A lot of activities can keep us stuck
Stuck. “Pressure, sliminess and a profound feeling of being gripped, especially when you try to pull away.” (Laura Allen, What it’s like to die from being sucked into quicksand). When you are the person with all the responsibility stuck, coasting or plateauing are not great places to be and you are typically in that place all by yourself. When you are at the top there are not many people you can talk to the help you get unstuck, accelerate or start the next climb. So what do you do?
The tendency is to get busy with things you have done before. Jump into the grind of daily work. Even start meddling in other people’s work under the guise of needing an update on a project. By the way, you know it’s a guise when you start doing the work for them instead of getting the update. When you are not stuck you don’t have time to do other people’s work.
I notice when I’m stuck I become acutely aware of everyone around me and what they are or are not doing and it all bugs me and I feel like I need to start fixing things. I also notice all the things on my “to do” list that have yet to be done. Everything feels uncomfortable and I don’t want to do the thing that most needs to be done. Which is to get myself unstuck. Getting myself unstuck is going to take time and direct effort but not in the way you think.
Did you know that the more you squirm around in quick sand the faster you sink and the more stuck you become? Panicking or any kind of continued or rapid movement increasingly impairs motion. It’s actually not possible to sink lower than waist deep into quicksand but being that stuck does leave you vulnerable to exposure and predators. The best way to get out of quicksand is to take slow deliberate steps and if you are low enough change your position and lay horizontal. If someone is around they can then throw you a rope and pull you to safety.
Getting unstuck is counter intuitive because you basically rest your way out. You have to change your posture and find something that fills you up to increase your natural buoyancy. The problem is if I don’t have things around me that fill me up I won’t have a lifeline to pull me out when I need it most. Getting stuck never happens intentionally it is almost always something that catches us off guard. The trick is to be prepared when it happens. However, most people do not take the time to find out what fills them up. They loose themselves in their work and forget what it was that makes them who they are.
In his book the 15 Laws of Growth, John Maxwell asks a series of questions to get you started in knowing the things you need around you to fill you up.
Music – What songs lift me?
Thoughts – What ideas speak to me?
Experiences – What experiences rejuvenate me?
Friends – What people encourage me?
Recreation – What activities revive me?
Soul – What spiritual exercises strengthen me?
Hopes – What dreams inspire me?
Home – What family members care for me?
Giftedness – What blessings activate me?
Memories – What recollections make me smile?
Books – What have I read that changed me?
This type of resting takes and incredible amount of discipline, energy and focus. There is a lot of activity that can keep us stuck but only a few things that can lift us up. What are you doing to intentionally fill up?
