Getting Unstuck

I don’t often get stuck, but for some reason, I’ve recently got stuck in terms of writing my blog. It’s quite bizarre because this is an activity that I enjoy doing. Yet in spite of that I’ve been stuck. I’ve been telling myself I have other priorities and I’ll do it next week. This has gone on for two months! It’s silly but very real.

And I know it’s not just me. Many of my clients get stuck. An issue or task that needs to be addressed, a conversation that needs to take place is put off. We’re all so busy, it’s easy to justify the delay so the task remains incomplete, the conversation doesn’t happen and before we know it the rots set in.

So how do you get unstuck? Here are some thoughts.

The first step is recognising you’re stuck. You’ve got to acknowledge there is an issue or task that you’re avoiding and your behaviour isn’t helping you get what you want (whatever that is). Sometimes it takes another person to help you see the forest for the trees (thank you Michael Green).

The second step is doing something about it. It doesn’t need to be big. All journeys start with small steps, but you have to do something. By starting to write this blog, I’ve changed everything. I feel a sense of momentum. You’ll work out what you need to do. If it’s not obvious (blocking out the time to start to write was pretty obvious!) then your first action might be to talk to someone to help you identify what it is you might do, but that in itself is a very useful act. Then keep doing something. Take another small step. Ask yourself “what should I do next?” Then do it.

The third step, or at least the third thing that occurs to me, is to hold yourself “publically” accountable. This will increase your propensity to act and make it harder for you to continue to delay or avoid what it is you really should be doing. Put it in writing. Tell someone what you are going to do and by when you are going to do it. Take away your “wriggle room”.

So now I’ll walk the talk on public accountability. For the next 9 months I’ll write a blog at least once a month that you will hopefully find interesting and useful. In my next few posts I’m going to share some interviews I’ve done with some very clever, successful people on their thoughts on how to create high performing teams. You’ll hear from the likes of Grant O’Brien, CEO of Woolworths, Paul Wilson Co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer Greencross (Petbarn), Liz Broderick Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Australian Human Rights Commission and Craig Runde, Director for the Center of Conflict Dynamics among others.

How about you? Is there anything you’re stuck on? If there is, what are you going to do get unstuck?

Have a great week.