Have you ever felt truly and really stuck?
Most questions I get are about getting out of “stuckness” and learning how to move forward.
We often have several options and possibilities available in our life, yet we struggle with knowing what to do and where to go.
We just don’t know what to base our decisions on.
I have always been a person driven by my mind. When given the choice, I’ve always stayed in rational arguments and conversations.
Pro- and con lists, checklists, strategies… These are all good, and necessary.
But they do not serve your truth.
A big part of my personal process has been learning how to get away from my oh-so-rational and logical brain, and listen more to myself.
Intuition, heart’s voice, inner knowing…. whatever we call it.
When we learn to listen to ourselves, we make decisions that are true to who we are. The worst decisions I’ve made are the ones where I kinda knew that it wasn’t a good idea, but I pushed that feeling away. Because on paper, rationally, that decision made a lot of sense. I’ve learned a lot from those experiences, but more than anything, I’ve reflected on why I didn’t listen to what I knew.
Hearing that ‘inner knowing’ I’ve realised, is difficult, and for many of us it takes practice. Daily practice even.
But so much freedom and energy comes with letting go of the stuff of the mind and listening to what is true.
Let’s look at how to get closer to that inner knowing.
1. Consciously get out of your head and into the body
Our bodies, our hearts, are so infinitely much smarter than we give them credit for. Those hunches, that intuition, the feeling that something is off… That all comes from within us, but they are usually not served from our ego-mind.
You know that feeling.
You can’t describe it, but you just know.
Practice what it means for you to be in your body. Breathing, moving your body or meditating. Get to know what sensations in your body mean to you. The more we stay in our bodies, the better acquainted we get with them.
A few years ago, I made a deal with myself. I don’t make any major life changes unless I’ve worked out regularly, and meditated daily, for three weeks.
It has helped me to not make reactive decisions out of fear.
2. Identify your truths
Where exactly in your life do you feel stuck?
This answer gives a clue to where you are not aligned with what is true for you. From my experience of feeling stuck myself (oh so many times!), and in coaching others, stuckness creates real pain.
We get caught in old patterns, roles, ideas and beliefs…
And we can’t see past the fog we’ve created for ourselves.
There is a huge mismatch in our life, and we just can’t see what that new truth is.
Here is a question that can provide a lot of clarity.
“What in my life have I learned to be true?”
Perhaps you’ll get one answer, maybe you’ll get ten. For instance, I’ve learned that decisions made from love (and not fear) will always serve the world.
It will give you a good idea for where you’re standing, and what to eventually build on.
3. Follow nudges of curiosity
Curiosity is the loveliest thing in the world.
If you’re feeling stuck and bored, go spend time with children. Embrace every little thing they get up to. With them, life becomes an adventure.
A cardboard box can be a pirate ship and a stone serves as an intergalactic space ship. In the same – childlike – spirit, allow yourself to be curious and follow what catches your attention. We live in a crazy fascinating world. Allow yourself to get inspired by it.
Not every nudge will turn out to be an adventure or take you down your life path. But there is truth in every present moment. Follow what peaks your curiosity in this moment.
It nudges at you for a reason.