Why you feel stuck — and how to get motivated - Shannon Odell

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.