20 Ways to Get Unstuck

From Your Circumstances

Ayodeji Awosika
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Copyright © 2015 Ayodeji Awosika

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

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Do you feel stuck?

Do you feel like there’s more to life than what you’re experiencing at the
moment?

Do you want to make a change in your life, but lack the motivation to do it?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, I’m here to help. Getting
stuck is something that happens to all of us. Being stuck means that you’re
just “going through the motions.” It feels like you merely exist, and you’re
not really living.

If you aren’t careful, this feeling can last for your entire life. The longer you
feel stuck, the harder it is to change that feeling.
The last thing you want is to look back on your life with regret.

You know you want more. You know you’re capable of doing more. But it’s
hard. Life has a way of taking its toll on you.

There is a way out. You don’t have to remain in this rut. There are things
that you can do that will help you snap out of it and start making progress
towards your dreams.

You only have one life, and I want you to live it well. I know you do too.

So lets get started.

The first thing I want you do to is make a promise. Not to me, but to
yourself. Promise yourself that you are going to suspend your judgment
while reading the rest of this book.

Give the strategies a chance. Take action and implement them. If you do
that, you’ll start to see a change. You will think, feel, and act differently.

Start Over
Let go of the past. Decide that today marks a new chapter in your life. You
haven’t been getting the results you want from your old life, so now it’s time
to start a new one.
The reason why you feel stuck is because you’ve been living in a way that
doesn’t work for you. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again
expecting different results.

Do something symbolic that marks this day of change. Write a note saying,
“Today is the first day of the rest life,” and tape it somewhere that you can
see it everyday. Announce it to your friends. Write a post on Facebook or
send out an email saying that today is the day you’re deciding to make a
change. Make them hold you accountable.

Figure Out Why You Feel Stuck

Get to the root of the problem. You know that you feel stuck, but dive
deeper to figure out exactly what’s causing you to feel this way. The best
way to do this is to ask yourself, “why?”

Starting with why helps you figure out what to do moving forward.
Ask yourself why until you reach a specific answer.

Here’s an example of how to do this:

Question: Why Do I Feel Stuck? Answer: Because I don’t like my job.

Question: Why Don’t I Like My job? Answer: Because I don’t feel engaged.

Question: Why Don’t I Feel Engaged? Answer: Because this career field
doesn’t interest me.

Question: Why am I in a career field that doesn’t interest me? Answer:

Because even if I wanted to change jobs, I wouldn’t know where to start.

This exercise gives you a starting point to work from. Using this example,
you now know that you need to start searching for a career field that you
find more interesting.

You can continue to ask yourself why until you’ve dug deeply and
pinpointed the root of the problem.

The point isn’t to do this continuously until you reach the perfect answer.
The point is to use the questions to begin to guide you in the right direction.
Learn
Learning opens up the world to you. One of the best ways to make a change
in your life is to educate yourself.

Learn about subjects that interest you.

Learn about an industry you’re thinking of going into.

Read one book per week for an entire year. Take an online course.

Expand your mind. When you start to learn more, you will realize the world
is filled with endless opportunity. Knowledge opens new doors for your life.

Focus on learning as much as you can, as fast as you can.

Be Brutally Honest With Yourself

Are you honest with yourself?

Do you accept responsibility for the problems in your life or do you blame
them on circumstances or other people?

How hard have you been working to reach your goals?

Life is hard. It’s easier to live in denial than to face your problems head on.
Telling yourself the truth can be uncomfortable. It can also be liberating.
You can’t fix something until you admit it’s broken.

You can’t begin to make changes in your life until you’re brutally honest
with yourself about where you stand at this moment.

Change Your Philosophy

Your philosophy on life affects what you think, what you do, how you feel,
and how you act.

If you’re not living the type of life you want, the main problem is your
philosophy.
If you have a negative philosophy on life you’re going to be unhappy. If you
think the world owes you something you’re not going to put in the
necessary work to get what you want.

If you have a positive philosophy you believe that you can achieve anything
you want given enough time and effort.

There are 7 billion people on this Earth and we each have our own
individual philosophy that guides us in a certain direction.

If you want to change your life, start by changing your philosophy.

Cut Negative People Out of Your Life

Insecure people will try to sabotage your success in one way or another, so
it’s best to cut ties with them if you can. Negativity is infectious, and being
around negative people will drain your energy.

Here’s a simple test to figure out if you should spend less time with
someone.

Think about how you feel after you spend time with this person. If you feel
drained, depressed, and negative after being around them, consider
reducing the time you spend with them…to zero.

You might feel like you owe them your friendship because they’ve been in
your life for a long time, but if having them in your life is going to have
negative consequences, they’re not worth it.

Surround Yourself With Ambitious People

After you’ve severed ties with the negative people in your life, start to look
for motivated and ambitious people to surround yourself with.

You should find people who are much more ambitious and motivated than
you are. Being around them will make you want to step up your game even
more.
You can feed off the positive energy of other people to push yourself to
reach your goals. Knowing there’s other people out there who want more
from life makes you feel more confident about pursuing your dreams.

You can search online communities to find motivated and ambitious peers.
You can attend local hangouts and networking events. If you put yourself
out there you can find like-minded people who will help you stay on track.

Face Your Fears

The only way to live a successful life is to overcome your fear.

Alexander the Great said there are two types of people in this world. Those
that conquer their fears and those that don't and suffer and die because of
them.

Which one will you be?

Your fears are real. You might fear failure. You might fear that people are
going to laugh at you or talk behind your back if you try something
different.

You don’t have to wonder about whether or not these things will happen.
These types of things are definitely going to happen. Accept that now and
move forward.

Taking action cures fear. Don’t try to avoid feeling fear. Like the title of the
famous book says, feel the fear and do it anyway.

Focus On Your Mortality

On day you’re going to die. It might happen much sooner than you think.

How would you live your life if you knew that you only had a couple of
months left to live? Would you spend your time going through the same old
routine? I doubt it.

Every morning you wake up needs to be treated like the blessing it is. It
sounds morbid, but focusing on your mortality and contemplating that fact
that you might die today is a great way to stay motivated.
For most of us, life is short. But for those who are able to fill every minute
of their way with productivity, progress, and meaning, life can be long.

You act like you’re going to live forever. If you’re young you might say, “I’m
only in my twenties. I’ll figure things out in my thirties.” Who’s to say you’ll
even make it to thirty?

Every day of your life brings you one day closer to death. You have no idea
how much time you have left. Don’t take it for granted.

Begin With the End in Mind

Steven Covey highlighted this concept in his best selling book, The Seven
Habits of Highly Effective People. One of the things successful people do is
begin with the end in mind.
What kind of legacy do you want to leave?

When it’s all said and done, what do you want to be remembered for? If you
died today, what would people say about you at your funeral?

Beginning with the end in mind helps shape the decisions you make in the
present.
Tie your actions to the legacy you want to leave.

It’s easy to put things into perspective when you begin with the end in
mind. Look at your current actions and decide if they’re aiding your efforts
to leave a great legacy.

If not, it’s time to try something different.

Work On Yourself
Business strategist and success coach Jim Rohn said, “If you work hard on
your job you’ll make a living. If you work hard on yourself you’ll make a
fortune.”

You want to live an excellent life, right?

In order to live an excellent life you have to become an excellent person.
How do you become an excellent person?

By working on yourself. Successful people commit themselves to personal

development to help them achieve their goals.

Rohn also says, “Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better. Don’t wish
for less problems; wish for more skills.”

Most people blame circumstances for their problems.

The common denominator in all of your problems is you. If you want your
life to get better, you have to get better. You get better by making an effort
to develop yourself.

Read books to increase your knowledge. Take courses and attend seminars.
Work on your body language and speaking skills. Become a better
communicator.

Personal development builds self-confidence. People will start to notice the

changes you’ve made. They’ll feel differently around you. You’ll have a
presence that can’t be ignored.

The key to getting everything you want in life is you. If you want more you
have to become more.

Run Experiments
Thomas Edison had an eighth grade education. He went on to invent the
light bulb. He also started his own company, General Electric, which still
stands today. He died with more than 1100 patents and became one of the
wealthiest people of his time.

His success came from experimentation.

Running experiments brings you closer to the desired result.

You want to make changes in your life. You want to try something new. But
you’re scared. Instead of thinking in terms of success or failure, treat
everything as an experiment.
You can run all types of experiments.

Try waking up an hour earlier everyday for the next two weeks to see if it
boosts your productivity.

Write 1,000 words a day until you have enough for a rough draft of a book.

Try going on the Paleo diet for thirty days to see how if affects your body.

Experimenting will show you what works and what doesn’t.

If the experiment “fails,” then you can cross that method off of the list and
you’ll be more informed on your next attempt. If it’s successful, you can
stick with that method and do more of what’s working.

Experimentation leads to success.

Exercise
Yes, I know you’ve heard this before. But exercise is one of the best ways to
improve the way you feel both physically and mentally.

The opposite of depression isn’t happiness. The opposite of depression is

vitality.

When you’re depressed, you don’t feel like getting out of bed or off of the
couch.

Forcing yourself to be active will make you feel ten times better.

There continues to be more evidence showing that your mind and body are
much more connected than you think.

We are all at war with our own bodies. It’s a struggle for all of us to stay
healthy and in shape.
Find something that works for you. Be realistic.

Don’t buy a brand new pair of running shoes, sign up for a gym
membership, and claim that you’ll workout five days per week. This is a
recipe for failure.
Find a routine that you can commit to. If you’re really out of shape, you can
start by going for a 30-minute walk every day. Eventually, you can do
something more challenging.

Working sucks at first, but after a while you’ll actually look forward to it. If
you want to take care of your mind, first take care of your body.

See What Others Before You Have Done

If you’re looking to try something new, there’s probably someone out there
who has done it before. If nobody has done what you’re trying to do before,
your idea is either revolutionary or it’s not good. Usually it’s the latter.

This ties in with the experiments we talked about earlier. Use people who
have become successful at what you’re trying to do as guides for your
future.

Take what they’ve done and remix it. Use those who have come before you
as mentors. Learn what they did well and copy it. Learn what mistakes they
made and avoid them.

If you want to become a writer, read books by great authors.

If you want to become an entrepreneur, read the biographies of successful

business people. Watch or read their interviews. Study their habits. Observe
the way they carry themselves. Glean insight from their stories.

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel to become successful. Take what
others before you have done and improve on it.

Write Down Ten Ideas Per Day

I learned this technique from successful author and entrepreneur James
Altucher.

He says that in order to be successful and creative, you have to exercise

your “idea muscle.” Creativity can be strengthened just like a muscle can.

Write down ten ideas per day, every day, and you will see your creativity
flourish.
The ideas can be about anything: titles for books you want to write, ideas
for new businesses, productivity strategies, products; anything and
everything you can think of.

Each morning create a theme for the day and write down ten different
ideas. Altucher believes that ideas are more important than execution. He
says that we aren’t living in a knowledge economy. We are living in an idea
economy.

Work on your “idea muscle,” until your mind is an idea generating

machine.

Take A Thinking Vacation

Sometimes you just need time to think things out. If you’re feeling stuck,
perhaps it’s because you’re constantly in motion and haven’t had the time
to be still and think about what your priorities are or should be.

Try taking a thinking vacation. Find somewhere to go where you can be

alone, preferably in nature. Leave your smartphone and home (do bring
books).

Spend the day (or two) reading and thinking. Let yourself be alone with
your mind. Take the time to figure out what you want without any
distraction.

There’s a lot of noise in the world. You need time for reflection. You need
time to ponder. You need time to think and strategize.

Take a thinking vacation once a year for a reboot.

Focus On Gratitude
When you’re stuck it’s hard to feel grateful. You have so many negative
thoughts running through your mind.

You want more. You’re not satisfied with what you have. You don’t know
what to do. Sometimes you wonder if the feeling will ever go away.
You may not be where you want to be (yet). But I’m sure you have multiple
things to be grateful for.

Gratitude grounds you. It gives you a healthy starting place for working on
your dreams. Until you learn gratitude, you’ll never be happy.
Want less and you’ll have more.

Don’t confuse gratitude with settling. Your goals are important, but just
remember to stop and smell the roses along the way.

Be happy where you are. Be grateful where you are. But never settle. Stay
on the rise until the day you die.

Give Yourself 5 Years

The process of revolutionizing your life will take time. To experience
wholesale change and success in your life, give yourself five years to reach
your big time goals.

You can measure your progress along the way (12-18 months at a time), but
give yourself those five years before you expect major results.

Living the life of your dreams takes patience. Success isn’t measured in
minutes, hours, and days. It’s measured in years, decades, and lifetimes.

Five years of diligence and persistence towards reaching your goals will
bring you a definitive measure of success. You’d probably be living the type
of life you want now if you started working towards it five years ago.

Ask Questions
Questions lead to discovery. To get what you want you have to ask
questions about how to get there. The quality of your questions will
determine the quality of the answers you get.

If you ask bold questions you’ll get bold answers. If your questions come
from small thinking you’ll get small answers.

A small thinker will ask himself, “What do I need to do to get by?”

A mediocre thinker will ask himself, “How can I reach my goals?”

A daring and bold thinker will ask herself, “What do I need to do to create a
six figure income five years from now, and what steps do I need to take each
year, month, week, and day to get there?

A quality question is specific. A quality question also asks how to do

something that seems just out of reach. It stretches you. It makes you think
big.

Ask and you shall receive. Don’t come to the well of knowledge with a
spoon. Bring a bucket.

Focus On Giving
Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar once said, “You can have everything in life
you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”

You get what you give. If you want more you have to give more.

When you feel stuck you’re thinking about what you want and what you
need. Your only concern is how outside circumstances are affecting you.

Taking the focus off of yourself and putting it on others makes you
successful.

The universe has a way of rewarding people who are givers. Find a way to
use your unique talents and skills to help other people.

Final Thoughts
You’re only here for a shot period of time. Do you want to spend the rest of
it feeling stuck or do you want to live out your dreams?

You might feel like your dreams are out of reach. You might feel like there’s
nothing you can do about your situation. But it’s not true. You have a choice
every day to change direction.

Use any of the above strategies to help you get “unstuck.” Pick the ones that
suit you and start implementing today.
About The Author
Ayodeji has been known to read entire books in one setting. He once read
three books simultaneously, one chapter of each at a time, until he finished
all three of them.

He did this in two days.

For as long as he can remember, he’s always had a contrarian view of the
world and the way that society operates.

In the past year Ayodeji has read more than 75 books on topics ranging
from personal development, philosophy, psychology, spirituality,
marketing, and sales.

He believes that lifelong learning is the key to being successful.

Ayodeji currently works in marketing and web design. He is also an author,

personal development blogger, and entrepreneur.

You can find more of his work at www.thedestinyformula.com

For free bonus material visit www.thedestinyformula.com/bonus