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Ever just feel stuck?

Whether you are trying to launch a new website, planning for the new year, finishing up the Sunday to-do list or trying to get buy-in for a new ministry, you are going to experience moments where you feel completely stuck.

In those moments, how do you respond?

Do you fold your arms and stomp your foot? Maybe you bury your head in the sand. One type of leader might clear the table and aimlessly vent his frustration. Some people just cross their fingers and hope for the best.

What’s your strategy for getting unstuck and moving forward again?

Anger, cynicism, self-doubt and even hope, passion or good intentions are false strategies. They can be fuel, but they aren’t actually a strategy and can even leave you feeling hopeless, like nothing you try will work.

“I hope this works out” is a perfectly fine thing to think, but a poor way to actually nudge an outcome in your favor. Hope, believing that positive future outcomes are possible, is a critical ingredient in helping you grow and persevere. But hope has to be paired with some other action or movement.

The same goes for anger, good intentions and having expectations. Left alone, they are mighty powerless.

On the other hand, strategies can actually move the ball down the field. Here are 10 strategies you might use to break free, bust through and get moving again:

1. Take a risk

2. Break a big goal into smaller, short-term goals that add up

3. Redefine your goal

4. Listen, empathize and assume the best in others

5. Get direct, honest feedback

6. Rest and recover

7. Exceed another person’s expectations

8. Clarify your action steps in reverse order, starting with the end in mind

9. Cut your losses and move on

10. Give the decision away to someone else

Which of these strategies do you need to try? Where do you feel stuck today? Do you have a strategy to get where you want to be?