Is your head swarming with wonderful goals, projects and ideas?   Do you inherently know that perusing them will get you closer to success, but you just can’t seem to muster the motivation to get started?

Maybe you’re not even entirely sure where in the world that starting point is!

And the end result to this numbing combination of procrastination and confusion is that deep-down feeling of being “stuck.”

Sure, you know you should get off your duff and get moving, and you know – in a vague sense – what your road to success looks like, but how do you find the road in the first place?

How to Find the On-ramp

You can get yourself “un-stuck” and start taking those first steps with a little thing called introspection.

So the next time you feel yourself bogged down by big ideas and no place to go, start by asking yourself these questions — this will help point you in the right direction:

Have I figured out what to do next?

Maybe you see no options to get to the next step of your goal. Or maybe you see too many options and can’t pinpoint the best one. Or maybe you see some options, but they’re a little vague and hard to articulate.

For example, if your goal is to “save money” to start your own business or buy a home, what are the details of your “save money” process?

And if you have too many options or goals, like spending time with family, working on your novel, and completing works projects on time, it can be hard to determine which should rank first in terms of priority.

Ask yourself: Which goals will have the biggest benefit to your life, and equally important, which ones you can address now?

Recognizing both opportunity and what you want is the backbone of decisive action.

“Remember, a real decision is measured by the fact that you’ve taken new action. If there’s no action, you haven’t truly decided.” – Tony Robbins

Do I have the skills to move forward?

If your goal is to own your own restaurant but you’ve never even worked in one, how can you possibly hope to be successful? It’s no wonder you’re stuck!

Sometimes the best way to get on a new road is to make sure you have plenty of gas for the journey.

This is all about mastering your craft, and making an inventory of the skills you already possess, and what needs work. Knowing what you can do helps you find a starting point, and knowing what you need to work on  — and taking action to fill the gap — is the key to making progress.

If you want to be a writer, start writing every day. If you want to save money, truly look at where you’re spending frivolously — do you really need that daily Starbucks latte,  a weekly manicure, a new car every three years or someone to mow your lawn, etc?

Do I have the support system and resources I need?

Just like it’s essential to have the skills you’ll need to get started, it’s also important to have your strategic partners and your resources to follow through.

This can be as simple as:

• A spouse who’s willing to help you cut costs in order to save money
• A colleague who’s in the field you want to excel in
• A local community college that offers classes in a specialty that peaks your interest

Think about how good it will feel to no longer feel stuck in a rut — and know you have what it takes to get moving again!

Want to read more? We’ve talked about how to Stop Talking and Start Doing in a previous post.

Have you ever felt stuck? How did you get un-stuck? Let us know in the comments section below!