ruts.
Spinning My Wheels
I hate being stuck.
Once when I was taking a load of garbage to the dump for my mom I got our 1976 Toyota Corolla stuck in a bad way.
Uhmmm, maybe I should back up.
I grew up in a small, logging town in the Oregon coast range. There was an actual dump that you drove to and threw your garbage over the edge of a cliff.
I am not kidding.
Anyway, I backed the car up to the berm, opened the hatch and threw out the bags of garbage. Once finished I got back in the car, put it into first gear and pressed on the gas. Soft dirt and no traction are not a good combination. Let's just say the more I pressed on the gas the worse my tires spun out. Very unfortunate.
Yes, I was literally spinning my wheels. I was in a rut for sure.
I may no longer drop garbage off at the dump but I am no stranger to ruts.
Easy to get in to but difficult to get out.
Some ruts are okay. They are the routines and framework that we develop to comfortably go through the motions. They help us to be efficient with our ordinary and familiar tasks. Laundry. Loading the dishwasher. Brushing our teeth. They create structure. A comfort zone.
But ruts can have some negative implications as well. They have a way of undermining the things that I really want to do. They keep me rooted. They don't allow for fresh thoughts or creative ideas. Those ruts can keep me stuck.
One rut I get stuck in is procrastination. Hello dilly-dallying. Good morning unmotivated disposition. Oh, yes, I'd love to fritter my day away with nonsensical stuff. This annoys me to no end.
Another rut that traps me is thinking small. Like there's no other way. I'm limited. No options. Just sliding along with no control or ability to change course. Probably goes hand-in-hand with fear another nemesis of mine.
The rut that really gets my goat though is when I'm working hard but getting nowhere. My ideas are bland. I am uninspired. So vanilla. Boring. Dull. This is a rut that often has my name. It's look-alike is called running in place.
The worst rut for me though is perfectionism. That guy can shut me down faster than bad news. How easily I become a victim to it's negative clutches. It grabs me, immobilizes me and soon I cannot do anything. Because, of course perfect does not exist.
Mud is now oozing up on both sides.
The deeper the rut and the longer I walk in it the harder it is to be pulled out.
Have you been there?
If so, be encouraged. You are not alone. I am right there with you my friend. We all get stuck from time to time. Honest.
Now is the time to start digging our way out. Time to let go.
Here's a few simple ways I find helpful to catapult myself out of ruts.
First is to change my routine. Do things in a different way. It doesn't have to be big. Make a small change. Break the pattern. Just begin.
The next is to be intentional not mindless. Cognizant. Aware. In the present. If I actually think about what I'm doing it guides me out or at least gives me a bit of leverage.
Another is to be helpful to someone. I know, right? Seems totally out of context. But when I am giving and other-oriented it ultimately helps me have traction to push out of my stuck-ness. Be of service. Give of yourself. Your skills. Your knowledge. Your presence.
Lastly, it is beneficial to get out of my comfort zone. This is hard. Because in my book comfort equals easy and easy equals uncomplicated. And that is a nice comfy world to settle down into. Yikes! I'll be eating tapioca pudding and watching QVC if I'm not careful. Besides if I'm complacent it's highly likely that my work is not authentic. So be curious. Stretch. Search. Push.
Are you ready to escape from your rut? What if you start right now? What if you made one change. Tried one new path. Gave yourself one new option. What if you started today?
I'm in.
You can do this.
Epilogue: I waited at the dump until another car came along. The world did not end but it was certainly embarrassing. Especially as a teenager. When that person drove back into town they called my mom. Yes, a landline was a real thing, the only thing actually. She finally reached my dad. He eventually showed up in our Jeep to drag me out. Let's just say this didn't happen in 15 minutes. From then on I was always on the look-out for soft dirt and deep ruts. And my one piece of car advice to you? Don't try to do any version of off-roading in a Toyota Corolla.
“A year from now you may wish you had started today. ”