Hey there incredible human! Welcome to One Infinite Life.

My name is Chloe and I'm an award-winning Certified Life Coach and writer with a background in psychology.

My mission (the quick version) to to help you get the most out of your one infinite life.

I hope you find something here that makes your day (or life) better than it was before!

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I acknowledge the Boonwurrung people of the Kulin nations where One Infinite Life is operated from. I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging and also to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in my community and wider network.

For me being stuck is… Stagnant. Going around in circles again and again. Agitating. Coming up against resistance. Hopeless. Giving into procrastination. Unmotivating. Cemented in doubt. Blocked. Trapped by uncertainty.

To put it simply: feeling stuck sucks!

I’ve felt stuck about big life stuff like… What to actually do with my life. Working a job (as a means to an end) that I felt stuck in. And what to do… next.

And I also dabble with feeling stuck on a super frequent basis with small things like… Trying to get work done. Whether to choose this or that. And even this morning I felt stuck about what to have for breakfast this morning (seriously!)

 

So in this post I’m sharing:

∞ How I approach things when I’m feeling stuck.

∞ How to get unstuck, including 15 specific ways, with heaps of practical suggestions and examples.

∞ Insights from others on how they approach getting unstuck.

∞ 3 things you can do to start moving forward.

∞ Some FREE and super useful worksheets with 18 questions to help you get unstuck and start moving forward.

So let’s get into it…

15 WAYS TO GET UNSTUCK

In the past when I used to get stuck I could stay in that space for a really long time.

But nowadays, I don’t let this happen and I take a much more practical approach.

Sometimes to get unstuck I can do one of these strategies and it’s enough to help me shift the stuck feeling, and other times I have to take the approach of “throw everything at it” to get out of the funk I’m in.

So whenever I feel stuck I start by…

 

1. Realising that I’m not actually stuck.

I’m just telling myself that I am.

Even though feeling stuck may physically feel like you’ee trapped, it’s really the mind that’s got you feeling stuck.

The moment I acknowledge, “hey I’m not stuck, I just think I’m stuck” it immediately feels less constricting and I can attempt to deal with it.

2. Trusting that it is impermanent.

Everything is impermanent. Nothing (ever) stays the same and everything is constantly changing — and this means that you won’t feel stuck forever.

Sometimes the best solution for being stuck is no solution at all. And in those times, all we need to do is just trust the process, surrender to feeling stuck and let it pass.

I’m all for just riding out feeling stuck — however I’ve found that for me it’s not always the effective at getting me unstuck, and I believe that in these times you’ve got to meet the universe halfway by getting practical.

So if I decide that NOT waving the white flag is the best approach, here’s what I attempt to do to shift feeling stuck…

3. Resist getting caught up in HOW or WHY I’m stuck.

Because it actually doesn’t matter.

And it’s super easy to get caught up in over-analysing why we’re stuck, but this can just keep us going around in circles (again and again) and ending up back in the same place: feeling stuck.

So if you really want to get unstuck, I suggest starting by not talking or thinking about how or why you’re stuck and instead focusing on what you can do about it.

4. Decide to move forward.

If you want to get unstuck make the decision that you’re going to move forward.

I love how Alexandra Franzen approaches getting back on track and I think it works well for deciding to get unstuck as well…

• Telling yourself, “I am disgusting and lazy and awful. How could I allow this to happen?” is unproductive.

• Instead, try saying, “I enjoyed my time off and now it’s time for a change. It starts today.”

Let go of the past and focus on where you want to be and how you want to feel instead.

By making a declaration to get unstuck and focus on what you want instead, this shift in attention will make it a lot easier to get into action and actually move forward.

5. Change your state.

When I feel stuck I physically feel it in my body, so one of my go-to solutions is to change my state.

I might do this by moving my physical location, so I get a change of environment.

For example: If I’m feeling stuck with writing something I might move to the kitchen bench, to the coffee table, outside, or somewhere else.

Or I might change my state by physically moving my body.

For example: Going for a walk or run. Doing some yoga. Having a one person dance party in the lounge room. Doing some star jumps. It really doesn’t matter what it is.

 

A few more suggestions on ways you can change your state:

∞ Getting outside and hang out in nature (one of my favourites!)

∞ Swimming in the ocean.

∞ Having a shower.

∞ Doing some EFT.

∞ Shaking it out. Literally.

∞ Doing a Wabi-Sabi workout like this one or this one.

6. Switch up your approach.

If the way you’re approaching getting unstuck isn’t work for you, change it.

Try a different approach (maybe even one you’ve never done before).

If the perspective you’re currently holding about being stuck isn’t helping you, change it.

Get curious and experiment with what works for you.

 

A few questions to help you switch up your approach:

∞ How can you change your perspective on this?

∞ How can you approach this in a different way?

∞ What is the opposite of your current approach?

∞ How could you make this more fun?

7. Ask yourself: What do I need to do to fill myself up?

Often when I’m feeling stuck, I come to the realisation that I haven’t been looking after myself very well.

And I truly believe that in order to be our best and to do our best work (whatever that may be) we need to create from a full cup.

Becuase of this I like to use feeling stuck as an opportunity to really up my self-care and restore my vitality.

 

Here are some suggestions:

∞ Ask yourself: what can I do to fill myself up?

∞ Not sure where to start? Here are 8 suggestions on ways you can fill your tank.

∞ Give yourself the space you need.

∞ Be extra kind to yourself.

∞ Focus on feeling good (more on this shortly).

8. Get your gratitude on.

One of the best ways for me to get out of a funk is to turn to gratitude.

Why? Because gratitude is seriously POWERFUL stuff —and it can be useful to transform your state and perspective.

How? There are so many ways to express gratitude, but here are a few suggestions to help get you started:

∞ Write down 1 thing, 3 things or a list of what you’re grateful for and focus on why you appreciate these things.

∞ Share what you’re grateful for on social media (getting yourself out of a funk, PLUS keeping the vibe high on your social media is a total win-win).

∞ Tell someone that you appreciate them and why.

∞ Plus I’ve also got heaps more gratitude tips here.

9. Declutter your space.

Decluttering helps to create space physically and energetically. And there’s something so freeing about clearing space in your life. It gives you a fresh slate for you to work with, and helps to create room for so much more.

You can start with stuff you no longer use (or love), but there’s also so much more you can declutter in your life, for example:

∞ Your beliefs (this book is awesome for teaching you how to do that for money specifically, but you can apply it to anything).

∞ The behaviours that are not serving you.

∞ The people you surround yourself with (both in real life and on social media).

10. Fill yourself up with inspiration.

For me, inspiration leads to motivation — and motivation helps me to take action and actually move forward.

So when I’m feeling stuck I love to flood myself with inspiration.

For example: I have a bookmark full of inspiring TED talks, another bookmark full of super inspiring articles, and a playlist on my iPod full of inspiring podcasts. And when I’m feeling stuck I like to dip into these inspiration files to help me get motivated again.

ALSO: If you’re looking for something inspiring to read you can get my free eBook at the end of this post.

11. Realign to your vision.

I like to use feeling stuck as an opportunity to re-align to the vision of what I want my life to be like and what I want more of.

I do this by:

∞ Revisiting Danielle Laporte’s The Desire Map and working out how I want to feel.

∞ Then coming up with tangible things I can actually do to feel that way (plus doing them!)

∞ Updating my real life vision boards, or my Pinterest boards (like this one or this one) and filling them with images and words of what lights me up and what I want.

12. Do the opposite of what you’re “meant” to be doing.

Whenever I used to get stuck I would just keep pushing and trying to do whatever it was that I was stuck about, but honestly this approach does not work for me at all.

However, what does work for me is to stop doing what I’m “meant” to be doing and instead doing something completely the opposite.

For example: If I’m stuck while trying to do some writing, I might go outside and read in the sunshine, go for a walk, or watch a movie or TV show, or even write something just for fun (like a letter or email to someone).

Even though this approach seems counter-intuitive, giving myself permission to step away and do something else (anything else) is effective at helping me get unstuck.

13. Get some variety into your life.

Variety really is the spice of life. So when I’m feeling stuck I like to shake up my life by broadening the variety of things I do and consume.

I might try something completely new.

For example: a new recipe, walking track or route, a cafe, or an activity I’ve never done before.

Or I might do something I normally do, but choose outside my usual range.

For example: choosing a book from a genre I don’t normally read, listening to a different genre of music, or watching a movie or TV show that I wouldn’t normally watch.

14. Focus on doing stuff that makes you feel good.

This also relates to the point about doing the opposite of what you’re meant to do. It seems counter-productive, but I find it to be super effective at getting me unsuck (and enjoyable too — because who doesn’t want to feel good!?)

 

How to go about this:

∞ Focus on doing what makes YOU feel alive and lit up.

∞ Prioritise having fun.

∞ Surround yourself by people and stuff that make you happy.

 

For example: Spend time with positive people, create an uplifting playlist of music that you can listen to when you want to feel good (you can check out my High Vibing playlist here), or watch your favourite TV shows and movies.

15. Write it out.

“I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” —Flannery O’Connor 

This is exactly how I feel about writing.

Writing stuff out can really help us get insights and clarity that we cannot string together just in our heads, and therefore it can be useful at helping us get unstuck.

If you’re feeling stuck and like putting pen to paper to work stuff out, I’ve created some simple worksheets for you with 18 questions to ask yourself when you’re feeling stuck, to help you get unstuck and move forward.

You can download your free worksheets by clicking the image below or at the end of this post.

I also asked some incredible humans what they do when they’re feeling stuck and this is what they said…

 

• “Whenever I’m feeling blocked creatively, whether it’s with ideas or in relation to writing, the best thing I’ve learned to do is to step away. It’s so easy to think that we need to rush through our creative work, that we’ll miss something if we take hours, or days, or weeks off. But sometimes the creative process requires just that: a break to rest and recharge and to let surprises come our way. It’s when I’m in that receptive, loose frame of mind that I actually do my best work.” — Vanessa

 

• “Last week I woke up really unmotivated, I had blog posts to write but couldn’t bring myself to actually sit down and write them. Instead of trying to fight this feeling, which I have done in the past, I headed to the beach instead. I don’t know what it is, but I always feel better after a trip to the beach. My advice for getting out of a funk: change your scenery, get outside, mix it up, and if all else fails have a shower, it fixes everything!” — Ali

 

• “I was copy writing for a number of other health blogs and newsletters which I loved doing, but part of me felt stuck and uninspired by it all. One day I realised I needed my own space to write about other things – things I was really passionate about… So I started my own blog and never looked back. I think of it as my online home. A place to be free and authentically me and connect with people from this heart space. It’s wonderful and I feel so inspired to write again!” — Elizabeth.

After you’ve shifted some of your stuckness, here are 3 things you can do to start moving forward:

 

1. Do ONE thing to move yourself forward and get back on track.

As Rach and Tara say in their incredible eBook Spirited “Baby steps = Quantum leaps”.

Break what you want to down into super simple, easy-to-implement, actionable steps and then take the first one.

For example:

If you’re struggling to get a piece of writing done, start with writing an outline, or by writing the first sentence (or any sentence!)

If you want to be able to run 2km without stopping, start by putting your runners on and going for a walk.

Do something.

Do anything to get yourself moving forward.

2. Do the friend test.

What would you tell one of your closest friends if they came to you and asked:

“I’m feeling stuck about [whatever you’re stuck with] and it’s making me feel [however you’re feeling], what could I do to move forward?”

Take your own advice, I bet it’s awesome!

3. Get some support.

Having the support of a friend, an accountability buddy or a coach can help you get the wheels moving again, keep you moving forward and actually start getting some momentum (which is really where the magic happens!)

Support and accountability = powerful stuff.

Telling people that you’re going to do what you want to do can really help you actually get it done.

So share it with someone you know, declare it on your social media or in a space you feel comfortable in, and if you need some public accountability right now feel free to share what you’re going to do in the comments below!

Now, as always, I would absolutely love to hear your insights on getting unstuck…

1. What do you do when you’re feeling stuck?

2. What new approach are you going to try next time you’re feeling stuck?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts in the comments!

 

And before you go…

If you think this post was useful I would so appreciate you sharing it with your pals (you can do this easily by using the buttons at the very end of the post!)

ALSO: If you want to get your hands on these FREE worksheets that will help you get unstuck and start moving forward download them by entering your details below AND you’ll also get access to The Infinite Collection — a FREE mini library of resources especially for you.

Here’s to getting unstuck!

Love & Gratitude,

PS. If you’re currently feeling stuck and want some extra support, Step right this way.