With so many choices now available to us, many of us may feel under pressure to make the most of every single day. Maybe we fear that we'll miss out or we're wasting time by not living our life's purpose and as a result we can be left feeling dissatisfied and unfulfilled.
Instead of going after what we want, many of us may find ourselves stuck in a rut without knowing what is keeping us there.
Below are 5 ways that you could subconsciously be keeping yourself stuck:
1. You put yourself down
Do you ever find yourself saying any of these negative phrases to yourself?
If you frequently talk yourself out of things by putting yourself down with statements like the above, you hold yourself back from seeing what you could be capable of achieving. The next time these thoughts come up, challenge them with statements such as 'What if I am good enough?', 'What do I need to have what it takes?', 'What if things did work for me?' Challenging statements helps you to step outside of your current beliefs instead of accepting them as a part of your reality.
2. You are afraid of failure
Are you so scared of failing that you don't allow yourself to get started? Some of the most successful people in the world have failed before they were a success. Changing your perspective by viewing failure as an opportunity for you to learn and move one step closer to what you want to achieve can help you to feel more comfortable with taking small steps towards what you want rather than being paralysed by fear.
3. You don't trust yourself
Do you constantly second guess yourself? Maybe you have stopped going after what your heart wants because of negative past experiences.
Holding onto these experiences can limit you from embracing new opportunities and keep you stuck in feelings of doubt and fear that hold you back from taking action. The next time you find yourself second guessing your thoughts, question whether it's coming from a place of your past fears or it's your gut instinct and learn to recognise the difference between them both. When you learn to trust your inner knowing, it can lead you towards what benefits your highest good.
4. You're afraid of change
Could you be afraid of change? As much as you may want things to change, maybe you are scared of the unknown? Fearing the unknown can stop you from pushing yourself out of your comfort zone or trying anything new which can keep you stuck on a hamster wheel! Reframing change as a positive thing can help you to feel more comfortable with it; maybe you can start by making small changes with different foods, wearing different coloured clothes or visiting new places. Learning to associate change with positive experiences can help you to become more comfortable when considering making bigger changes.
5. You're waiting for 'someday' to arrive
How many times have you told yourself any of the following?
Sometimes we can hold ourselves back from doing what we want because we're waiting for a perfect time to arrive before we do it. This can be a trap that holds us back from taking action and keeps us stuck procrastinating. The next time you find yourself saying 'someday' change that statement to a date that you plan to take action!
6. You're a shelf development addict
Maybe you stock up on self-development books or hop from one seminar to another and although these things can provide direction and inspiration if you aren't applying what you've learnt into your life by taking action you may stay stuck. When you commit yourself to applying what you've learnt, you put yourself in a better position to create positive change in your life.
Getting unstuck means taking becoming aware of the beliefs and behaviours that could be holding you back so that you can move towards making choices that make you want to leap out of bed with enthusiasm each morning.
If you want to find ways that you can get unstuck, working with a life coach is a great way to assist you to make positive changes in your life. You can find one of our coaches here.
The Coaching Academy was established in 1999, and is now the world's largest coaching school.
In that time we have trained over 14,000 people to become life coaches.
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