Simple Acts of Moving Forward: 60 Suggestions for Getting Unstuck - Softcover

Getting Unstuck, Moving Forward, Feeling Better

Most of us work hard, and we mean well. But we get stuck. And we get hung up, not on the big things or the months and years, but on the small things that make up our single days and hours.
You may have larger dreams for your life, but your most common struggles have to do with what you’re doing today, during this small collection of moments. You’ve probably been forward-thinking enough to make plans, and you’re doing your best to make them happen. But even the best efforts don’t always satisfy you—and, too often, you beat yourself up for that. Sometimes you feel that you will never get ahead or even get beyond the spot you’re in right now.
The only way to get unstuck is to take a step. It can be a big or little step, and you usually have a choice of directions. But it’s an action with purpose behind it, and no one else can do it for you.
Moment by moment you and I are making decisions and taking actions that help us move through time. Sometimes we move ahead in survival mode, “making it” but just barely, and not in a way that feels positive or successful. Occasionally, we slip backward or make choices that undo some of our progress. And sometimes we move in a way that is meaningful and gives us a feeling of forward motion.
This little book is for helping that forward motion. You can dip into the sections in no particular order. They describe sixty powerful acts that can make the difference in your hour, your day, maybe even your life. Some of these acts are easier than others, but they are all possible, and they will definitely move you forward. One simple act is a step in the right direction.
It won’t take longer than five minutes to read any one suggestion in this book. And in many cases, it won’t take longer than a few minutes to actually take the step. Some steps will lead you to carve out larger blocks of time, such as an afternoon activity or a weekend trip. But the majority of these acts are designed so you can do them immediately. Their purpose is to help you get unstuck from right where you are.
At the end of each act is a short prayer to help you, if you so choose, reach out to God for the love, wisdom, and power that are beyond your own abilities. After the prayer is some space, in case you want to make a note to yourself. If you follow through and do a simple act of moving forward, you might just want to celebrate by writing down what you did.
Read these acts one at a time. Be kind to yourself. And be kind to all the other folks who are trying to take those forward steps as well. Journey with them when you can. A step at a time, in good company, will make us all feel a lot better.

Acts of Creativity
Creativity opens us to revelation, and when our high creativity is lowered . . . so is our capacity to see angels, to walk on water, to talk to unicorns.
Madeleine L’Engle,
Madeleine L’Engle Herself

Make a List
Jump Ahead Ten Years
Think Again
Write Your Story
Find the Child
Reorder Your Universe
Imagine the Worst
Put Yourself in the Divine Story
Leave the Box
Take a Road Trip

Act 1
Make a List
There’s so much to do that I don’t know where to start. I think of everything I’m responsible for and everything I’d like to accomplish, and I panic—and sometimes I cope by doing nothing at all.
When life gets cluttered, get a huge sketchpad and just list everything you can think of that needs your attention. You don’t write anything in order of importance or difficulty; you just get it down so you can look at it. Then you move to another sheet of paper and start sorting the mess on the first sheet and throwing the items in some loose order onto the second. You categorize however you want. Maybe one list is “urgent,” another one is “fun,” another is “people I need to spend time with.” The beauty of lists is that you can work with them so they serve you.
And it is important that your list serve you, not the other way around. When used well, lists can help you collect yourself. But they can beat you up when you give them undue power. You have to decide when it’s time—or not time—for a list. You have to decide what kind of list it will be and what power you will give it.
Sometimes you might make a list of all the tasks that need to be done—every last one—just so you can give yourself permission to cross out half of them and not worry about those. Or maybe you put that half on another list to be dealt with later. In doing that, you have relieved yourself, for today, of those tasks and narrowed today’s list to something that is doable.
Lists are good for dreaming, for prioritizing, for helping the mind make order out of a situation that has become overwhelming. Not every person enjoys lists. In fact, a list for me is a somewhat left-brained, straight-lined thing. Another sort of person might cut that sheet of paper into little pieces, each piece with one task written on it, put those pieces of paper in a jar, and then draw out an item for the day and go from there.
But when you make a list—when you take what’s on your mind and put it out where you can see it, handle it, and do with it as you please—you regain some control over a mind gone berserk with clutter and worry. A list can be very helpful this way. The key is to never allow the list to be the boss. I no longer expect to tick off everything on a list. It’s a mere tool, something to help me keep my place, to keep track of life’s details.
A Little Prayer for the Next Step
I can’t control most of what happens in life, but right now I can write down what’s on my mind and give it some order. Thank you for the ability to make lists. I ask that they would serve me well as I seek more order and calm in my life.

Act 2
Jump Ahead Ten Years
I am stuck, stuck, stuck. I don’t want to be doing this. I’m sick of this project. I think I may actually be sick of my life.
When the details of a given day or week get to be frustrating or discouraging, ask yourself, What do I want to be doing—and who do I want to be—ten years from now? Dare to write down the first thing that comes to mind. Then have the courage to look at your life. Are your present activities leading you to the person you want to be in ten years? If not, don’t panic. Give yourself permission to be dissatisfied with what you’re doing now. Go ahead and imagine quitting the current thing and looking for something else that would set you on the better path.
Allow the ten-years-ahead vision to release you from today’s anxiety. If you look carefully at your present tasks and worries, you may see that few of them have any long-term value to you. If you don’t succeed at this class or project, how important is that? On the other hand, if you hope to be married to this same person ten years from now, what can you do today to keep the relationship healthy? If you believe you have gifts that aren’t getting any exercise now, what can you begin to do—even in small increments—to make room for those gifts in your life?
I knew I would change to a writing career a few years before I could make the shift in terms of my job. But the day I knew what ten-years-ahead should look like, I began to make plans and take steps, some of them pretty small. The vision helped me persevere, and it eventually led me to a second career.
The ten-years-ahead vision is good for clarifying what’s important. It also can remind you of what your true purpose or your real dream is, and it just might give you the courage to take a step toward it. Of...