. It’d be nice if only someone would barge into the gelatin, wriggle and shake us out of it, then tell us what we need to do. Unfortunately, it’s ultimately up to us. But there is much we can learn from those who were stuck and found a way out.
Bring New People into Your Life
It’s said that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. We like to believe that our hearts and minds are islands where we make all our own decisions and independently define who we are. Our social environment impacts who we are and the choices we make. If you feel stuck in life, it might be because the social energy around you is stagnant.
It’s possible that you’ve reached the limit of what you can learn from the people in your life, or you’re
craving a new and positive energy in your social sphere. Look for people you would get along with but who bring personalities that are not typical ingredients of your familiar environment.
Mixing up the music, movies, shows, and news you consume can have a similar impact, but
nothing will come close to the effect of a real, live human being.
Find Your Why
A common symptom of being stuck is feeling like you have no purpose or losing belief in your presumed purpose. A superficial purpose might get us moving early in life, but it won’t move us past the rockiest parts of our climb. You need something more profound if you want motivation that lasts and gets you through the most challenging parts. It might be time to do some real soul-searching.
Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Working with a therapist is a great way to find your purpose. They guide your internal dialogue as you explore inwardly, and they know the right questions to ask. They can help you see yourself more clearly by pointing out those pesky thought patterns.
Fortunately, the stigma for therapy is fading as it’s not just for those with clinical diagnoses but for regular people who just need help with general life problems.
If you’re into it,
journaling is a cool way to explore. By putting your thoughts to paper, you can revisit them later when you are in a different mood with a different perspective. A fresh mindset will give you a new angle to look at old problems.
Writing about our personal experience forces us to become more conscious of what’s going on in the back of our minds. If writing is not your thing, try yoga and meditation. They go hand in hand to quiet the body and declutter the mind so you can go exploring without getting distracted by surface-level thoughts.
Fix Up Your Diet
You might believe that feeling stuck is strictly an emotional phenomenon. Think about the potential connection between your body and feeling stuck. Your body’s health impacts your brain, and your physical well-being affects your emotions.
It’s all connected. If you let your diet slip far enough, it will slow down your metabolism, reducing your energy, focus, and mood.
Feelings of listlessness can stem from a body that is malnourished.
These suggestions may seem simple, but maybe all you need is a simple tweak to get you started. Even the smallest tune-up can make all the difference when you’re trying to get the ball rolling again.
