You're not stuck, you're just afraid to change
A companion to: You are what you choose
I’ve been telling myself for months that I’m stuck. Stuck in my work, stuck in certain patterns, stuck in ways of thinking that stopped serving me years ago but have become so familiar they feel like part of my personality. The word “stuck” is useful because it sounds passive, like something that happened to me rather than something I’m actively maintaining, like the universe glued my feet to the floor and I’m just standing here waiting for someone to bring the solvent.
But I’m starting to suspect that’s bullshit. In fact, I think most people aren’t stuck at all. I think they’re stationary by choice, waiting for certainty before they move, or waiting for permission from some external authority, or for motivation to arrive like a package they ordered, or for a sign that somehow guarantees no regret. But that sign never comes, which is convenient because it means you never have to actually do anything. You can stay exactly where you are and tell yourself it’s not your fault. You’re just being “responsible”, or “careful”, or waiting for the “right moment.”
Being stuck is really just our own fears playing tricks on our nervous system, deceiving us into staying small.
