Nearly every person I’ve met at one point or another in their life has needed to get unstuck. They have either been doing the same thing over and over again or just don’t know what the next step should be. The exact same thing happened to me and here, I share my story of how I got unstuck.
In 2005, my business was born out of my frustration of being unable to communicate with older, more seasoned professionals. My work on generational differences helped bridge the gap between younger and older professionals across the country and the globe.
Seven years later, two critical things happened. Firstly, the economy changed, limiting my opportunities to speak on this topic and secondly, I got bored with the topic. I didn’t want to go out and talk about a topic I no longer felt passionate about. Though I was still studying and researching companies that were devoid of generational conflict and whose employees were naturally working together to achieve something great, the opportunities for my business were quickly drying up. I didn’t know what was next!
After about three exhausting years, I literally had no business, no coaching clients, not even a free speaking gig! Nothing! During this rough time, I remember making a request of God. I needed to get unstuck! Looking up to the sky, I said, “Give me an opportunity to speak and I’ll do it. What ever it is I’ll do it. I don’t know what I’m going to speak on, but I’ll do it!”
The next day, I get a phone call from my friend Judy who wanted me to give a speech to 30 of her top Mary Kay salespeople. I remember thinking, “Really, God? I speak to corporate executives of companies in office buildings not in people’s homes!” As tempted as I was to say no, I said yes because my request was answered and I finally had the opportunity I had been praying for.
The morning of the speech, I still had no idea what to talk about and was seriously entertaining thoughts of calling the whole thing off. Then out of nowhere, three points come into my head and I hurriedly wrote them down. Finally! I felt like I had something to say.
When it was time, I got up there and spoke. To be honest, I don’t remember a single thing I said but I do remember how good it felt to receive hugs and deep appreciation from these ladies afterwards. I also remember completely selling out of my book, From Boomers to Bloggers and its accompanying workbook. Imagine that!
On my drive home, two words I had spoken came to me: “Provoke Greatness”. A light bulb moment: “Aha! Maybe that is the topic of the book I’ve been working on!” I started taking notes and thought of how the phrase fit into the bigger picture of what I’ve been doing and learning. A new direction emerged: I was finally unstuck!
If you are ever in a place where you feel like you have no options or don’t know what the next step is, use these three suggestions to get unstuck and get moving:
- Expose yourself to new topics: Do you have a passion for nutrition, even though you’re not a nutritionist? Sign up for a workshop. The key is to spark your passion – you never know who you’ll meet or how your new found information will help you in other areas of your life
- Say yes to new opportunities: When you hear a need, say “yes,” even if you don’t think you know enough to succeed at the task. If it will help you grow/learn, say yes.
- Seek out new audiences: Seek out new events to attend/ experience or new professional circles to present your work to. Doing so will put you around people you’ve never experienced, and will likely provoke creativity in your career.
This is the big idea: Be intentional about finding your next path by doing something… anything! Do something that nudges you a little every day and gets you out of your comfort zone: strike up a conversation with a person in line, order a different ice coffee flavor, read a book by a new author or on a topic you are not familiar with. Doing something new and different everyday, no matter how big or little, will give you the friction you need to get unstuck!
Here’s to your greatness!
Misti Burmeister
Loved this point st. Very inspiring.! You are so right that just doing anything can start to propel you forward. Doing nothing keeps you in thane place