In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”–Theodore Roosevelt

What  if the obstacles are inside you? Here is the question to ask yourself:

Knowing what you want, what has kept you either from admitting it to yourself or taking steps toward it?

Fear, addiction, and patterns of avoidance or self-sabotage are the Terrible Threesome.  Notice the thoughts and patterns that have kept you from reaching toward what you want.

Ways to Get Unstuck

Handle Fear

Put your fear into words.  Most fears are based on thoughts, and most of those thoughts are either about the future or about what other people will think.  The thing about the future, it hasn’t happened yet.  Trying to solve a problem that hasn’t and may not occur is like tossing a salad with tongs that are a mile long. It makes a mess and is an exercise in frustration.  A fear reducing protocol is in Your Appetite Switch.

Get Enough Help

Whenever we can’t move ourselves forward, appropriate help makes all the difference.  Not your brother-in-law who hides in his garage with his booze and his cigarettes, not your relative who always puts you down.  No, such people are not the answer when we want to move toward a goal.

• Books–Experts have experience with your issue and can bring you fresh ideas.
• Therapy–A good therapist can create your turning point.
• Support groups–Peer support can give you energy, good ideas, and back-up.
• Training–Putting yourself in the company of people who share your interest can open doors.

Decrease Self-sabotage

• Learn how to change patterns that work against you.
• Set boundaries with your digital toys so you can pay more attention to yourself.  Read Boundaries in an Overconnected World.
• Discover the way out of inertia and poor choices.  Read When Misery Is Company.

Start Somewhere

Even if you start out doing the wrong thing, that very act will tell you more about the right thing.  Remember, before you learned to add, you made mistakes and had a learning curve.  Give yourself similar tolerance as you learn to set boundaries.

Fencing Out Obstacles

Setting Boundaries

When Misery Is Company

Boundaries in an Overconnected World