– Getting Unstuck

This month’s theme is Getting Unstuck.  Ever find yourself grinding through a situation at work and feeling like you’re not making any headway?  Like a car stuck in the sand, the harder you try the more entrenched you get.  You hate to admit it, but you’re stuck! It doesn’t feel good, and you’re not sure what to do next. 

Worrying isn’t the answer. Frustration will get you stuck even deeper, and anger rarely, if ever, produces a good way out. So where does the answer lie?  

Getting unstuck requires a change in perspective.  To achieve that change first requires that you stop what you’re doing– physically put it away and emotionally detach from it.  Because when you do, you open the door to opportunity; and it’s a door you need to enter.  

Sue Bethanis, CEO of Mariposa Leadership, Inc. believes that “Everybody gets stuck at some point in time.  It’s acknowledging that you’re stuck that really makes the difference.  Individuals that acknowledge their situation are more apt to make the changes needed to move beyond that moment.”   Bethanis, author of Leadership Chronicles of a Corporate Sage reveals three aspects that can help you get unstuck. 

1. Perseverance – The old adage, “Keep your head down and your nose to the grindstone” can work against you here.  Instead, lift your head up, take a deep breath, and make the conscious decision to instead persevere towards fixing the situation.  
2. Possibility –Time to get a lay of the land.  Like getting stuck in your car, you have to step out from behind the wheel and size up the situation.  Do this and new options for navigating your way out will present themselves. 
3. Perspective – Remind yourself that there is always a way out.  Getting unstuck often requires viewing your situation through a different lens and breaking it down into its core components.   

Using the “Three Ps” can also help in another way– noting the lessons learned along the way assures that you won’t end up getting stuck in the same stretch of sand.  The most gratifying feeling comes when you look in your rear-view mirror and see the problem that you were faced with, disappearing behind you.

Please share a time when you felt stuck and how you got unstuck.  When did you realize and come to terms with the fact that you were stuck?  What was it that really helped you move through (or around) your situation?