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You're in the middle of a project when
suddenly moving forward seems impossible.
Maybe you don't know what
the next step is.
Or perhaps you’ve faced setbacks,
and you’re starting to think,
“what’s even the point?”
Many of us have experienced feeling stuck.
It can happen when tackling something
as simple as a term paper,
or as monumental as social inequality
or the climate crisis.
So, are there ways to get unstuck?
People often report feeling
highly motivated
at the start and end of a project,
but the middle can feel untethered.
Psychologists call this the
“stuck in the middle” effect,
and it’s thought to be caused by a shift
in perspective that happens
as you move closer to your goals.
When you start working towards something,
any progress can feel like a win,
as we tend to compare ourselves
against where we started.
For example, when someone starts
training for a marathon,
accomplishing even a short jog
can feel motivating.
But the longer you work on something,
the more likely it is that your focus
shifts to your end goal.
In other words, rather than seeing
how far you've come,
it’s easy to become frustrated
by how far you still need to go.
A simple way to avoid these motivational
sinkholes is to break your pursuits
into smaller, more achievable sub-goals.
This creates less daunting, incremental
benchmarks to compare your progress to.
It also creates more opportunities
to celebrate wins along the way.
This is especially important when working
towards bigger societal goals.
These issues are, by nature,
large-scale and complex—
no single action or person
is likely to solve them.
So if you only focus on the end goal,
it’s easy to feel personally powerless.
And the enormity of these problems
may be why so many people,
including those who care deeply
about the issues,
think that progress is impossible,
leading them to disengage.
In fact, one 2021 global survey
of young people
found that over half believe
humanity is doomed.
But despite these obstacles,
some people do manage to stay motivated,
engaged, and unstuck.
So, how do they do it?
Surprisingly, it’s not all about
how concerned you are
or how much you care about the issue
in front of you.
For instance, research has found that
among those who feel the most alarmed
about climate change,
only about a third take regular
climate action.
However, a unifying factor among
those who do take action
is the confidence that their personal
involvement could make a difference.
And this belief isn't misguided.
The long history of social progress
proves that change is possible.
And individual actions— whether it’s
volunteering, voting, protesting,
or personally contributing
to a communal goal—
are key to building the
collective momentum
that has tackled seemingly
impenetrable issues.
It’s not to say that concern and passion
have no place.
Moral outrage, or anger, can help
us focus on what’s at stake.
And when it’s correctly harnessed,
outrage can be a powerful unifier.
In the American Civil Rights Movement,
shared anger over systemic racism,
injustice, and violence
against Black people
galvanized diverse communities to work
together in the fight for equality.
And bringing together people
of different backgrounds and mindsets
is essential to building longevity
and resilience in any movement.
In this way, thinking about how you can
apply your own unique perspective,
knowledge, and expertise to promoting
change can be helpful.
And finding community has plenty
of other benefits.
Just witnessing other people at work has
been shown to motivate personal action,
creating a positive feedback loop.
Collaboration can help you better
problem solve
when you’re unsure what the next step is.
And the support and encouragement
of others
can serve as a source of inspiration
and joy
if you’re feeling exhausted,
defeated, or stuck.
The path to conquering any goal is long
and bound to hit sticking points.
Often, the best way to get unstuck
is just to take any action,
no matter how small
or imperfect the outcome.
Progress starts with writing that
next sentence, running that extra mile,
or even casting that vote
to build a better future.
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