While routines and consistency are very healthy regimens to adhere to in order to accomplish something, to gain stability, and communicate clearly who we are, sometimes these same routines can feel like a rut where we have zero opportunity or creativity. Of course this is always over exaggerated when we are in the rut itself, but it is a feeling that sometimes can leave each of us uninspired.
So how can you quickly extricate yourself from a situation that isn’t producing the results you desire? Below are twelve ideas to lift you from your hum-drum approach, breathe a breath of fresh air into your life and get you back to feeling exhilarated and motivated to keep working toward your goals. Take a look:
1. Travel – It is nearly impossible to not be provoked, impressed, shocked, appreciative or inspired while traveling to a new destination.
2. Read a book, blog, fascinating article – find something to read that opens your eyes to a new way of thinking, teaches you something new about a topic you are interested in or expands your understanding.
3. Talk to someone – a mentor, a professor, a parent who you respect, a friend – someone who will listen and provide a different perspective and possibly some advice.
4. Create a plan to reach your goal – small steps – When you feel stuck, revisit your goals that you have written down. If you haven’t written them down, do so and then create a very clear plan that is broken down into small steps demonstrating how you will reach your target.
5. Try something new – By doing something out of your comfort zone or attempting something you’ve been curious about but haven’t had the opportunity to do, similar to traveling, you are expanding your understanding of your full potential.
6. Leave the office – Get up from your desk and either work somewhere else for awhile, take a walk, go talk to a colleague, grab a snack or simply stretch your legs.
7. Take a nap – Sometimes we feel exhausted and unable to produce anything because we are exhausted. Take care of your health by never underestimating the power of adequate sleep.
8. Take a walk – Every once and awhile I will wake up in the morning in an indifferent mood; however, upon taking my morning walk with my dogs, my head is cleared up, the negativity is zapped and ideas begin to percolate.
9. Exercise – Similar to taking a walk, by sweating out your frustrations, you often regain your joie de vivre, your swagger, your clear perspective and come back ready to work with abounding energy and ideas.
10. Become a student again – Enroll in a seminar, listen to a lecture, attend a college course that you are interested in and learn a new concept to help you become better in your career field.
11. Change your attitude – The power of our minds is extraordinary. Instead of filling your head with negative self-talk, change course. Begin replacing your “not”s with “can”s, and look for the positive, rather than seeking out the negative.
12. Focus on someone else besides yourself – Sometimes by simply getting out of your own head, deciding to stop being consumed by your own worries and frustrations and instead lending a hand to someone else, you’ll come to see that things really aren’t as bad, and all you needed was a break.
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