By Steve Moran

Being stuck is a huge problem for most of us and one we rarely talk about. I get overwhelmed with things to do, with problems, projects that need work or completion. It becomes almost impossible to figure out what to do next.

As a leader it is even worse, because your “stuckness” (did I just invent a new word?) cascades to others in your organization. The big question is this:

GETTING UNSTUCK?

This is for most of us a nontrivial problem, because getting stuck happens weekly, daily, even hourly. Be honest for a minute: How long has it been since you thought to yourself, “What should I work on next?” then went and got a cup of coffee, took a nap, surfed the internet, or did something else that didn’t really move something important forward?

Getting Unstuck

I am not sure this is the complete answer, but I do know there is one stupidly simple thing that will help you a lot … helps me a lot. Ask yourself this question:

What can I do right now that will advance my team, my organization, my occupancy, my recruiting? Then go do it.

My Own Stuckness

Yesterday when I started writing this article, I realized that I was actually writing because I thought it was important but also because I was stuck on a bunch of more important things and this was simply easier. I changed gears by stopping work on this article after the first three sentences and asked myself what I could do right then to get unstuck.

I went and did a bunch of things that needed to get done, things I was stuck on, and did not finish this article until right now, a day-and-a-half later.

Try it, and if you dare, let me know how you did in getting unstuck.